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Repair, Fix, Refinish or Replace That Exterior Door
By Peter Sicoli
Have you finally reserved yourself to replacing that old, rotting entry door? Have you had enough of the door not functioning properly, the draft you feel on a cold day, the constant fading and not being able to lock it easily? I can understand your frustration with an exterior door that is old and worn out. Even that exterior glass door with the foggy glass is getting on your nerves. So what you now need to do is either repair, refinish or replace your entry unit. But, before you start, let us take a look at a few important things to consider. Take a good look at what is going on with this door unit. Why does it need repair or replacement and what has caused it (other than age) to fail? If you have a wood door that is stained and is fading, be sure to take a good look at the sun exposure the unit has. A stain door that has faded may have sun exposure that is in excess of industry standards. Years ago the polyurethane on exterior doors was allot different than what is available today. Because of environmental laws the UV protection is not nearly as good as say 20 years ago. In addition, if your door has a red tone color stain, such as a cherry or red mahogany, that red pigment will be the first color pulled out by the sun, leaving you with a browner tone in just a few months. Do not get me wrong; it will still look good, but that red pigment will definitely get "bleached out" by the UV rays. Most importantly though is the polyurethane protection that is failing, but not obvious to your eyes at first glance. Small cracks in the poly will develop allowing moisture penetration and swelling, cracking and splitting of the lumber. Regardless what lumber is used, a door that is stained that has poly failure will have door failure if not maintained. Constant maintenance is needed on a stained mahogany door with sun exposure or any species of a wood door. So let’s say you have a painted door that has been painted over and over again, yet there is still failure say in rotting. Again the exposure is relative. Sunlight will cause negative effects on the unit. Although you may be able to spiff the door up with a nice paint job, it really may only be a temporary band aid. The unit will continue to deteriorate with time as water will find a way to penetrate hairline cracks not visible to your eye. This moisture penetration will cause severe rotting over time and eventually complete failure. The need for maintenance still exists for a painted door with sun exposure. It is important to avoid any prolonged development of those cracks not seen by the eye. When you can see those cracks with a quick glance, you know they have been there for a while and you better move quickly. Let’s continue our discussion about the sun exposure. Sun will create havoc to anything that is exposed for a lengthy period of time. Unless of course you are growing tomatoes, grass, flower or corn, I believe you get my point. Things other than those mentioned, exposed for a long period of time to UV rays will require maintenance, constant maintenance. So how can you determine if you door unit is exposed excessively to sun, and exceeds exposure to industry standards? Let us begin with the direction your door is facing. If this problem door is facing south, west or southwest...you have a problem. We all know the sun sets in the west. The sun is at its hottest, strongest most damaging time in the late afternoon. Your door, if facing in either of those directions will take a beating. Door manufacturers today require an overhang equal in size from the bottom of your door to the bottom of you overhang, or "X" needs to equal "Y". If "X" is your 7 foot door unit and to the bottom of your overhang is an additional 3 feet, then "X" will equal 7 + 3, or 10 feet. Now "Y" will need to be 10 feet as well to be with-in manufacturers warranty standards. Manufacturers do not take this requirement standard lightly, so be sure you have an accurate understanding of the warranty and accurate measurements of "X" and "Y" to protect yourself from disappointment with a failing new door because of sun exposure. Now a door unit facing north or east will have a different set of rules. While "X" remains as "X" and "Y" remains "Y", the difference is now "Y" only has to be 1/2 of "X". So in our example above the overhang will only need to be 5 feet, instead of 10 feet that is required for a south/southwest exposure. Although it may seem a bit confusing or perhaps a bit "strict", it really is for your own protection so you can make the appropriate decisions when it comes time to your exterior door. Repair that exterior glass door, fix that foggy piece of glass, refinish that fading door or replace that old wood entry door with confidence knowing what your exposure is and avoiding failure in the future again. Make sure you have the manufacturer’s warranty, in writing, in your hand and it is understood by all parties what is covered and not covered. Most, if not all warranties for an exterior door will not cover any labor to replace it and will not cover anything if you have too much sun exposure.
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The copyright for this content entitled "Repair, Fix, Refinish or Replace That Exterior Door" has been specified by the contributor as:
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This content may not be copied, distributed or adapted by anyone under any circumstances.
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This intel was contributed by psicoli
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May, 2012
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