Entry Door Recommendations?

[OscarQ]

Looks like we may have to replace both our front and back doors. Back door I don't care much about as that room is part of a future renovation project so I'm not dropping big money there.

Front door has been on my wish list for a long time so I'm using this as an opportunity to replace it.

Our house is 110+ yo brick colonial-ish townhouse. I want something traditional to go with the house but modern (if possible). And it needs some glass.

Any companies you recommend? I'm looking at Therma-Tru.

Thanks!

[OG Jo]

This is not our exact door, but similar - fiberglass with 1/4 glass.

www.homedepot.com/p/Milliken-Millwork-37-5-in-x-81-75-in-Brighton-Decorative-Glass-Craftsman-1-4-Lite-2-Panel-Primed-Fiberglass-Smooth-Exterior-Door-Z021381L/207206950

The HD salesman was extremely helpful. He asked about which was the door faced and if it got direct sun, etc. and helped us decide which type of door would be best for our home.

We went from 1/2 glass to 1/4 and I'm much more comfortable with it - perfect amount of light is let in but people don't immediately see us sprawled on the couch when they walk up. LOL!

[lys]

We did Therma-Tru doors 8 years ago - and they have been great - still like new today.

[Mimi]

Our front door is by Glass Craft.

[TBM]

We've been looking at Therma Tru, but just haven't pulled the plug. We have 3 exterior doors that should be replaced, but one is a custom size and i would cost a lot to replace it-if we could even get it in a style we liked. We really should replace the other two soon though.

The company that built our kitchen cabinets has a door division too and sells Therma Tru....I would rather go through them than someplace like Lowes.


I could be wrong, but I think mrspez07 and maybe munkii, Susie, and pixy0stix have put in Therma Tru doors.

[larzhope]

I have a similar front door to what OG Jo posted. we had a 3/4 lite door at our old house and I really miss it. It let in so much light! I don't think our HOA would approve a 3/4 lite door at this house b/c all the doors match

[pixy0stix]

I love our Therma tru door. We did have a bit of an issue with Home Depot and the factory actually getting the door, but once installed it's been great.

[munkii]

TBM, is correct--we installed a ThermaTru Pulse last year, and it's fantastic. We upgraded to the multi-lock function that latches the door at the top and bottom in addition to the middle.

Please don't get a mission style door. It hurts my head and my eyes every time I see someone slapping one on their house even if they don't have a mission house. If it's a generic house, that's one thing, but people are putting them on everything, and it makes no sense.

[Susie]

Wow, TBM with the GBCN memory!

Yep, we put in a ThermaTru front door about 3 years ago.  We ordered it from a local lumber company, and had a good experience.  We installed it ourselves which was an adventure, but once we got it in it's been good to go.  We have one of the Smooth Star fiberglass styles.  We went with a much smaller glass than the door we were replacing.  The old door always made me nervous from a safety perspective because someone could have broken the glass, reached through, and unlocked the door.  I feel safer keeping the bolt further away from the glass.  You can also deal with that by having a key in the lock instead of a lever on the inside, but that's kind of a pain.

On a 110+ yo brick colonial, I'd probably look at something in the colonial grill style.  There are a whole bunch of different grill configurations/glass pane sizes.

[mrspez07]

We ordered a front door with sidelight and back door last year from a local lumber company and had a local handyman install. The doors are great, the handyman's attention to detail didn't quite meet my standards tho ;-). Both are Therma-Tru.
The doors are great and we really like the look and quality of both. We did a 1/2 glass on the front and a full glass on the back with a screen door. We did the glass pattern with some privacy. I feel like the front could have a bit more privacy (wavy glass, etc) but don't mind the back, even though it's the same style. We were stuck on making the final decision on the style after combing thru the catalog. We wanted something paintable (including the window trim, I think the cheapest line or some other brands have trim that is not paintable). We used the Therma-tru app to do picture comparisons of The front door with different doors and that helped us narrow down a preference on the size of glass.

One year in, I think we need to buy new hardware on the back (handle, lock), we reused an old one and it gets pulled a lot by kids and comes loose and then doesn't line up quite right (hoping it's that and not the door alignment overall, that door was the one I feel the handyman kind of just said good enough.
ETA: I just looked up the order, smooth star with Sedona style glass with brushed nickel leading (no red glass accents like their catalog). Let me know if you want pics.

[simpsongal]

Has anyone done a wood entry door? Or is that just asking for trouble? Thermatru looks good but it doesn't look like they have divided glass or wood options on the website.

[TBM]

Jun 3, 2017 8:53:07 GMT -5 simpsongal said:

Has anyone done a wood entry door? Or is that just asking for trouble? Thermatru looks good but it doesn't look like they have divided glass or wood options on the website.

Wood doors are not particularly energy efficient and they require more upkeep than fiberglass doors.

That said, I keep looking at the Simpson door website because they have some really nice contemporary styles that would look great on my house.  I am not sure about wood doors in our climate though.  I am pretty sure that getting the ones that will stand up to the rain and humidity (at least one door is fully exposed to the elements) would add on $$$ to the price..

[mrspez07]

Jun 3, 2017 8:53:07 GMT -5 simpsongal said:

Has anyone done a wood entry door? Or is that just asking for trouble? Thermatru looks good but it doesn't look like they have divided glass or wood options on the website.

I thought they had wood in the catalog with windows, but maybe it was a wood-looking fiberglass.

[Mimi]

Jun 3, 2017 8:53:07 GMT -5 simpsongal said:

Has anyone done a wood entry door? Or is that just asking for trouble? Thermatru looks good but it doesn't look like they have divided glass or wood options on the website.

Our front door from Glass Craft is a solid mahogany door.  It's 5yrs old.  We have never had any problems.  Still looks new.  We should reseal it this year though, based on someone's recommendation.

[OscarQ]

Thanks all. The front door we're replacing is wood and it doesn't do well in our climate and the amount of sun the door gets. But it probably wasn't a high quality door (previous owners put it in).

I am looking at the Smooth Star ones and plan to go to a local store to check them out in person. I found their website and app a bit frustrating.

Appreciate the input.