I currently have a set of fiberglass double doors (6’0″x8’0″)made by Therma-tru that are crap. They are only three years old and have been a pain from the outset. They were installed as part of a new home construction and from the outset the doors were not right (warped panels, the seals for the decorative glass has failed, the hinges are discolored and turning my walls black with their filings, the panels leak, the doors don’t shut tight, etc.). I’m interested in the Pella Door Systems as they offer aluminum cladding on their exterior jambs and the construction appears to be pretty good. My entry door has a SW exposure and I live at 7000′ elevation. Summer can be hot (105) and winters are cold (10). There is also lots of wind and dust. So, what is the experience out there with the Pella Entry Doors (steel or carbonite)? Any advice/feedback would be helpful.
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We have a Pella Carbonite entry door, that I primed and painted (1/2 light) w/ side lites and it has been perfect...been in a little over a year. We also have two full lite
single patio entry doors, alum clad exteriors/ wood interior (single doors), with the
interior blinds between the glass and again...flawless! Installation was done by ####Pella (factory franchise I think) dealer- a very professional operation. Not cheap
but the best overall experience I've had.
Thank you for your feedback on the Pella Entry Doors. In your message you said that you primed and painted your carbonite door--what paint did you use and has it weathered well? The Pella brochure and their website only discuss staining the carbonite doors and using a topcoat that appears to be of a spar varnish type. At my elevation and exposure I'm not sure how this (staining and topcoat) will hold up.
Pella has a stain kit they offer for the Carbonite door but according to
our salesman, the process is tedious and tough to get consistant coverage.
I chose to paint....first I masked everything and then used a "Zinsser" cover
stain-primer in a spray can and did two coats..this stuff goes on easy and
dries quickly. Then I used a high quality satin finish latex..brushed on and
it came out great (2 coats). One thing about these doors is that since the skin
is fibreglass material and not all that thick with a foam core, I had to be careful
with the exterior lift up flap and interior flange for my in- door mail slot..
there isn't much meat for the screws to grab on to..just don't overtighten..
otherwise everything is great with my Pella doors.......
I agree about the therma tru being complete crap. They are always happy to replace the warped unit... with another equally screwed-up one. Kinda like a timex watch.
My experience with the clad pella doors has been a unit with two sidelights attatched. The problem was there was no way to nail through the jamb without going through the cladding! the only thing holding the door in place was the stupid flimsy nailing fin on the exterior of the door. Very poor design, not well thought out at all.
Who makes a good fiberglass entry door? Preferably smooth/no texture and slab (no panels).
count me in with detractors of TT doors.
I'm no great fan of Pella either but their wood doors that I have used are doing fine so far.
Excellence is its own reward!