New front door - where do I start?

[AliciaWhiskers]

I need a new front door. I've recently moved house and the current front door needs replacing.

Where do I start?

Sorry if this seems incredibly stupid - I've never bought a front door before and I'm not sure what to do. I presume I'd have to get someone to fit it, as the current door and surround are wood, and that's not necessarily what I would choose in a new door.

Thanks!

Look in local ads for a window and door company.

When we did it, we chose the door we liked and then they sent someone out to look at the frame and sort out what was required and then they sent us the quote. Simple

Remember Fensa or building control certificate, either is fine and I think only actually required if the door is over 50% glazed.

Also it's worth getting lots of quotes. Ours ranged by over £2k

@starfishmummy where did you find the door? From a window and door company?

Find a good local firm.

We were quote £1500 by most. Local company had am offer of limited range of styles and colours etc for £795. Just two vertical glass panels with choice of 4/5 patterns and in red, black, white, dark green, navy.

Ours looks great and we saved £700. I didn't want a designer look £700 worth!!

We got our builder (who we employed to fit the door) in to advise us; he told us to look online for a door we liked and send him the link so he could confirm it was fine for our needs. We ordered new door; builder fitted it.

Yes @alicia we just went to their showroom to look ar what they had.

I would suggest looking at composite UPVC doors. Composite doors allow for a wood-like texture and come in a range of colours so you will never need to paint them. You can also get colour on one side, and white on the inside to allow light to bounce around inside. It will come with the necessary frame, rather than putting it into the existing wooden frame.

The one thing I would do differently would be not to have a letter flap installed in the door, but to get a separate post box as the wind howls through it.

@NigellaAwesome thanks for the recommendation, my last door I think was a UPVC door and it was great. The current one has a very dodgy lock that both doesn't seem very secure, and the kids can't operate, so it's no good really. The UPVC ones seem a lot better in terms of security.

Interesting about the letter box, thanks for the tip!

You need to decide if you want wood, upvc or composite.

Wood looks nicest (IMO) but need to be maintained and can shrink/swell depending on the weather.

UPVC I don’t like the look, but plenty do.

Composite - these vary enormously!! Essentially they are as it sounds ‘composing of different materials’ some have solid timber interiors and some are ‘foam filled’.

They vary in price from about £700 to £2500. Many around £1400

I did an Online design with Endurance doors and got automatic quotes from a couple of their retailers. I nearly didn’t get in touch with the one who quoted £800 because I thought they might be rubbish quality, but actually they have been fantastic so far and the doors they supply have all the safety features you’d want & can be configured however you prefer.

I did other online designs too - there are plenty out there! Just check out the locking mechanism is of a good quality. Then choose one you like the look of

@nigella

I wonder if your letter flap is in some way faulty, I've never known or read about that be ing a problem ?!

The contemporary door I like has the letter flap on the bottom, I don’t think I can bring myself to do it to the postie!

I personally don’t want an outside box because a lot of deliveries than can be put through the door won’t fit in an outside box (of the standard variety)

Current door is wood and the chubb lock is a nightmare. I'm sure at some point I'm going to get locked out as it locks fine, but I'm struggling to unlock it. Therefore was going to go with UPVC/composite. So much to learn about!

UPVC are pretty rubbish from a security point of view. Composite ones are supposed to be pretty good, though the quality seems to vary a lot between manufacturers. Solidor, are well reviewed. If you look up companies like Solidor, they usually have a list of stockists/fitters/showrooms and you can find one in your area.

My door is hardwood one, it was made to measure (non standard size) by a local master carpentry company. I had it made thicker than standard, off the peg doors (for security reasons) and have British Standard mortice deadlocks and BS dead looking nightlatch. Whatever door you go for, make sure you have good locks on it, that meet British Standard 3621

@DogAndCatPerson why are UPVC rubbish from a security point of view? I never knew that! Thanks for the Solidor recommendation, will take a look at those.

From a current security POV, current door has a lock at the top that I would imagine would be quite easy to break through, and a chubb lock that I do lock, but will probably lock me out at some point! The door itself is wood, but in this weather it's expanded so it now sticks, and I'd imagine the swelling is why the lock is now dodgy.

If you are looking for a composite door, shop around. I got mine for circa £300 from someone who buys and sells "returns". They're not damaged in anyway, simply a case of wrong colour, measured incorrectly, etc... my builder fitted it for me.

Are you in Scotland? The government here subsidises a company called Windows advice which is an independent third party that’ll help immensely. They’ll talk you through what you want vs what you need and offer latest security etc advice. They then put measure up and put the job to tender with only trusted companies and inspect the job afterwards before releasing your money to them.

@Toodeloo unfortunately not in Scotland, no.

UPVC are useless because they are often fitted with poor quality euro barrel locks. They look good because they are 5 point locks but they’re not antisnap or antidrill or made to British Standards. You can get BS euro 5 point locks but most UPVC doors don’t come with them and certainly older UPVC doors don’t have them. Often the cheaper UPVC doors with panels are quite easy to kick in too.

@DogAndCatPerson thank you, that's really helpful

Spookily it could well be faulty as I have a few other issues with the company who installed the door and windows, although it is also in an exceptionally cold and windy part of the country.

@NigellaAwesome. It might be worth getting the letter flap replaced it’s too damn cold up there to have the weather blowing through 🥶
@AliciaWhiskers I wouldn’t personally buy UPVC I was trying not to worry, upset or offend anyone, but they really are flimsy and most don’t meet British standards for locks, & even if they do, it’s pretty unimportant when you can just put a boot through it!

@hauntedvagina. Yes you can buy the doors cheaper, but then you have to pay someone to fit it, or fit it yourself and I’d rather it was fitted by someone who is a FENSA certified fitter myself.

@AliciaWhiskers pull the door slightly towards you when locking & unlocking it should help until you get it replaced.

I personally think there are other doors out there that are as good as or better than Solidoors for far less money.

Timber core, British standard locks, FENSA fitted, - then choose one you like! 😊

@SpookilyBadOooooooh why would need a FENSA certified fitter for a composite door on a porch with a window that's approximately 12" by 12"?

@hauntedvagina if it’s less than 50% glass you don’t legally have to have one However, a lot of house sales are held up by the lack of one.

I didn’t say you or anyone HAD to, I just said that I would. You know they’re competent and it saves hassle when you come to sell 🤷🏻‍♀️

I'd go for a good quality composite door. Some of them look almost identical to painted wood, but don't require any of the maintenance.

We are about to go down this route. The quote (from a local door and window company that I walked past in the high street, having never noticed before!) includes fitting the whole doorframe and toplight (window above the door) because this is knackered too.

Start with a window/door company, and see what ranges of door they can supply/fit - they will all go to the same few suppliers. You can pick whatever accessories you want.

Current door is wood and the chubb lock is a nightmare. I'm sure at some point I'm going to get locked out as it locks fine, but I'm struggling to unlock it.

might be door is out of alignment, for example it has sagged, might be that the key is worn. Try doing it with the door open. If it moves freely, extend the bolt opf the lock with the door open, rub it with lipstick (yes) shut the door and operate the lock, open it, see where the lipstick has rubbed off.

A Chubb 5-lever or 5-detainer is about the most durable and reliable lock in the world, and the easiest to correct any problems.

Post some pics if you want.

I don't like plastic doors.