Choosing a front door

[worms]

Been looking for a door again. I can't find anything along these lines second hand, but the one I like best is actually a cheap softwood one.....
http://www.wickes.co.uk/invt/221924

Constructed from mixed materials including preservative treated timber, real pine veneers and man-made materials

:roll:

 

[LadyArowana]

E.bay might yield a bargain. This probably not right size, but looks like the seller is near you and it might go for cheap, and be repairable given your awesome DIY skills.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Exterior-...t=UK_Home_Garden_Doors_LE&hash=item35c655cceb

 

[Zebra]

I suppose you're right Lime, the Wickes one is neither quality nor an ethical choice, it was just the style I liked.
Lady A, yes that is just what I'm looking for, thank you for looking, that's so nice of you to invest your time in my front door dilemma. That particular one would have been too narrow. However, it seems that ebay has mock-georgian doors coming out of its ears, but there aren't many second-hand stable doors or cottage doors on there that would be suitable. Quest continues, thank you for your input.

 

[Zebra]

There's this one on ebay.. It's a bit dark, and a production line door rather than a unique item, and I don't really like the patterned glass, and it's miles away. But it would fit!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/140955847139?_trksid=p5197.c0.m619

 

[Keith Bowman]

There's this one on ebay.. It's a bit dark, and a production line door rather than a unique item, and I don't really like the patterned glass, and it's miles away. But it would fit!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/140955847139?_trksid=p5197.c0.m619

Forgive me for being nosey, but are you sure you postman will be tall enough to reach the letterbox?

 

[discobarry]

If you want insulation, don't get a stable door. We have just had two doors fitted and the top half has 4 panes of double glazed argon filled glass, the difference it has made temperature wise is incredible. A joinery firm made our doors to spec.

 

[Zebra]

Hello Discobarry. Sorry, I'm not sure I get you. So you had a stable door before, and have now got a non-stable door? Or is your new door a stable door? I'm not sure what you're comparing with what. What was wrong with the stable door? Was it not double glazed? Was it leaky? Thanks for any info!

 

[Flyfisher]

Pertinent questions, Zebra. I wouldn't say stable doors are thermally poor per se, it will all depend on the construction

The stable door shown in the photo I posted above is well sealed within the frame as well as between the two parts of the doors and is completely draughtproof. We've also had a new oak stable door made for the kitchen extension and the lower, solid, part is double planked with celotex between the layers.

The thermal performance of any door will be dependent on the construction. A stable door introduces an additional joint between the two halves, but this should be no more difficult to seal than the usual joints between door and frame. Of course, the quality and effectiveness of door seals can vary enormously, but that's not really a stable door issue.

 

[Zebra]

We've also had a new oak stable door made for the kitchen extension and the lower, solid, part is double planked with celotex between the layers.

This sounds like an interesting idea. Did you have a local joiner make it for you? (How is your kitchen extension coming along, anyway, since I saw it last year?)

 

[Flyfisher]

We had the door and the oak windows made by a joinery company in Norwich, so reasonably local.

Things slowed down (ok, stopped) over winter and the roof lights took longer to manufacture than expected due to their size, but things are starting to progress again now. I'll have to sort out some photo updates soon.

 

[discobarry]

We did have a stable door which was awful, saying that though in the front room we had a solid oak door which hadn't even been fitted properly.

Our new doors are far better which is down to good construction and quality materials.

 

[MdB]

We've also had a new oak stable door made for the kitchen extension and the lower, solid, part is double planked with celotex between the layers.

This sounds like an interesting idea. Did you have a local joiner make it for you? (How is your kitchen extension coming along, anyway, since I saw it last year?)

We bought ours on ebay. The lower part is only a single layer of planks and this was a mistake as it suffers badly from condensation. Will have to do something about that.

 

[billybuntus]

I know they wouldn't have thought about U-values, but I was impressed by a door I saw on a former barracks building in an exposed site a few years ago, where the construction was two layers of inch-thick, tongued and grooved pine, counterboarded with a thick, wool, army blanket sandwiched between the two.
I always fancied copying that when I get round to replacing the (doubtless-expensive-but-out-of-character) mock Georgian front door on our cottage.

Well actually in the short term I was thinking of making a door out of sheets of ply with some celotex sandwiched in the middle. I'm sur it would be thermally better than anything available!

A little larger at 48mm.

With what thickness panes, if you don't mind me asking.?

Try medite tricoya. New generation MDF with a 50 year exterior guarantee and 25 year below ground guarantee.

I think the thermal efficiency is pretty good too. Don't use ply it will de-laminate and look awful. I know this from experience.

Its around 90+vat for an 8x4 12mm sheet and 120+vat for 25mm. It's top notch stuff though,

 

[Zebra]

We've also had a new oak stable door made for the kitchen extension and the lower, solid, part is double planked with celotex between the layers.

I've just had my joiner round here to look at making me two new doors, and I asked him about doing just that, having celotex in between the layers... He was concerned about it "sweating up" in the middle of the door, ie warm air condensing in the middle of the door.

I don't suppose you'd know whether you have a problem with condensation in the middle of the door, would you? I can't see why it would be any worse than a double planked door without insulation in. I suppose you could use sheepswool instead to make it breathable.

 

[Flyfisher]

I don't really know but I'd guess that if condensation can get inside the door then it would be able to also get out, particularly in the summer when the door is heated in the sunshine, and I'd like to think a 2-inch oak door would last a long time - sweating or no sweating.

 

[Zebra]

I suppose it would... I'm thinking of having him make it in Douglas Fir, although he's not keen on grounds of durability (he wants me to go for Idigbo, and laughs at my moral refusal...). My windows are in Douglas Fir, and I can't think that a door would suffer more from weather than a window, why should it?

 

[dans]

Rigid insulation in doors is pretty standard practise nowadays. I'd say, that if your joiner is unfamiliar with it, then I'd find another joinery or their opinion. We used Harleston Joinery for our Idigbo doors, with celetex and they are now in the process of doing the same with a large garage door. Really excellent work...

 

[dans]

PS. I understand your moral concern wit Idigbo. If you can satisfy yourself with how yours are being sourced, it does look great! To the untrained eye, it looks just like oak!

I'll try to get pics of mine shortly...

 

[Zebra]

Well I'm going to paint mine, so don't really mind what it looks like.....
Would love to see pics though dans....
Got the price back from the joiner, but now found an off-the-shelf thing which might do, in oak veneer, Part L compliant so must be thermally good, and will look much the same once painted.

 

[Zebra]

Dammit.
Still no further forwards with choosing front and back doors.
As one is in a new extension, they have to be Part L compliant.
I have found a local supplier who sells very nice oak veneer doors which are Part L compliant, but they aren't FSC certified, because they have an engineered hardwood core.
Should I compromise on principles?
All the FSC ones I can find aren't Part L compliant.
I could get one made, but it's a standard size, I must be able to find something off-the-shelf!