Warranties On Wood Doors Are Terrible For A Reason

Several years ago we decided to stop selling and installing wood doors to our customers.

Today’s Entry Doors specializes in replacement doors for Orange County – in fact, DOORS ARE ALL WE DO. (Unlike most contractors, who treat doors as an afterthought in their service offerings).

So it might sound strange at first that we no longer offer wood replacement doors.

If doors are all we do, wouldn’t we want to sell any kind of door to give our customers maximum choice, and ourselves maximum sales?

We do give our customers a very wide selection of door styles and options. You won’t find a better selection of replacement entry doors in Orange County.

But we don’t sell wood doors because we won’t sell our customers any door that is a poor long-term value.

The 3 Big Reasons We Don’t Install Wood Doors

• Wood Doors Are Not A Good Long-Term Value For Our Customers – You can read more about the problems with wood doors below, but the short version is this: they have almost no warranty, they’re not nearly as energy efficient as fiberglass doors, and the maintenance requirements are time-consuming and costly.
• We Can’t Afford To Install Doors That Cause A Bunch Of Callbacks For Service – We’ve staked our reputation as the best door contractor in Orange County on installing doors meant to last a lifetime. If we would install doors that have people calling us all the time with issues on something we installed, that’s not a formula to stay in business.
• Fiberglass Doors Are Just As Beautiful As Wood, If Not More So – The one reason you might think you need a wood door is that many of them are beautiful. But you can get something just as beautiful (or even more attractive), but without all the headaches of a wood door. (Keep reading for more on this).

Information You Need To Know About Wood Doors

Avoid “Cost-Effective” Wood Doors At All Costs

We don’t recommend or install ANY kind of wood entry doors. That said, if you do choose another contractor and go with a wood door, the one thing we can say for sure: ALWAYS avoid “cost-effective” wood doors. That’s just another way to say cheap wood doors.

If a wood door is cheap, it is built terribly. So not only do you have all the maintenance issues of any wood door, you can also count on them beginning to come apart, usually in a few years or less. These doors are also much more likely to swell, bow, and peel in a short period of time.

The Warranties Are Terrible – They Are Extremely Short And Have Tons Of Loopholes

Here’s something Orange County homeowners shopping for a wood door are not told: it’s nearly impossible to get a warranty claim on a wood door honored.
This is the surest proof that you can’t trust wood doors. If wood doors were a durable, reliable choice, the warranties would be better.

The first problem is that wood door warranties are incredibly short – almost always a year or less. A 5-year warranty is rare, and the maximum warranty you would get on any wood door.

But here’s what makes it even worse: the loopholes, exclusions, and exceptions on these warranties makes them worthless. The manufacturer will almost always find a way to say a wood door warranty is void.

Here’s some examples of actual language from some wood door warranties (manufacturer names not given to protect the guilty!):

• “Panel misalignment or shrinkage.”
• “Cracks or splits in split resistant panels which do not appear on both sides of the panel.”
• “Wood decay for wood components”
• “Doors that are exposed to direct sun or rain under normal conditions.”

All of these exclusions are especially ridiculous when considering that most warranties only cover a year anyway – they can’t even give you adequate coverage for that long!

Fiberglass Doors Are About 5 Times As Energy Efficient As Wood Doors

Fiberglass doors are filled with heat and cold resistant material that increases energy efficiency. Wood doors are not. If you care about saving energy for money and environmental reasons, fiberglass doors are clearly the right choice because they have been tested and proven to be 5 times more energy efficient than wood doors.

Adding to the inefficiency of wood doors is the fact that they typically warp over time, as moisture penetrates the wood. This will gradually loosen the seal with a door frame, and this makes a wood door not only less efficient, but more likely to be drafty.

Wood Doors Expand And Contract With The Temperature & Humidity

Wood is a material that will expand and contract as it gets hot or cold. This can create problems with wood doors sticking, becoming warped, and not having a tight enough seal to the door frame.

Fiberglass on the other hand is rock steady in temperature shifts. Whether it’s 35 degrees or 100 degrees or whether it’s super humid or dry, fiberglass doors retain their integrity.

The One Argument For Wood Doors

The main argument for wood doors is built on a half-truth.

The false belief goes something like this: “I understand wood doors can require a lot of maintenance and often have to be replaced again, but it’s the only way to get a really attractive door.”

Now it is true there are beautiful wood doors on the market. But the belief that wood doors are the ONLY way to get a door that is stunningly beautiful is simply false.

Fiberglass doors – at least the top-quality ones we sell – are just as attractive as wood doors – sometimes more so. Plainly stated: you do NOT have to sacrifice one inch of beauty when you choose a fiberglass entry door.

It is true that some fiberglass doors can have a plastic look, just like there are some cheap wood doors that look terrible. We promise we can help you find a fiberglass door that you absolutely love.

Always Make Sure You Compare Apples-To-Apples

One last thing you should know. We’ve discovered over the years that when homeowners compare our top-quality fiberglass doors with wood doors, our quotes at first seem higher.

Here’s the problem: Many times wood doors are quoted without painting or staining or sealing. And they are often quoted without installation and key accessories. Your door installation company leaves you on your own to find someone to paint it, and it rarely turns out well. (Not to mention, you have to pay more than the original quote to get it done).

Today’s Entry Doors quotes are completely transparent. The price we quote you is for everything, including a factory-sprayed finish and all installation costs. We provide a quote for a truly ‘turn-key’ experience.

So if you’re comparing quotes between a wood door and our fiberglass doors, always make sure it is an ‘apples-to-apples’ comparison.

We Can Prove It

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If you’re skeptical that we can help you find a fiberglass door that outshines (and certainly outlasts) a wood door, we recommend getting a free consultation and quote.

We never use high-pressure sales tactics. Instead, we educate you on your choices and then step back and let you decide. So why not get solid information so you can compare your choices before making a final decision?

For free quotes on fiberglass entry doors in Orange County and surrounding communities, click here.