Presumably a stupid idea

[tanneja]

I am starting to look for a front door for our house refurb, for which I plan a high level of insulation in combination with MVHR.  As such a decent insulating and draft proof front door is important for the whole thing to be worthwhile.

 

We did want an oversize front door, and so the opening at the moment could accommodate anything up to 1250mm wide x 2200mm tall.  We like the idea of a strip wood clad door such as the below where the porch is similarly clad, but shudder at the thought of going to someone like Urban Front to get this made for many £ks.  

 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.alamy.com%2Fstock-photo%2Ftimber-cladding.html&psig=AOvVaw3itXapvJC2N-6phk3TRSE-&ust=1603232191171000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCIjcyLzXwewCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAg

 

Would it be nonsense to consider getting a plain door like a blank face HormanThermo65 and then attach wood cladding to it?  Would I threaten the hinges via the extra weight?  And presumably could only glue onto the alu face as to drill through is PIR insulation inside.  Or do I work with my builder to get an insulated door blank ourselves somewhere and try fit seals and multi-point locking ourselves?  Or most likely, pay up for something less extravagant but can be bought off the self.

 

Any ideas and reality checks welcome.

[ToughButterCup]

9 hours ago, tanneja said:

...

Would it be nonsense to consider getting a plain door like a blank face HormanThermo65 and then attach wood cladding to it?

...

 

Ask them. When I talked to them about an issue, they were very helpful. 01530 513000

Edited October 20, 2020 by ToughButterCup

[mvincentd]

Have been down exactly this road and concluded the only solution is to get spendy!  With Thermo65 the external frame isn't flush with the door so assuming you want to over clad the frame you'll have to build the door cladding out to get that 'concealed' look....at which point you're mitigating weirdness at the door edges particularly when open, and needing to avoid fouling of cladding when opening.  The external lock face and door handles will need adjustment too, and while Horman talk a good story re' offering bespoke solutions I didn't feel they had much flexibility in reality.  It all becomes a very considered design worthy of expert input....so the bill creeps.  I had 3 doors on the same wall face that I wanted to unify, one of which was the garage door, and this added further (financial) complication in wood. 

If the rest of your build is going well and you have the energy to pursue this door detail it's certainly a nice aesthetic, but I couldn't find a way to achieve it economically.  Might be worth looking at rkdoorsystems rather than Horman, but will still probably be closing in on UrbanFront prices.

[tanneja]

Thank you @ToughButterCup I will call them tomorrow.  I am set one their garage door so maybe that will help them spec something harmonious.  Their insulation level is great, but the lack of black as an option, and the extra cost to get a recessed handle is extreme (seems to need thermosafe or thermocarbon ranges but will call them to clarify).

 

@mvincentd I'm glad ans surprised to hear my hair brained idea isnt just my own. The alternative to get the aesthetic is my brother is a locksmith, so knows wood doors inside out.  He is happy for him and the builder to make an exquisite tailored looking door 50mm thick timber for half the cost of a £3.8k U=0.9 flush slab Supertgerm door from AllyDoors.co.uk (more details.below). They say they will make every effort for draft exclusion, but would it invalidate the work I have put into the termal envelope (3g, insulation everwhere, approach to low air leakage coupled with MVHR)?  Unavoidably the answer is surely yes.  I see 50mm of timber achieves U=2.0. Could i take them up on their offer and perhaps sandwich a sheet of aerogel somehow?  Then there is the edging to consider.

 

For what it is worth atm. have £3.8k for this (minus the glazing) which includes fingerprint reader (is this over the top or inviting hacking in any way) and the fact it is oversize. Its going for a black slab door rather than strip wood as the backup look we would be happy with and achievable from most firms it seems https://images.app.goo.gl/xvG2mAsLDR8FnvAGA

 

 

[mvincentd]

So a caution re' 'harmonious' garage and house doors by Horman.  I used a high end supplier fitter who Horman says are fastidious and fit more units than anyone in the country.  I was clear that I wanted matching doors.  After wood was ruled out my compromise was as pictured below and it's disappointing.  The thermo65 with square profile frame doesn't use the same horizontal panel effect but I was accepting of the 'mimic'.  It can't be fitted with the same handle as the garage personnel door and only offers a choice of pretty horrible handles.  These things I knew and accepted.

The colour of all products is the same, but the metal surface finish is marginally different on the Thermo65 product......when installed side by side on the same plane, as I have them that colour manifests vastly differently.

 

[tanneja]

@mvincentd I offer my thanks for you sharing your experience.  Your finished result is excellent (I feel I can see the attention to detail throughout), but do see what you mean, and so to save myself the OCD, has convinced me not to chase after matching garage and door, which makes life simpler, adjusting my idea of my ideal aesthetic.  I assume you can't retrofit your own handle to the Thermo65 to something else?

 

[mvincentd]

14 hours ago, tanneja said:

retrofit your own handle to the Thermo65 to something else?

Possible i'd guess but will now be left with previous holes....whats annoying is that on the inside the handle IS very much like that one on the garage personnel door, but Horman don't offer it for external of Thermo65.

Yes, I spent months chasing matching Garage and house door...who would think it should be so difficult.  To me my 'near miss' is worse than intentionally distinctly different colours.