Beyond the obvious, there are numerous benefits to fitting a strong front door. They can help to reduce heat from escaping your building, while also preventing sound from coming in. Some can even help with natural light transmission, allowing sunlight to wash you’re your entrance hall, kitchen or corridors.

There is a lot to know about external doors, and a surprising number of features to consider when looking to buy. With so many styles and designs to choose from it can be difficult to keep track of all the factors you need to consider. This guide will look at some of the key points to bear in mind when looking for the right door for you.

• Types of External Door
• Types of Internal Door
• Types of Material
• Picking out Your Perfect Door
• What Accessories Do You Need?
• How to Replace a Front Door
• How to Fit an Internal Door
• Maintaining Your Doors
• Shop by Brand
• Shop Doors 
• What's Next?

Standard External Doors

The classic external door usually made out of sturdy, resilient wood. utilises glass, metal, and other such materials. They are almost always solid, usually constructed entirely from wood or, at the very least, produced with an engineered wood core.

French Doors (or French Windows) 

A bespoke door model that is comprised of a pair of doors usually flanked by or featuring large windowpanes. The French door is generally used to lead out into back gardens or onto patios. Within the house, they are usually located in kitchens or lounges, but it’s not unheard of to find them in ground bedrooms, office spaces or dining rooms.

Like all external doors, almost all available French patio doors are double-glazed, though single-glazed alternatives also exist as heritage options. Make sure you don’t get French doors confused with room dividers, which look similar but are strictly for internal use.

Sliding Doors

A great way to avoid space requirements of swinging doors or French windows while still allowing for easy access to and from your home. External sliding doors are all double or even triple-glazed and are easily operated.

More often than not, they are just as easy to maintain, if not more so, than there swinging counterparts. External sliding doors are very different from their internal counterparts, so make sure you’re looking at the correct variety before purchasing.

Folding Doors

Folding doors, as you may expect are pulled to the side and fold in on one another. This subtle design not only better allows your interior design to shine but can also be very practical - taking up far less space. Folding doors can be just as effective utilising four or even six folds as they can with just two; just remember that they will usually stack up to the side of the frame, and the more folds there are the more space they will require when stacked.

Double Internal Doors (door pairs)

Some standard doors can be purchased in pairs. This allows them to be installed directly next to one another, sharing the space within your wall as well as the surrounding frame. These double doors are ideal for larger rooms, but take up a lot of space, especially when both are open, so ensuring you have enough room is important. 

Sliding Doors

Internal sliding doors are another way to meet limited space requirements. They can be purchased with just one door present, though it is more common to see them in pairs, with each side parting along the rail that is usually placed at the top of the frame. Internal sliding doors are very different from their external counterparts, so make sure you’re looking at the correct variety before purchasing.

Pocket Doors

Some of the best doors on the market for those with limited space, pocket doors are similar to sliding doors, only they are designed to disappear into the sides of your wall itself – becoming completely obscure save for the handles. While these are ideal for smaller room layouts, you’ll still need plenty of empty space within the wall, preferably with no internal constructions such as wire or pipe systems present.

Engineered Wood

Arguably the most common door type, you’ll find engineered wooden doors in countless designs, styles, and colours. Some are painted while others retain their natural wooden surface with a finish to help emphasise character and charm.

Engineered wood is lighter than the solid alternative, which makes the door far more manoeuvrable. An ideal choice for use within interiors. It should be noted, however, that it is less suited for external locations, as it is simply not as strong or durable as solid wood.

Solid Wood

While much heavier than engineered wood, solid wood is stronger, longer-lasting, and altogether more reliable. It is not as common as engineered wood on the interior door market but is often the material of choice for external doors. Most fire doors, whether internal or external, are also made from solid wood. 

Solid wood doors can be more challenging when it comes to installation, in large part due to their increased weight. These doors also tend to be more expensive, being manufactured with a greater amount of wood.

Metal

Metallic doors are relatively rare outside of hospitality, office, and community build environments. They are usually designed to prioritise practicality over aesthetics, and as such don’t tend to be utilised in private homes and properties. However, there are a few examples, many of which are specially built for newer homes.

Metal doors are usually made from either aluminium or steel. Both materials are extremely resilient and reliable, though the former tends to be lighter and easier to install than the latter. This material can be used both indoors and outdoors (depending on the environment the door model has been designed for).

uPVC

uPVC is a versatile material that can be used to make doors even lighter while still retaining many of the styles found in solid and engineered wood. It is also far more economical – perfect for those working to a tight budget.

uPVC doors are ideal for use throughout the home, not only because they are lightweight and easy to handle but also thanks to the myriad of styles available. uPVC is a common material for internal doors and whilst external doors are available, they do tend to be weaker than those made of wood.

When looking through the many options available for external doors, there are a few things to keep in mind to help you find the best door for the job.

Do You Have Enough Space for Your Door?

Both the inner and outer walls need to be wide and thick enough to fit your chosen door. The door needs ample space to swing without damaging any surrounding objects or walls. Bear in mind that most external doors swing inwards, so be wary of storing anything in its path.

Is your Door Fit for Purpose?

Different buildings may have different regulations for external doors. For example, residential external doors are advised to have a height of 80-inches and a width of 36. This is different from businesses and other non-residential premises which also need external fire doors that have an unobstructed area around them and a clear opening of 775mm.

Do You Want Glazed Doors? 

You will find an abundance of external doors with different varieties of glazing. Most if not all external doors are double-glazed nowadays to comply with building requirements. You will also need to decide between translucent glazing and ‘frosted’ glazing, which means sunlight can still pass through the panes, but you won’t be able to see in or out. 

What Style of Door is Best?

Whilst there are hundreds of styles to choose from, it’s important to consider the strength of your door and its installation. Whilst internal glazed doors may look stunning, more often than not, they are weaker. Some particularly stylised ranges, LPD’s Manhattan, for example, will also require specialised hinges and locks.

Some external doors come with all the accessories you’ll need. Others will be supplied as ‘blank canvases’ – you’ll need to choose and apply the accessories yourself. Unlike most internal doors, external doors can be fitted with a few extra features that can add a touch of style and help to make them more secure.

Dog/Cat Flap

Not very common on a front door, but a popular addition to side and back doors, dog/cat flaps allow your pet to access your garden at will. It is advisable only to add them if your garden is relatively secure – as they can lead to your pet escaping, or unwanted visitors accessing the flap.

The first question to ask yourself when looking at a new front door is whether or not you need to replace the frame as well. Often, if your frame is in good nick this won’t be necessary – unless you are having a door custom-made. If not, all you need to do is measure up your current door to find a suitably sized replacement. Fit the hinges to the frame, and then install the locks, latch and any other additional handwear you would like.

All this being said, considering how key your front door is to the security of your home we would always recommend hiring a professional joiner to take on the job. Normally, this would cost around £100 – £200 depending on the material and type of door.

Installation of internal doors is usually a fairly simple process, though you may experience more difficulty depending on the size of your door, the type or number of accessories required and the space you have to work with. 

Typically, replacing an internal door is a straightforward matter of unscrewing the door from its hinges and fitting the new door in its place – with any additional handwear you may want to install. On the other hand, when working from scratch, you will first need to prepare a space within your wall as well as a door frame. However, this is best left to a professional as the structural importance of the wall will need to be ascertained first.

Doors may require different maintenance depending on their features, location as well as the material from which it is made. However, there are a few consistent steps you can take to ensure that your door stays in good condition regardless of the model.

Polishing

Many types of doors will benefit from a good polish, especially on the inside and over the knobs and handles. Doors, like any other object in a room, can get very dusty if left uncleaned for a while, and a great way to get rid of this unsightly coating is to apply some specialised polish to the door and wipe away any visible dust.

LPD is known for their huge collection of door styles that include just about every type of external & internal door you can think of. Some of their models are instantly recognisable, while others have been produced to coincide with the latest in architectural stylistic developments. Within their range of designs are standard internal doors, door pairs, French windows and much more.

Along with LPD doors, we work with brands with well over 150 years of collective expertise in timber, including JB Kind. In addition to the expansive collection of doors to choose from, with this experience, you can be sure of innovative products that don’t just look good but can keep your home secured for years to come.

And there you have it – some of the key aspects of external and internal doors. You will hopefully now have a clearer idea of what is most important to you when it comes to purchasing an external door for your home. Whether it’s light transmission, a visually impressive conversation piece or a simple way to get into the outside world – there is no wrong answer when it comes to the best door for you.

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