When home owners are looking for new external garage door opener repair santa rosa, they often spend the majority of their budget on a fantastic front door to impress the neighbours. But the back door is equally important. All too often, a rear or side door turns out to be the weak spot in a home’s defences – ask any burglar.
So do your homework, and make sure your new back door is at least as strong and secure as the front. Here are a few things to look out for:
Your back door doesn’t have to look exactly the same as the front one, but for the sake of visual harmony it’s still best to pick a design that goes with the period and style of your property – so I would advise against installing, say, a gleaming aluminium and glass door in a Georgian town house.
Stable doors are an increasingly popular choice, particularly for older homes and country cottages. On a sunny day you can open the top half and enjoy the view, while keeping small children and pets secure.
French doors and sliding patio doors are ideal for bringing in natural light and creating easy access to your outside space. You can also get large glazed folding doors that open out completely, giving an unobstructed view of the garden.
Size matters, so measure the opening very carefully before ordering to avoid a costly mistake. Standard off-the-shelf wooden doors, the most economical option, are available in a range of widths (usually between 30 and 36 inches), and most of them can be trimmed to fit – but check first, as this is not always the case.
If the existing door frame is damaged, or you are planning to buy a plastic or fibreglass door that cannot be cut to size, you will need to get a door set, comprising a frame and matching door. This will obviously cost more than just a door leaf, but at least you know it will definitely fit.
Timber, primarily pine, oak and hemlock, is the most popular natural material used in the manufacture of external doors. Solid wood doesn’t stand up very well to our British weather, so nearly all doors are now made from engineered timber – tiny sections of wood bound together with adhesive. The resulting multi-layered material is extremely robust, and a good deal more stable than natural timber. The panels are then glued and fixed together with dowels – tiny wooden pegs – or stronger, but more expensive mortise and tenon joints.
To finish off, the door is coated in wood veneer. A thin layer of an expensive timber can be used to cover a cheaper hardwood core, keeping costs down. The process also ensures that a consistent colour and grain can be used across all the door panels.