Today's Technology And You

Today's
TECHNOLOGY AND YOU

New doors keep energy in, intruders out

Super-efficient steel doors are attractive and secure.

Q: My old wood front door is leaky and ugly. I want to replace it with one that is efficient, attractive, secure and maintenance-free. What is the overall best type of front door to install?-- T. A.

A: One of the new designer insulated steel front doors is an excellent choice for most homes. The first thing I did when I moved into my house was replace the old wood front door with an insulated steel one with super-efficient etched and beveled glass. The reduction in energy-wasting, chilly drafts and outdoor noise was very noticeable.

With more advanced manufacturing processes to form and finish the steel skin, many insulated steel doors are difficult to distinguish from real wood doors. Crisper and deeper edge definition creates sharper shadows and relief for an authentic wood appearance. Steel doors are literally maintenance-free and secure against intruders.

For the most realistic wood appearance, select one of several types of stainable and grained steel doors. One designer series, Acclaim, has a 10-mil thick (about as thick as four pieces of paper) vinyl coating baked onto the steel. The surface is embossed with a pattern made from real wood grain. It can be stained like real wood or painted.

Another design, Signature series, has a real natural oak wood veneer permanently bonded to an efficient insulated steel door core. The basic core is a one-inch thick insulated steel door. It looks like a real solid wood door and it does not shrink or grow with the changes of the seasons.

Various glass options can make your door efficient, unique and attractive—leaded or brass earning, etched, beveled, frosted, glue chip, etc. For the best comfort, efficiency and noise reduction, choose double or triple pane, low-emissivity (low-e) glass with insulating inert argon gas in the gap. Weathershield offers triple pane glass with double low-e coatings and krypton gas in the gaps. This creates a center-of-glass insulation value as high as R-10.

An insulated steel door is one of the most secure designs against intruders. The steel skin is difficult to break through. When evaluating the strength of the door, remember that a smaller steel gauge number indicates a thicker and stronger steel skin. Many doors use heavy wood or ABS plastic (used for golf club heads) lock blocks that are very rugged. For the best security, choose a prehung steel door in an adjustable easy-to-install steel frame. Several new features can increase security even more. One, Alert Lock, has a built-in battery- operated burglar alarm. You can set the door so that when it is locked, the alarm is set. Any shaking of the door sets off a loud alarm for two minutes. Since it takes longer than this to break through a steel door, the burglar will run. The shaking sensitivity is adjustable to eliminate false alarms from pets or the wind.

Another security feature is a multipoint deadbolt lock. The deadbolt hooks into the frame in three locations spaced from top to bottom. It is operated by a durable metal rack-and-pinion system hidden inside the door. All of the parts of multipoint locks are made of heavy solid brass. With a steel frame too, it is virtually impossible to break in. Steel skin construction makes these doors efficient and maintenance-free. Many steel doors have insulating foam injected into the hollow door providing an insulation value up to R-10.8. Other designs use a preformed rigid foam piece that is bonded inside the door during construction. Both are effective at blocking heat transfer and outdoor noise transmission.

Since steel does not grow or shrink with humidity changes, it remains airtight. Choose a steel door that uses magnetic (refrigerator-type) weatherstripping seals. On many models, the sill can easily be adjusted up and down with a screwdriver to compensate for settling of a house. In cold climates, a door with built-in thermal breaks between the indoor and outdoor skins is effective. Some use foam-filled or vinyl edge seals for the thermal break.

Write for Utility Bills Update No. 769 showing a buyer's guide of 13 insulated steel/wood finish front doors listing type of insulation and lock block, styles, glass options, security features, prices and installation instructions. Please include $2 (checks payable to Jim Dulley) and a business-size SASE, and send to Jim Dulley, Illinois Country Living, P.O. Box 3787, Springfield, IL 62708.

James Dulley is a mechanical engineer who writes on a wide variety of energy and utility topics. His column appears in a large number of daily newspapers.

18 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING • JUNE 1997