The front door of a home can suggest a lot about the people who live inside. Nothing transforms the image of a house as inexpensively as remodeling the front door. This important feature is more than an opening; it’s also a focal point and an invitation. You may lack the budget to indulge in an imposing portal and a grand foyer, but take heart: For about $1,200 you can upgrade your entryway with a comely 20-gauge steel-door unit (including a dual-pane, half-glass panel, jambs and an aluminum threshold) that welcomes visitors with style and provides years of secure, tight-fitting, energy-efficient operation. As a bonus, you’ll recoup most of your investment at resale — more payback than any other home-improvement project, according to the 2010-2011 Remodeling Cost vs. Value Report.

The Cost vs. Value Report is an annual survey conducted by Remodeling Magazine that provides national, regional and city-by-city data on how much every dollar you invest in remodeling will yield at resale. This year, the report says the steel entry-door replacement is not only the most profitable remodeling project but also the least expensive. Homeowners who replace a front door recoup on average 73 percent of the investment — slightly more if they live on the West Coast or in the Southwest, a little less if they live in mountain or plains states. If you’re lucky enough to live in San Francisco, replacing an entry door earns a respectable 105.7 percent, a 401(k)-plan-worthy return.

Door-replacement basics
The replacement door referred to in the Cost vs. Value Report has a steel skin with polyurethane foam insulation. It includes a magnetic strip (similar to a refrigerator door’s magnetic seal) as weather stripping and an adjustable aluminum threshold. The R-values of most steel-clad entry doors range from R-5 to R-6 — a good value, considering that a typical wood door ranges from slightly below R-2 to slightly above R-3. 
Most new steel-skin doors are sold in prehung units that come with wood frames and thresholds. That means you’ll have to remove your existing doorframe from the rough opening to install the unit. But before you shop for a new door, you’ll need to determine the dimensions of your existing rough opening. Drill a 1/8-in. hole through both the right and left jambs; then straighten the hook end of a wire coat hanger, insert the wire through the hole until it makes contact with the rough frame (see photo) and measure how far the wire extended on both sides.

To measure the overall rough opening of a doorway, drill a small hole through the left and right jambs, insert a wire hanger into each hole until it makes contact with the rough frame, and then measure the depth. Add these two measurements to the width of the existing door to obtain the overall rough-frame dimensions. Use the same approach to measure the height of the opening as well.

Add these two measurements to the width of your existing door to get the overall rough-frame dimensions. Take the same approach to determine the height of the opening, as this is where problems with new units’ fitting often arise. If your existing rough opening won’t accommodate an off-the-shelf prehung unit, don’t worry: Most lumberyards can order a custom size.

Install the new door so it is plumb and square. Be sure to confirm this with both a long level and a steel square — if the door is off-kilter, it won’t seal and swing properly. Before adding the interior trim, apply expanding foam caulk to seal the new doorframe to the rough opening. This will help to prevent air from leaking around the door seals and into the house. Apply the foam carefully, and make sure it’s a low-expansion door and window foam  — other types can expand too much and force the frame to twist or bow.

For the budget-conscious, the steel entry door is a cost-effective upgrade. To add a little panache, you can jazz up the trim with wider moldings, contrasting colors and accents such as decorative crown molding above the lintel. Don’t be shy about turning the entry into a focal point and a personality statement. Even if you’re fairly traditional, this is one place to indulge in color and whimsy. (If you tour London’s stuffiest neighborhoods, you’ll find front doors that are painted apple green, fire-engine red and lemon yellow.) An entry door says something about the people who live inside, and the most interesting people I know care less about image than imagination.

Factor in the U-factor
The rate at which a door conducts heat is usually expressed as a U-factor as opposed to the more well-known R-factor. The U-factor represents a measure of how well the entire door assembly performs, including the door panel, any glazing and the doorframe. No matter how good the panel is, it’s the whole assembly that counts. The National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) tests, certifies and labels not only doors but windows and skylights as well. The NFRC label provides a reliable way to determine a door’s energy properties and to compare products. It can be found on all Energy Star-qualified doors.
 

Handyman Club life member Fernando Pagés Ruiz is a homebuilder and remodeler with 30 years’ experience and the author of Affordable Remodel: How to Get Custom Results on Any Budget (The Taunton Press, 2007).

Lead photo: Sandi Witkowicz