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How do professionals decide how to hang a door (right, left, in, out)?
I need an expert opinion or rules I can quote.
Are there guidelines? Building codes?
Do trade schools cover it?
Is it just experience or unwritten rules? If so what are they?
Thanks so much for any help you can provide. E-mail me: < [email protected] >
Note, could you also quote your authority ( experience, organization, rule book or etc.)
The reason I ask is a storm door we bought was installed between the house and garage
swinging away from the light switch in the garage (so the light switches are blocked).
The installer asked how we wanted the door hung (right or left) we said the same way as the main door, which swings toward the switch. About a half hour later the installer convinced my wife it would be better the other way. (said that facing our side door to the outside would be more convenient), she ageed, assuming he knew better.
Needless to say, we want the door company to fix it, its dangerous to go down 3 steps around the door to turn on the light. They say there is nothing wrong.
The only Michigan building codes I found specify access to light switch required for stairways, which are 5 risers or more. I have found no other descriptions on how this should be done, but there must be something, because every door I notice seems to swing towards the light switches in a room — that can’t be just coincidence.
I wonder how much work the installer could have done before drilling holes unique to the
direction of the door opening. It occurs to me the youngster (little more than high school age) may have cut or drilled the wrong way, then after realizing it, convinced my wife to change her mind.
Would that be possible for a young inexperienced installer? If so how likely is that kind of mistake? Is the drilling and cutting confusing for a youngster?
Replies
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A storm door is normally hinged on the same side of the jam as the interior door it protects. If they are crossed, they are difficult to open and move through, particularly if you are carrying packages. I'll venture a guess here and suggest that when the house was wired the electrician put the garage switch box on the right side of the door because nine out of ten of us find that more comfortable. A storm door was not in the plan then. If this is the case, then it may be easier and safer to move the garage switch.
*steve is correct, but it is still an arbitrary decision.. that's why the installer got the customer involved...you authorized him to install it that way..
*Install doors whatever way seems to make passing through the door easier. No rules unless it's an egress door that must open out or a pool gate that must open out or a storm door that USUALLY hinges on the same side as the entrance door. The exception to that would be if that meant the door would block some steps, cause an awkward path of travel, or if the customer wanted it differently.IMHO, it's not the installer's fault that you changed your mind after the door was installed.
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i IMHO, it's not the installer's fault that you changed your mind after the door was installed.
He said that he told the installer that he wanted it installed one way and the installer went behind his back and convinced his wife to okay the other way. Sounds like the installer is at fault here. Probably screwed up the installation and had to sneak his way out of it by conning the wife. I'd say the company should replace the door. But getting them to do the right thing is not likely and I doubt theres any recourse except to not do business with them again and recommend to others to avoid the company. That is unless of course, the company does the right thing, replaces the door, and shows that they do value their customers.
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I wasn't there but when I work for a married couple, I consider both of them to be my customer. I can't go behind the customer's back by going to the customer.
If he screwed up and got the customer's ok to leave it screwed up, that's bad practice but he still got the customer's okay.
If he believed he had a better way to do it, got the customer's okay on the change and did it that way, he's surely not at fault for anything.
And, if the wife is so easily manipulated that she'll go along with whatever the contractor tells her to go along with, her husband had better be there from now on.
*"its dangerous to go down 3 steps around the door to turn on the light. They say there is nothing wrong."If this door swings over the steps then it is illegal under most building codes, no matter which side the swithch is on. There may be no easy fix, since it would require a landing.
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Just curious, what was the installer's reasoning for having the hinges on the opposite side? If his reasoning is bad, he's responsible for the advice he gave as a professional.
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Ahh, why did you install a storm door between the house and (presumably) attached garage in the first place?
If the existing door was drafty, the money'd have been better spent on weatherstripping &/or replacing the existing door.
I read somewhere (FHB?) several years ago that the TVA did a study and found that where there's a well constructed, weather stripped exterior door, the payback time for a storm door is 40 - 50 years (I suspect, though, that figure varies enormously depending on climate.)
Bob
*Don't know why Fred did it, but sometimes the storm door is there for summertime, so you can open the entry door and let air in, but not bugs. Even through the garage.Rich Beckman
*I also would bet the installer messed up and talked his way out of trouble. The problem is that the wife ok'd it and I have to think they own it as is. Sure, try to go after the company, good luck with that, you never know.As for hinging a storm dr opposite to the entry dr, I have done that for an exterior opening if it would help to keep the prevailing wind from ripping it off of the jamb, but you have to consider traffic flow and make sure the homeowner will be happy with it.
*I bought my house last year. It has the same problem described here. In order to turn on the garage light switch, you would have to go around it. The previous owner "fixed" the problem by removing a pane of glass in the storm door so you can reach your arm through the hole and turn on the light. Was this guy a genius or what?
*Or what rings a bell, Will.
*qtrmeg...((As for hinging a storm dr opposite to the entry dr, I have done that for an exterior opening if it would help to keep the prevailing wind from ripping it off of the jamb, but you have to consider traffic flow and make sure the homeowner will be happy with it. ))he did, she was, he wasn't....how come when you did it... it was carefully considered...but when this guy did it, he was just trying to cover his mistake ?...i guess you were there , right ?hmm, neither was i, and neither was hubby....
*Mike, here I had to read between the lines, I said I would bet...Maybe in this instance the installer thought it would be best to oppose the swing and bury a switch, the installation was ok'd and I would also bet they own it unless the dealer wants to bend over and go into hero-mode, that would be nice and it happens. I only posted because nobody mentioned that there are situations where it is best to swap the swing, that is not unheard of. I know I am new here and waited for a bit before I even did that.Now that you brought this up again, Fred asked "Are there guidelines? Building codes?" Yep, if your town abides by a building code that is. We might be in a gray area here because the storm isn't a primary door, but it is bad news to bury a switch. That is big-time contractor 101 stuff.
*>"how come when you did it... it was carefully considered"< experience?I have spuffed 2 doors, "so far". Fixed both on my dime, even tho the last was in question. That was why I said the dealer may roll, some of us are in this for the right reason.
*my favorite is when you go to the last step and the storm door latch hits the Primary door knob.. and now it won't close...start looking for the white aluminum hole plugs real fast......hah, hah, hah
*I did that one on my own freakin door Mike, that is not funny. Brosco wood storm, went with a lever knob to make it work. Doh-mode is not a pretty place...all I can say is that it was a busy time. Ok, no excuse, I messed up.
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The reason for the storm door was to allow us to see out into the garage and outside (garage doors opened), when the kids are playing. The exterior door is an insulated steel door with no windows.
Just so everyone is clear. We asked for the door to be installed towards the light switches. A half hour into the job, the installer convinced my wife to go the other way. Based on the discussion so far, I'm thinking he messed up and drilled it the opposite way and was not experienced enough to realize it until a half hour into the job. I don't think there is too much you can do before drilling something unique to the direction the door will open.
The trick was convincing my wife it was better the screwed up way.
*He said it would be easier to face the side entrance door to the garage.
*My wife was absolutely not happy! When she agreed with the installer, she did not notice the light switch problem. As soon as he left, and she tried to close the garage doors, she realized this was not good. What would they have done if she said no? If she noticed the light switch 2 minutes sooner, the installer would have gotten a no. what would they have done then? I assume the same thing we need done now -- fix it.
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How do professionals decide how to hang a door (right, left, in, out)?
I need an expert opinion or rules I can quote.
Are there guidelines? Building codes?
Do trade schools cover it?
Is it just experience or unwritten rules? If so what are they?
Thanks so much for any help you can provide. E-mail me: < [email protected] >
Note, could you also quote your authority ( experience, organization, rule book or etc.)
The reason I ask is a storm door we bought was installed between the house and garage
swinging away from the light switch in the garage (so the light switches are blocked).
The installer asked how we wanted the door hung (right or left) we said the same way as the main door, which swings toward the switch. About a half hour later the installer convinced my wife it would be better the other way. (said that facing our side door to the outside would be more convenient), she ageed, assuming he knew better.
Needless to say, we want the door company to fix it, its dangerous to go down 3 steps around the door to turn on the light. They say there is nothing wrong.
The only Michigan building codes I found specify access to light switch required for stairways, which are 5 risers or more. I have found no other descriptions on how this should be done, but there must be something, because every door I notice seems to swing towards the light switches in a room -- that can't be just coincidence.
I wonder how much work the installer could have done before drilling holes unique to the
direction of the door opening. It occurs to me the youngster (little more than high school age) may have cut or drilled the wrong way, then after realizing it, convinced my wife to change her mind.
Would that be possible for a young inexperienced installer? If so how likely is that kind of mistake? Is the drilling and cutting confusing for a youngster?
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fred64...it sounds screwed up...
but we wern't there.. and neither were you...
some things are obvious, some aren't..
some installers have more experience than others...
what we don't have is the story of the young man who installed it...sorry for your trouble......
almost everything you do in a house is a compromise... and there is always a monday morning quarterback who can show you where you screwed up...
thankfully... in this case it's a storm door....