- How to choose the right front door: achieve safety and comfort
- Selecting the right front door: Types and materials
- Front door buying guide: How to protect home from burglary?
- Exterior door shopping & choosing tips: advice & recommendations
How to choose the right front door: achieve safety and comfort
The main purpose of the entrance door is to protect the house from entering. Aesthetic functions are also important, but when choosing the ideal front door, first rely on the protective characteristics.
The question "how to choose a front door" concerns every owner of the house or apartment. Therefore, this best entry door buying guide will tell you how to do it most correctly and conveniently.
Selecting the right front door: Types and materials
Any door consists of several elements: the essentials ones are a leaf and a frame. The quality of these components ensures the reliability and strength of the entire structure. Therefore, the material of the leaf is of great importance. It can be:
- wood or MDF;
- metal or steel;
- made of fiberglass;
- aluminum;
- made of plastic.
Use this table of types as the exterior door buying guide.
Wooden models. A good option for an apartment, this type is beautiful, eco-friendly and durable. If the product is equipped with sturdy hinges, it does not require replacement or repair and will last for many years. When choosing this option, make sure that the door has a layer of insulation. Otherwise, such a model will let pass a draft, cold and noise outside.
Such items are constructed from different types of wood. There are models made entirely from solid wood or from a combination with metal elements. However, this material has a drawback: with improper care, it cracks and deforms. The surface may be chipped and dented due to mechanical influences.
Metal entrance doors. Currently, this is the most common and popular option. Quality products have a solid frame welded from a solid steel tube. Models welded from pieces are characterized by less durability and reliability. The steel sheet of the leaf should be solid and of one piece as well. After all, welded seams reduce the strength. By all means find out these conditions when selecting the right entrance door.
This product is the optimal ratio of security and price. The surface can be paneled with wood or veneer, or can be powder coated or painted. Select the metal entrance doors, taking into account that they are exposed to the external conditions of the environment every day. Therefore, they must be resistant to mechanical and thermal influences.
Choosing a front door of fiberglass. Such structure is one of the most energy-efficient on the modern market. This is owing to high sound insulation properties and heat-resistant characteristics. It is a lightweight, but at the same time durable, modern material. It consists of glass fiber filler, which is fastened with a synthetic resin.
Unpretentious in care, fiberglass doors are resistant to dents. They are safe and secure, because they are distinguished by the strength of steel, but without its tendency to rust and corrosion. A variety of styles and designs will decorate almost any premise. The ability to imitate natural wood will appeal to lovers of natural products at a relatively affordable price.
Front door buying guide: How to protect home from burglary?
Many buyers are wondering - how to choose the right entry door? What construction ensures reliability and safety? One of the main parameters of security is to protect the home from burglary. How to achieve it? It is worth paying attention to some of the nuances.
Sturdy steel base. To ensure safety, the thickness of the metal from which the leaf is made is important. The thicker the metal, the more reliable the construction. The conducted researches to determine the strength property showed that the steel thickness from 0.04 to 0.08 inches is the optimal value. Such doors are strong enough; they well withstand strong mechanical impacts and shocks. They have the optimal weight and affordable price, which is an important factor for many customers.
Pay attention to stiffeners. To avoid burglary, the construction of the door should be durable and reliable. Safety and resistance to deformation are directly related to the rigidity of the door. To enhance the durability, each product is equipped with stiffeners. There is an opinion that the more the ribs, the stronger the construction. This is true, but they increase the weight of the product as well. And this, in turn, leads to the fact that you have to increase the number of hinges.
Door hinges are one of the important elements when selecting the entry door. Unfortunately, many buyers do not pay proper attention to this essential component. But the closing characteristics and the life of the breachblocks directly depend on their quality. So the question appears - how many hinges should the door include? Experts recommend choosing an entrance door with 2 or 3 hinges. But remember that the heavier the door, the more hinges you need to use.
The seals. They save your house or apartment from noise, cold and unpleasant odors. Using quality insulation, you can save 10-20 percent when paying for energy bills! Most often, polystyrene foam, polyurethane foam and mineral wool are used for their production. Polystyrene foam demonstrates the highest thermal insulation, while mineral wool provides great fire resistance.
Locks and locking systems are the main elements of the protection system. The modern market offers a variety of types of lock devices. However, the most common are:
- deadbolts;
- rim / Mortise locks;
- Euro profile cylinders;
- and lever handle locks.
Each of them has their own advantages. But it's better if different locking mechanisms are combined on the door to achieve the best protection.
Exterior door shopping & choosing tips: advice & recommendations
For a successful purchase we want you to know the entrance door shopping tips.
Determine your budget. The main mistake in selecting is that not everyone can competently calculate the budget to spend on a purchase. Remember that the type of housing must match the financial costs of the front door. For example, wooden models are not appropriate in problem neighborhood. For these purposes, quality steel doors will be excellent option.
There are several factors that also affect the cost:
- manufacturer and energy efficiency;
- protection against atmospheric and mechanical influences;
- functions and features included;
- door equipment and accessories;
- maintenance requirements.
Depending on these parameters, you can calculate the approximate price of a new product.
Another advice on choosing the front door is to make correct measurements of the doorway. For exact installation of the door, it is necessary to correctly and accurately take all measurements. Determination of the door parameters and the aperture saves you time and money. And also correct calculations are a guarantee of high-quality operation and a long service life.
In order to make measurements as accurately as possible, you need to measure the width and height of the doorway at several points. If the values are different, select the maximum. It is better to seal up a doorway a little, than to face a situation when it should be expanded.
How to choose a store where you can buy doors? When choosing a front entry door from a reliable seller, pay attention to the company's official website and assortment of products. After all, it's better if the online store presents a wide variety of designs. Customer feedback will be an excellent test as well. There are a lot of manufacturers and dealers on the market now. Therefore, if you don't know who to trust, look at the ratio of positive and negative reviews and their content.
What about the warranty? Choose the manufacturer and seller on the basis of the guarantees it provides for the products offered. You have to be sure that the door will be installed correctly, that it doesn't start to creak, etc. Therefore, always ask what guarantees will be provided, and for how long they are valid. In addition, the company must provide quality certification. It confirms that each door meets the declared requirements.
The problem is that there are plenty of companies selling doors in the market today. How to choose a front entry door at The Doors Depot and what advantages do you receive? When purchasing from us you get:
- exclusive designs from the Novo Porte brand;
- high level of protection owing to the use of innovative technologies;
- technology of multi-layer structure for increased sound and heat insulation;
- guarantee for high quality;
- affordable price.
We hope that these recommendations will help you to choose the right door, which will suit your home or apartment perfectly. Remember, you need more than just the front doors - you need the protection of your home! Contact us and we will provide you with all the information and answer all your questions.