How to Protect Your Door from Summer Heat and Storms
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Between scorching temperatures and at-times violent thunderstorms, front doors take a lot of abuse during the summer months in Maryland. Here, the window and door experts at Forbes Design Center details ways to weather-proof your front door this summer.
How Does Summer Weather Affect My Door?
With intense sunshine, hot temperatures and treacherous storms, summertime weather can be very abusive towards your front door. Bright sunshine can cause paint to fade, bleach and crack, and sweltering temperatures can cause your door to swell, affecting the door’s hinges and locks. Violent downpours can cause damage to wooden doors and doorframes, or encourage mold and mildew growth.
As one of the first impressions guests receive of your home, it is critical for homeowners to take steps to protect their front door. There are several ways to mitigate damage caused by summer weather on your entryway.
Protecting Your Door from Sun and Heat
When painting your front door, choose lighter colors. While darker colors may be suitable for cooler climates, Maryland’s summer heat will be absorbed too readily by a darker colored door, leading to faster heat-based damage. A lighter colored door will absorb less heat, and mask the look of fading and bleaching longer. Sand the door well prior to painting, and use a primer. Many brands of exterior-use paint are available on the market—metal doors can be painted with formulas that even resist rusting.
For a more permanent solution, considering replacing a wooden or faux wooden door with a fiberglass or steel door, which will swell less in summer heat. Fiberglass is a very durable alternative, with steel being more prone to denting, but still quite sturdy. You can see a few examples of durable door choices here.
Guarding Your Door from Summer Storms
Summer storms can bring high humidity, torrential downpours and even hail. Protecting your door from these elements is best done by creating a protective barrier, either through a storm door, or an overhang.
Storm doors are made from aluminum, plastics, wood and fiberglass, and are intended to protect your door from bad weather, as well as provide ventilation and insulation. They come in a variety of styles, including full-view, ventilating and retractable screen—a certified door specialist will be able to help you choose the one that best suits your needs.
An overhang can go a long way to protecting your door, both from heat and storms. A smaller roof over the top of your exterior door, an overhang blocks rain, wind and hail from your door, preventing damage. It also keeps sunlight off of the door, reducing heat and preventing paint from breaking down.
Let Forbes Design Center Help You Protect Your Door
You work hard to maintain a beautiful home, but everyone can use a little help sometimes. At Forbes Design Center, we pride ourselves on our expert, knowledgeable staff, who have been helping homeowners design, install, update and protect their doors and windows for years.
