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Doors for All Seasons
by
Eric SlarkowskiInstalling a new door can make a big difference to the interior or the exterior of a home. If you think that painting your existing door will not improve the door enough for you, then a new door is a wise investment. Many people also replace their doors when they are drafty, badly insulated, or do not fit properly into the door frame. A high quality new door can lower the costs of heating or cooling your home because it probably has better insulation than your old door. Vintage doors are often made of cheap materials like plywood, while today’s doors are better made, although you may end up paying more dearly for them. For instance you can pay five hundred dollars for a new front door, but the door is usually reinforced with metal for safety reasons.
The three kinds of doors are interior doors (which more often than not do not have locks on them), entry doors (extremely sturdy doors with safety measures to keep out burglars and other undesirables), and combination doors such as storm or screen doors. Installing doors is a project that you can probably do by yourself, although sometimes it is a two-person job if the door is especially heavy. Usually one person needs to hold the door up while the second person takes it off its hinges.
Doors can be purely functional, purely decorative, or a little of both. For instance, many people have front or entry doors with decorative windows cut out of them. Stained or marbled glass is a popular addition to front doors with cutouts
. Some people have a front door of solid wood, but then put a decorative storm door outside of that to keep their house well insulated. Then they can leave the solid door open during the day and admire the view through the storm door.
You can usually buy doors in standard sizes for your doorframe. Only rarely will you have to cut them to the right size. If there is a special kind of wood you would like to use however, or want to save yourself some money, you can order wood from a lumberyard to your specifications. Make sure you take precise measurements of the old door before you order.
A new door requires handles a door set. You can buy a kit at a hardware store to install on your door or get a professional to do it. The most important thing to remember when installing your door kit is to make sure everything measures up properly. You need to set your hinges before you drill a hole in your new door. Once you make sure everything is aligned in high fashion, then you can install your door kit. The door should close all the way when you are done, or you have done something wrong. Sometimes you might just have to adjust the screws in the hinges to fix the problem. Other times, you may need to cut a sliver off the door.
Eric Slarkowski is publishing first and foremost for http://www.insidewoodworking.com , a website on the topic of machinery . You can have a look at his
writings on woodworking
over at http://www.insidewoodworking.com .
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