Door - it is she who protects us and our property from uninvited "guests".And in order to protect the maximum, it is necessary to choose only high-quality products of reliable manufacturers, and the installation process is to be trusted only by professionals!
As today the absolute majority prefers steel doors, let's figure out how to choose the entrance metal door, what to pay special attention to and what surprises can lie in wait for us as a result of the installation.
Which entrance doors are better
In the framework of this issue I would like to talk about domestic and imported manufacturers of metal doors, about finished and custom-made products, about the thickness of metal sheet, hinges and locks. So, about everything in order.
To support the domestic manufacturer?
The majority hold the opinion that the doors for apartments manufactured abroad are more prestigious and of high quality. In part this is true, but! They always go only to the standard size, and the final cost is formed not only from the cost of materials and work, but also from embezzlement for transportation, customs clearance and others.
Doors of domestic manufacturers, due to lower costs for the supply of products to the market, are somewhat cheaper. The plus is the factor that their size, if desired, you can order the one that is needed for a particular doorway. However, for this the manufacturer already has to pay extra!
Ready-made or on order?
No matter, the door will be purchased in the market or made to order, the main thing is that it should be of high quality. Of course, the products manufactured by individual order are always distinguished by their originality and uniqueness. But! It has its drawbacks. First, design development always requires additional costs, which can not but affect the final cost of production.
Secondly, the production of such a door requires additional time, and therefore install the iron front door only after 5-25 days after placing the order, while the products purchased on the market, depending on the arrangement, can take its place of honor in thethe same day.
Thick or thin?
Many believe that it is better to put entrance doors made of thick steel sheets, they are more reliable. Let's see how thick the sheet is. For mass production of relatively cheap doors use steel thickness of 0.5 mm. The thicker the leaf, the more expensive the door itself is. So, quite expensive options, presented on the market, are made of a 2-3 mm canvas.
For the sake of reliability, thicker sheets can be preferred, up to 5 mm, but this is only on request. And do not lose sight of the fact that such a door will be quite heavy, giving a significant load on the hinges and the box, it can not last long! So the doors made of steel 2-2.5 mm thick still remain the most optimal option for protection from uninvited visitors.
Loops: what and how many?
There are two versions of the hinges for metal doors. Appeared initially option was a lower pin and an upper cap. But, as practice has shown, such loops wear out quickly, so the manufacturers gradually began to move to the hinges on the bearings located between the pin and the cap.
This type of hinge has relatively high performance properties due to easier sliding. On steel entrance doors weighing up to 70 kilograms often put two loops, for heavier ones - three.
Locks
When choosing an entrance door, it is necessary to pay attention to locks. They come in two varieties: cylinder and sovalnye. The most optimal option for today is the availability of a single cylinder lock and a single lever.
Heat and sound insulation
When deciding which entrance doors are better to install, it should be remembered that in addition to the characteristics described above, some of the specimens allow to keep the heat inside the premises and perform a sound-isolating function( even if incomplete).This is possible due to the filling of the space inside the door with materials such as polystyrene foam, polyurethane foam, mineral wool, etc.
With this function, the seal used in the joints can also be handled. When installing the entrance door to the apartment this characteristic for the purpose of saving money can be neglected. But if the door is chosen for the house, then the insulating functions of the door must be remembered!
Appearance
Of course, giving its preference primarily to technical characteristics and choosing a relatively thick door that opens as far as possible outward( a door that opens inward is easier to break out thieves), with quality locks, with good thermal insulation and sound insulation, we always want,so that its appearance was still worthy at the same time.
Earlier, when the doors to the apartment in most cases were represented by MDF, you could "stand out", perhaps, only in color. Doors repeatedly painted with paint or changed the dermatine skin. Today, this is not necessary at all: the appearance of the steel door is diverse not only in color, but also in its texture, and the external and internal sides can differ significantly.
And if the choice among the types of entrance doors on the market does not suit you, then you can order for sure almost everything your imagination is capable of. There is only a question of money resources which will be necessary to spend for manufacturing and installation of a door of "your dream".
Types of entrance doors
Since we mentioned diversity, I would like to dwell on this issue in more detail and consider at least the main, most common and less expensive kinds of entrance doors. These include: laminate and powder coating.
Laminate is a panel that is very resistant to any mechanical influences. The basis is represented by wood fiber, and the upper part - by a film imitated under valuable tree species, and not only the texture, but also the roughness of the surface can sometimes be difficult to distinguish from the appearance of the natural material.
A fairly new technology used in the manufacture of entrance doors, referred to as "powder coating", allows you to obtain the widest range of textures and shades. At the same time, the original appearance does not interfere with stability in relation to the action of chemicals, atmospheric precipitation, temperature changes, etc.
Summarizing the
Remember that it's better to buy the front door of a company that has worked well in the construction market, and not produced somewhere in the Chinese basement - it will be more reliable. By the way, today the most popular products are trademarks of City of Dors, Legion, Russian Standard, KMT.But turning to a good, time-tested firm, do not ignore the personal inspection of the quality of the door.
When choosing a door, first of all pay attention to its cost. Good, high-quality and reliable products are never very cheap! If the price is medium and higher - proceed to inspect the door. And in order to make it easier for you, let's briefly go over the basic selection rules:
- A high-quality metal door should in no case be distorted and deformed;
- Input metal doors better isolate noise and heat if equipped with a rubber sealant in all places of contact between the door and the opening( in addition, the seal must be inside the door itself);
- Locks must be reliable, preferably in the presence of two pieces: one cylinder and one lever;
- The door must be made of a single sheet of steel, there must be no welding seams on it;
- The front door must open outwards;
- Appearance should definitely please the owner.
And, with all this, it is very important to install the metal entrance door correctly! Do not do it yourself - it's useless to waste time! Not every specialist will be able to cope with this task to the proper level. In case the door is not installed correctly, it can not perform its main protective function at full power!
