How to Choose Between Entry Doors

What types of entry doors are there for you choose from? Most of the doors you will be working with will be hinge-style doors, differentiated from sliding doors and accordion doors, which are ideal for the interior of a home. These entrance doors can be made of wood, steel, iron, aluminum or fiberglass. Wood is the traditional preference, and is perhaps the most sophisticated looking option. However, wood is also vulnerable to elements and inclement weather.

When you go shopping for entry doors today, you may have the opportunity to buy an entire entry system, which includes a door pre-hung in the frame, weather stripping and hinges and lockets that complement one another.

What Material for Your Entry Doors?

Today, because of the increase in technology as well as economic concerns from the public, not all door materials are 100% pure. A wooden door might not be all wood anymore. Some doors, many standard doors actually, now have steel interiors and wooden exteriors, or vice versa. A door with a surface of fiberglass may actually have a wooden frame. Some doors will also have a core of foam insulation.

Still, entrance doors are classified according to surface material, as the surface material is usually what matters most for appearance and cost. Doors are termed flush doors or paneled doors. Flush means that the door is flat and smooth on both sides, while paneled doors have rectangular panels framed by rails and stiles. There are also doors with doorlites, or what we more commonly call windows, which can help with aesthetics as well as energy efficiency.

When buying a door remember to consider all of the parts: from the casing to the panels, mullion and lock rail (the cross of the paneled door) and the threshold.