One of the best ways to change the style of your home is to have a door that makes a difference. When you walk into a house, you don’t usually notice the door. It is a part of the home that is accepted, but is rarely given a second thought to. However, a door can have a very large impact on how a room or the interior of a house looks.
Today, we are more likely to buy homes than to build them ourselves. Because of this, the doors in the houses are already installed, and no one really looks at them when making a buying decision.
A good door on the inside of your home is a vital part of it, however, and you need to give it a good deal of thought before picking one out if you plan on replacing one in your house. If you want to change the way a certain room looks, one of the best ways is to change the door. There are many factors to consider when choosing the right door.
With the sheer number of options out there on the market, our team of home improvement experts from Universal Windows NJ and Solis Painting outlines a few points that you need to consider in order to make a wise, informed decision.
The Style of Your Door is Important
In New Jersey, doors are a very common fixture in older houses, while more modern homes may have frosted glass doors instead. The style of your door needs to match the style of your home in such a way that it complements it. This doesn’t mean that you have to buy exactly the same door that the house had before.
You can mix it up a little as long as the door doesn’t clash with the rest of the home. Remember that the size of the door also matters, as the larger doors when used in smaller rooms tend to make those rooms feel even smaller than they actually are.
Which Way Does it Swing?
The direction in which the door swings is actually more important than you might think. Typically, you can choose between a right and left-hand swing when you buy the door. The choice you make will determine where the hinges go, where the handle is, and which direction the key turns to lock the door.
Keep in mind when picking this out that a door should never open into a corridor, as this can lead to nasty accidents involving open doors and children running through the house.
The Framing of Your Door Matters
If you don’t frame your door properly, the value of your home and the door itself are going to be ruined. Bad framing occurs when you use cheaper materials to build the frame, or when the builders take shortcuts to try and get the work done on time, which leads to even more damage being done to the door.
Repairs can cost you quite a pretty penny, so ensure you have a team of builders who are experienced and professional in their work.
Some doors don’t need to be framed, because they come pre-hung. This means that they are already mounted on a frame with the hinges already in place. Other doors come as slabs, which means that the frame and the hinges need to be installed separately.
There are more options when it comes to slab doors, but you can ensure a good fit for your rooms if you get one that is pre-hung.
Can it Transmit Sound?
All interior doors in a home have a rating called the STC. This is the amount of sound that is allowed through the door. A higher STC number results in less sound passing through the door. Thicker wooden doors are usually better at absorbing sound than doors made of metal. Some soundproof doors are designed to have higher STC values on purpose.
When looking for a good door, you should also think about how it opens. Some doors swing outwards or inwards like a classic door, while others tend to have different styles and builds. There are sliding and folding doors to choose from, to name two of these. With so many factors to consider it is highly recommended that you take your time when choosing the perfect door for your home.
