Front (Entry) Doors

[Phen]

I hate our front door. It's the same one I see in new developments all across the state, with a big ol' oval faux etched glass window in the center. ugh ugh.

But the selection at Lowe's and Home Depot is really quite lacking. Are there any good sites y'all can recommend for new front doors?

TIA.

~ phen

[Sonicstef]

When we were shopping for doors it was such a pain. There are just so few options out there that look different enough without being too strange.

www.jenweld.com has some really interesting options that are in the midrange of prices.
http://www.jenweld.com/_images/attributes/ed_IWPfiberglass_entry_design_AU201301_mah_cashmer e_b.jpg
http://www.jenweld.com/_images/attributes/ext_fiber_iwp_craft_entry_362_b.jpg
http://www.jenweld.com/_images/attributes/ed_wood_iwp_classic_entr_120_aldergrey_noglass_b.j pg
http://www.jenweld.com/_images/attributes/ed_wood_iwp_contemp_entr_800_mahogchestnut_igglass _b.jpg
http://www.jenweld.com/_images/attributes/ed_wood_IWP_est_entr_1260_alderantchappo_b.jpg
http://www.jenweld.com/_images/attributes/ed_wood_IWP_est_entr_1301_aldercherry_speak_b.jpg


If you want something totally unique, you can have a custom door made but its extremely expensive.


For us we were very limited b/c we have a very small front door opening so we went with something more standard (b/c we didnt want to spring for the big bucks to get something custom). But if you have a more standard size, you have a lot more options.

[Tanya]

Oh boy, we have just been through this ourselves. I found some good pics here: Doors4Less (http://www.doors4less.com), but we found the best way was to unfortunately just go to all the door stores in your area and get quotes from all of them once you determined the size/style of door you want. Most places seem to rip you off for installation, staining and especially hardware. We went with a place that was giving free installation and staining with the purchase of doors $1200 and up. But you also have to pay for the molding inside and out, the threshold, and the t-astral if you have double doors. And if you are installing a different-sized door that what you have, that will cost extra.

We started with a single door, 2 sidelights, and transom (the overhead panel): http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5da38b3127cce936da85c46a600000005108AatGzdo5YtW
We ripped that out and reframed the opening to fit a double 32"ea/8ft tall mahogany door set. These were a custom size, but really all they did was cut down 36" doors that they'd ordered in 8' size (standard doors are 7' tall). I bought all my hardware (2 exterior handle sets--I only used one deadbolt though, 2! thumbolts for the non-used door--I had only bought 1, and doorbell) except hinges, since they came with and I had to pay about $7 each to upgrade the 4 hinges to satin nickel. A 7' door only needs 3 hinges. Of course they want to charge you to use your own hardware since they are installing.

Apart from that, they did everything else. We picked a glass pattern they stocked, color of leading, and the stain color, but that's it. It took them about 8 hours from beginning to end after we'd reframed (we had a plywood entrance for a month). With other companies, we got quotes anywhere from $6k to $9k, but we got this done for a bit over $4k. We're very happy and they did a great job. If anyone needs a rec in the Houston area let me know. That's the doorbell wire hanging out:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5da38b3127cce916e13a0c73700000025108AatGzdo5YtW http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d934b3127cce929a34d2040600000015108AatGzdo5YtW
I think I went off on a tangent, but if you have any more questions about costs of the various items, I'll be happy to help. I seached everywhere for help on the internet and came up with nothing, so it was a frustrating process since we were at the mercy of the local dealers.

And yes, HD and Lowes seemed useless for this stuff. No one seemed to know anything about their custom doors and most of them were fiberglass. What was wood seemed a rip-off.

[young lioness]

Tanya - your doors are beautiful!!

Thanks, Phen, for starting this thread. I'm on the lookout for a new door too. Our 1929 bungalow was renovated before we bought it last year, and they replaced the original doors with very plain doors that look wrong with the rest of the house. And the doors I've seen in home improvement stores don't look appropriate either.

This...

http://www.jenweld.com/_images/attributes/ext_fiber_iwp_craft_entry_362_b.jpg

is pretty much the style I'm looking for, but without the side windows. Thanks Stef!

[Sonicstef]

Lioness, jenweld has a whole collection of doors that would be gorgeous on an 20s bungalow!

[hmbay]

our front door is a Thermatru. They have a "designer" on their site which is kind of fun. http://www.thermatru.com/design/doordesigner.shtml Our door came from the same lumberyard as the materials from our home. I don't think Lowes/Home Depot etc carry them as they are a higher end door but I might be wrong.

[Janey]

For anyone who is in the Seattle area, both my fiance and my mother got their front doors at Frank Lumber (http://www.franklumberthedoorstore.com/home.html). They have a nice selection of good doors. My mother was so distressed that she wouldn't be able to find a good door for her new home until she went there.

[steffie]

We also have Jeld-Wen Doors (and windows too). They are great if you want something off the beaten Lowes / Home Depot path!

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b238/hsgeek/OurNewHouse1110.jpg

View from the interior (sorry so dark but they are stained wood interiors)
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b238/hsgeek/OurNewHouse1094.jpg

~Stephanie

[Phen]

Thanks, everyone, for the links! I'm totally hot for the Jeld-Wenn doors, but the closest dealers are in Oklahoma and Georgia. Argh. Time to check out the lumber yards!

I love all the doors y'all posted. Keep 'em coming!

~ Phen

[StephB1170]

We got ours from Home Depot- They are Feather River. I searched high and low for cost VS quality. I needed 2 doors so it doubled my cost. These were only $1800 and I think they look like much more $$...

http://images.snapfish.com/3446867923232%7Ffp64%3Dot%3E232%3A%3D7%3A7%3D377%3 DXROQDF%3E23239%3C3%3A29%3A75ot1lsi

http://images.snapfish.com/3446867923232%7Ffp63%3Dot%3E232%3A%3D7%3A7%3D377%3 DXROQDF%3E23239%3C3%3A2%3A247ot1lsi

[Phen]

I just had to come by and post a photo of my horrible existing front door. The one that I must get the hell out of here!!!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d631b3127cce930dcc10c86d00000015108QZN2TNm4bQ

Ugh, I hate it.

~ Phen

[shellbell516]

My husband is a Jeld-Wen rep and can answer any questions if you have them. :)

Jeld-Wen owns lots of other smaller companies that still go by their individual names too (i.e. Probuilt).

[shellbell516]

Thanks, everyone, for the links! I'm totally hot for the Jeld-Wenn doors, but the closest dealers are in Oklahoma and Georgia. Argh. Time to check out the lumber yards!

I love all the doors y'all posted. Keep 'em coming!

~ Phen

Actually any Lowe's can do a special order of a Jeld-Wen door. They have books to look through at the store. Do you have a Lowe's near you?

[suzubeane]

In the past, I've used (on jobs - not my own home)
Peachtree (http://www.peach99.com/products/entrydoors.asp)
Marvin (http://www.marvin.com/)
Pella (http://www.pella.com/products/entrydoors/default.asp?path=/products/entry)

I believe that Pella is available at Lowes now.

I like Marvin the best; they're considered "semi-custom" because they have standard designs and styles, but they make each one per job. You might have to wait a little longer because of that.

[shellbell516]

The Pella brand carried at Lowe's is not actually a Pella brand, it's a ThermaStar. ThermaStar is a vinyl window manufacturer that they bought out that now makes the windows and doors just for Lowe's. The only way to get a true Pella product is to go a Pella Windows Store.

young lioness My DH says that door you picked is a IWP Fiberglass door. It's a hand-laided custom fiberglass door that Jeld-Wen makes. They are VERY expensive, but very beautiful. You can hardly tell that they're are not real wood.

He also said that wood front doors don't hold up as well as steel or fiberglass and the companies usually don't offer as good of a warranty on them. But there are good wood doors out there, but they're not cheap.

[suzubeane]

The Pella brand carried at Lowe's is not actually a Pella brand, it's a ThermaStar. ThermaStar is a vinyl window manufacturer that they bought out that now makes the windows and doors just for Lowe's. I'd be interested to know what the differences are.

In my last job, a Pella rep came in and gave us a talk on Pella windows and software for specs; he was very excited that Lowes would be carrying Pella windows, so I'm assuming that they're still a pretty good product.

[Phen]

shellbell, that is fantastic news that Lowe's can order the Jeld-Wen doors for us! I have my heart set on one that I saw in an issue of Cottage Living. YAY! Now to just pick out the right color stain...

~ Phen

[shellbell516]

Phen - I asked my DH about it and he said they can only order some of the door from Lowe's. Maybe the one you like is one they can do. He also said that sometime smaller businesses that carry doors will be able to get Jeld-Wen ones, even though they're not listed on the J-W website.

[smiles33]

Shellbell--may I ask what door type your DH recommends for safety and longevity (assuming price isn't the key priority)? Our current two front doors look fine, but they feel very lightweight (I'm assuming they're just wood, though they feel even like hollow core wood doors) and not very good quality. I think they're standard "builder's grade" so I'd love to replace both with solid, safe doors that aren't so flimsy feeling. Is fiberglass the best? Steel? Does your DH have a favorite brand?

TIA for any help you can provide! :)

[tinkerbelljenny]

I love this thread. I would love to replace our front door too. Keep the ideas coming!

[shellbell516]

smiles33 - What you've got probably isn't hollow core (they don't make hollow core exterior doors). Fiberglass is strong, durable, and won't rot or rust. It's available in every style that steel is available in and can be smooth or textured (wood grained can be stained to look like real wood). This is the best choice.

Steel doors are more common in homes today. They are inexpensive and fairly durable (they can dent). They come in a wide variety of styles, sizes, and are priced lowest of all the doors. This is a better choice.

Wood doors are usually expensive (for a nice door), they don't have good warranties, they'll rot (if not taken care of), but they are very durable. This would fall into the good category.

His recommendation would be fiberglass or steel. His favorite would be Jeld-Wen of course, but as of right now they do not offer a fiberglass door, so Therma-tru would be the company to recommend. Lowe's sells Jeld-wen steel doors as Realibilt brand, but they are Jeld-wen manufactured. They also can special order the Therma-tru fiberglass doors.

[MrsBrownie]

DH and I are looking to upgrade our current front door. Unfortunately, it is relatively low on our priority list.

The door has a six inch tall window panel at the top of the door (I need to get some pictures taken) and is solid the rest of the way down.

The major problem is that our front entrance is windowless and very dark, we need the light to brighten up the front hallway.

We've looked at replacing the door and all it will entail (ripping out the molding and re-installing) but finally found a company that will come in and do a cutom window fitting out of the existing door. They will actually cut our door to fit the window insert we choose.

It's the best option for us, now I just need to move it up on the priority list.

And I will get some pictures to add so you can see a before and after (when it finally gets done!)

[Phen]

Ha! Two years after I started this thread complaining about my hated front door, I FINALLY have a new front door!

To recap: the hated hated hated old front door that let in so much afternoon sun that the hallway (and front of the house) gets unbearably hot, no matter what time of year it is
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1383/896173341_8449ff6051.jpg?v=0

And the new front door. It's still not my dream door, but because the front of the house faces west without trees/houses blocking the sun, this is the closest we could get. And it's a HELLUVA lot better!
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1126/897086772_9f2048a02b.jpg?v=0

we were planning on painting the new door green, but, you know, the white looks pretty good, too.

~ phen

p.s. we got the new door from Lowe's. This isn't our forever house and Lowe's asked a very reasonable price.

[jen]

Phen I LOVE the new door! And I like the white too :)

[Susan1027]

Phen, I JUST got back from Lowe's, and ordered that exact same door, but with matching sidelights. How weird to come home and see a picture of it. Obviously, I think you made a great choice. ;)

[Phen]

Thanks, y'all! Susan, did you get the Hampton style glass, too? That would be pretty spooky. :p

~ phen

[Susan1027]

Yep, Hampton glass. The exact door.


-Susan

[Julss05]

Hi girls,
We are also going to be shopping for a new door. Ours is a hideous 80's style door that came with the house. Since we got the new siding put up it just makes the door look that much worse! Also not a fan of the oval door. We live in a older townhouse community where everyone is remodeling their houses and oval doors are popping up everywhere. I want ours to be a little different. Not sure I want glass down the front of the door but maybe at the very top along with a storm/screen door. What about peep holes? We currently don't have one but would like one installed on the new door.

[Phen]

I wanted the half-circle at the top, but I wasn't tall enough to see through it easily and DH has a major hate on for peepholes (I have no idea why). So the one panel was a good compromise for us.

~ phen

[jeanine]

Does anyone have any experience with Masonite Entry doors? They have a glass option/style that I really like, but I've never heard of them.

Thanks!

[MrsBeckyLP]

jeanine- We have Masonite interior doors. Our front door isn't Masonite, but it's Therma-Tru, which is basically the same thing. Are you looking for information on fiberglass doors with wood texture/look? Our Therma-Tru is exactly that, and I love it. I won't write a book about it here, but if you have any questions, let me know.

FWIW, here's a pic of our Therma-Tru door:

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k269/lp_becky/DSCF0645.jpg

[dal]

Hi ladies.

After dealing with a front door that is drafty and has gross peeling paint, we have finally decided to get a new front door and a storm door. I am very excited about this but I need some advice. When we bought our house, our front door was painted red. Sometime last year it began bubbling and peeling. We had it "professionally" repainted last Spring and now, not 6 months later, it is bubbling and peeling again. Since we aren't in love with the door anyway, we are just replacing it now rather than repainting it again and eventually replacing the door anyway.

But this whole paint fiasco is giving me anxiety about having to paint a new door. So I am looking into pre-finished doors or doors that just need to be stained or something. I am leaning towards fiberglass. I think we will probably end up going through HD. Does anyone have suggestions on doors we can get that do not need to be painted?

Thanks so much!

[dal]

Since my last post (last one in this thread), I think we've decided on a Therma-Tru pre-finished door. We are not going with HD anymore. I need some advice. Our house has gray siding and black shutters. Do you all think we can get away with a wood stain and if so, how dark of a stain can we go? I like the darker stains but I'm just not sure if it will look right with black shutters.

Thanks!

[MrsBeckyLP]

dal- (Good choice on the Therma-Tru door. We really like ours.) Have you tried the door designer on Therma-Tru's Web site? Here's (http://www.thermatru.com/StyleDoorDesigner.aspx) a link if you haven't. There is a home on there with white siding and black shutters, so you can kind of get the feel for it. I added a dark-stained door to it, and I think it looks nice:

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k269/lp_becky/COLONIAL-800.jpg

I think a darker stain would actually be much better than a light stain.

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k269/lp_becky/COLONIAL-8001.jpg

I think wood-like doors add a lot to a house.

[rileyandfredsmom]

Here's another option for entry doors that I haven't seen mentioned in this thread...we went with Champion windows and doors.

I don't care for glass in a front door, seems like a security issue to me and my house was built in 1976 so I wanted to stay pretty true to the style of the house.

The door that was on the house when we bought it was a typical off-the-shelf big box store door that had been painted blue. The paint job was horrific and didn't match the house at all.

Existing door:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/159/423110328_fb74eec883.jpg?v=0

The new door was painted at the factory so the finish is PERFECT and the style is very similar to several doors that are original in the neighborhood. I think it is a much better fit for the house. And the quality is outstanding as well as the warranty and service we have received with it.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1182/580789194_7422cccf81.jpg?v=0

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1011/580789282_37861425f7.jpg?v=1193018726

[dal]

MrsBeckyLP Thanks so much for posting those pictures! I did actually do that door designer thing last week but I couldn't decide if it looked weird or if I just wasn't used to it. I actually love that first picture you posted. I even love that actual door so I'm going on the site now to see what that is. Which Therma-Tru do you have? If you have a wood stain, what color is the back of the door (the inside of your house)? Do they only stain the outside when you get a pre-finished door?

ETA - oops, I just saw the post above of the door you have. Sorry! So did you stain it yourself or was that a pre-finished one? And what color is the other side of the door? Sorry for all the questions. I want to get this one right. I hate regretting a purchase!!!

[MrsBeckyLP]

No problem, dal!

Ours is a Fiber-Classic door with "cedar" stain, done at the factory. It looks a bit more reddish in person. Stain colors (http://www.thermatru.com/StainDoorColors.aspx)

The back of the door actually is the same color as the front, because it is a pretty close match to our cabinets. Our house has an open concept, so the front door is visible from the kitchen and vice versa. Our trim is all white, and our floors are light maple. The door looks really nice and flows well with everything. But, I'm sure you could have the inside of the door done in another color or white, if that's what you want.

Here is a photo of ours for reference:

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k269/lp_becky/Housebuilding060.jpg

FWIW, I'm in love with our front door!

[dal]

I just got back from a local dealer looking at Therma-Tru doors. After talking with the guy, I'm not sure I'll go prefinished or not. I got a quote from him on the door but then I have to get a separate installer to install. For those of you who bought doors from Lowes, how are their installation prices? Or did you install yourselves?

Thanks!

[rileyandfredsmom]

We just had our storm door installed by Lowe's and the installer did a very good job. But, that said, every Lowe's uses outside contractors so you never know what you are going to get. Our storm door cost $135 to install and we thought that was a bit high, but as we have learned, we are not do-it-yourselfers, so sometimes we just have to bite the bullet. (although for the hallway doors, we are using a contractor that is charging significantly less than Lowe's charges).

[sdianems]

I have a question for you all....I really need to address the front door issue of my house (built in early 70's and not fitting flush in the jam (sp?) anymore). I am wondering if I need to replace the entire thing, or if I can keep the door but have the surround replaced?
Has anyone been though this? Thoughts would be greatly appreciated! If I can fix the problem with minimum fuss and expense, then I would rather just keep the exisiting front door.
TIA!

[dana b]

can you just have the door taken down and shaved in those areas? or is it the gaps that are bugging you? i've had doors shaved, the frames rebuilt and put in new doors and they can do all sorts of things to make doors work.

[sdianems]

or is it the gaps that are bugging you? I would say that is it...the house seems to have settled over time and the door no longer sits flush in the frame. During the winter, I could see through the crack and feel the wind rushing in (and my heat rushing out). The door itself is steel, so no shaving in the plans I think.
Don't get me wrong, I LIKE the IDEA of getting a whole new door (maybe one with some windows) but if it is going to be substantially less expensive to keep the door and repair the house framing around it, then I am going to have to do that.
Thanks! :)