Exterior Wooden Door

[starcott]

I need to obtain and fit a new wooden exterior front door.

The one I have now is made of hardwood and was purchased from Magnet many years ago. It has been a big disappointment in that the 2 joints at the bottom of the styles have opened so much that in damp weather it is very difficult to open the door.

Looking around at the new doors available it seems that the 2 main considerations are
a) dowelled joints or mortise and tenon, and
b) hardwood construction, or engineered with veneer.

I would welcome any advice on what to select for the minimum amount of swelling and twisting.

 

[jim2007]

Can't comment on the construction, but my brother used to sell doors for a very large manufacturer and the single biggest cause of problems, in his view, was a general failure to paint both the top and bottom edges. Apparently a large percentage of doors fitted don't have the edges, especially the bottom, sealed with paint or similar barrier material.

 

[mailee]

UPVC, wont twist or swell at all. :lol: Seriously, as has been stated it is all down to the finish and regular maintenance.

 

[Lons]

UPVC, wont twist or swell at all. :lol: Seriously, as has been stated it is all down to the finish and regular maintenance.

Spot on

I regularly fit external doors and relatively few are now timber, although there is still a huge market for hardwood and oak in particular - just take a look at B&Q.

Majority for me are now PVCu or better if customer is willing to pay the price are resin composite doors which are very strong, durable and good looking - but expensive!

That's what's going on my new extension.

 

[chippy1970]

I had to replace a front door today where someone who had been broken into and I replaced it with one they had chosen from Howdens. It was an oak engineered door around £400 and I was quiet impressed with the quality for Howdens. It was a matchboard style door with a small window at the top.

I would have said the engineered doors are more stable than traditional doors in the same way that engineered flooring is less prone to cup and twist compared to solid flooring.

PS being as I have fitted 1000's of doors and know what timber doors are like with swelling up etc I put a fibre glass door on my own house which was supposed to be the bees knees but has been terrible its bowed in the sunlight so doesnt seal well and lets the draft in so I wouldnt recommend one of those unless you are sheltered from the weather.

 

[markymark12]

Mass produced joinery is a complete waste of time unless the door is well sheltered. The composite doors are better than than used to be, but i would still avoid them if fitting dark colours into strong direct sunlight. If you are looking for a high quality well made timber entrance door. you need to be talking to a good recommended local joiner and ask a lot of questions about the construction method he uses, only one choice here, wedged through mortice and tenon. And forget about a couple of hundred quid and expect to pay highly for it.

 

[starcott]

Does that mean that you would suggest I go to a local joiner and have a door made of hardwood rather than buy a ready made door made from engineered wood?
Is not the hardwood door more prone to twisting than the composite door?

 

[markymark12]

Well constructed timber doors have and always will continue to find a place in the market. A lot of the problems associated with them can in part be blamed with the timbers used in their construction in the last 20/30 years. Mass produced rubberwood, numerous other types, in the main, what ever is cheapest in the market at the time for the buyers.
Poor construction methods using dowel construction, also plays a part in the failing of a lot of doors fitted in the past years. This continues to be used in these mass produced joinery products, reason being, it suits machine production better than that of traditional made mortise and tenon construction, and the use of engineered timber means the selection of the timber itself is less important. Take a trip to your local Howdens and look at their premium product doors using tenoned construction and then look at how it is wedged. A sight for sore eyes a lot of the time. The point always comes back to money however, todays methods are driven by everyones desire for everything to be cheap, and you get what you pay for, however if you are willing to pay good money for joinery it is out there, just not down at your local magnets and howdens. In truth however, it never has been there, ever.
The composite type i refereed to, were the metal/ fibre glassed skins on foam cores and others. I have found these to have come a long way in the last couple of years. But i would still not fit a dark colour in full sunlight.
Engineered timber doors whilst being sound in its concept are not suited to areas which receive a lot of traffic, by its nature they all really on modern glues and more to the point, a piece of constructional veneer to make it look pretty, one serious knock and you are stuck with it, no steaming it out or repairing in any way. To my mind keep veneers away from anything which is not disposal by its nature or should be kept to areas to which it is unlikely to be damaged.

I have made a large number of entrance doors over the years in all sorts of timbers, and i can say it is very rare i receive a call back for any issues that arise. Just a case of finding someone in your area. Tell them where it is located, facing south, etc, shielded, porch, painted finish/ natural timber. Let them tell you want you need and if you are unsure of the information they have given just post it up on here.

Hope that helps

 

[starcott]

It certainly does help.
Thank you for all the information and advice.
I now feel convinced on what to go for.

 

[Lons]

I put a fibre glass door on my own house which was supposed to be the bees knees but has been terrible its bowed in the sunlight so doesnt seal well and lets the draft in so I wouldnt recommend one of those unless you are sheltered from the weather.

They usually carry a manufacturer guarantee of at least 5 years

 

[chippy1970]

I put a fibre glass door on my own house which was supposed to be the bees knees but has been terrible its bowed in the sunlight so doesnt seal well and lets the draft in so I wouldnt recommend one of those unless you are sheltered from the weather.

They usually carry a manufacturer guarantee of at least 5 years

They normally do but I got it through the trade so I didnt get a guarantee and its older than 5 years now. I Just put it down to experience dont have a blue front door if the sun is on it all day :lol:

 

[OldWood]

I would back up the comment about maintenance - a good paint job keeps out the wet.

For what it's worth my front door faces west, is a framed ledge and batten door in elm. Put in over 20 years ago and is perfect. My brother nmade it for me in conjunction with a window and kitchen so I can't help with price.

The most interesting front door I've seen was in France. Oak planks in three orthogonol layers and lots of CI bolts. Must have been as heavy as hell but did look wonderful.

Rob

 

[Lons]

I put a fibre glass door on my own house which was supposed to be the bees knees but has been terrible its bowed in the sunlight so doesnt seal well and lets the draft in so I wouldnt recommend one of those unless you are sheltered from the weather.

They usually carry a manufacturer guarantee of at least 5 years

They normally do but I got it through the trade so I didnt get a guarantee and its older than 5 years now. I Just put it down to experience dont have a blue front door if the sun is on it all day :lol:

TBH I've only ever fitted 2 coloureds. dk red and other teak col. Both are local to me and look as good as the day they were fitted so maybe I've been lucky. All the rest have been white.

Don't get much sun in the frozen North so maybe that's it :lol:

I buy trade and get 5 years which I pass on to my customers obviously.