Simple Guide to Understanding the Different Types of Exterior Doors

Your exterior doors form an important component of your home’s curb appeal that lets you impress your visitors with a touch of creativity and style while ensuring security to your house. Entry doors are designed with quality materials that can handle rough handling and harsh elements. They come in a variety of styles and designs for even more beautiful front door. In addition to improving your home’s curb appeal, you also get to make a lasting statement with a creative exterior door.

Types of entry doors include steel, aluminum, fiberglass, and iron doors. All these varieties have unique features, as such, it’s important to consider your options carefully and do a bit of research when choosing the right front door based on your preferences.

Considerations When Choosing Exterior Doors

Like any other home improvement project that goes into your home, there are obvious costs involved which include up-front and ongoing costs such as the maintenance and repair fees. Exterior doors variety are no different, and that’s why you need to consider each option by looking at their specific features like durability and security, benefits and maintenance requirements. However, the most important aspect of entry doors is the material used, and it’s actually what determines the price.

Steel Front Doors

Steel doors are perhaps the best alternative to choose if you’re looking for something more durable, especially in regions with extreme weather conditions; heavy rains and blazing hot sun.
Another thing about steel doors is that they neither expand nor shrink, meaning the door locks safely secures in the strike plate while allowing clearance for smooth opening and closing of the door, all year round.

In addition to durability, steel exterior doors offer more security than any other type of entry door. Compared to wood, steel is relatively less beautiful and doesn’t offer much aesthetic value. For more custom look, modern style front doors made of steel are designed to have an impression of high-end wood doors minus the maintenance requirements usually associated with wood doors. With all these benefits, it’s still a surprise how steel is considered the most economical option.

Wood Exterior Doors

Wood doors are the most common type of exterior doors and often feature intricately sculpted artwork and coated with waterproof polyurethane varnish for an even more lasting impression on guests. These doors are timeless and add to a home’s curb appeal even though they are much more expensive than steel or any other type of exterior doors. Wood doors require high maintenance to ensure they withstand harsh weather and reduce damage. You can choose to have glass inserts or glass crown on the door to allow light into the room. This helps manage energy efficiency in your home. The increased technology has also seen the production of wood veneer, which is a type of exterior door made from compressed wood at the center and covered with a wood veneer. This engineered wood performs much better and is relatively cheap than solid wood doors.

Fiberglass Entry Doors

Fiberglass is a new technology for entry doors, and more people are considering this option because of its numerous benefits. This door is resistant to dents and rust unlike steel, low maintenance than wood doors, toughness, and generally better insulation. What’s even better is that there are plenty of style options available in the market to choose from. It combines the feature of a steel door, toughness, and the beautiful appeal of a wood door. You can have it customized to your specific needs and leave an impression.

When looking for your ideal entry door, you’d want to avoid the common mistakes many homeowners make by acquiring more information and trying to understand the different types of entry doors. If you’re not sure about where to start, try consulting a door installation and repair expert who can guide you on choosing the most ideal door that fits your needs and budget.