Appropriate Protection for

Exterior Doors


Increase longevity of your Fiberglass entry door

One of the great advantages of fiberglass doors is its high resistance to weather related elements. Compared to steel and wood, fiberglass doors are less vulnerable to damages that result in rust, rot and warp. Although fiberglass doors are durable and known to require less maintenance than steel and wood, exposure to extreme climates may affect the aesthetics such as color fading. There are few ways to increase the longevity of the aesthetic quality.


  • Overhang

To minimize the need for refinishing, it is recommended to install an overhang to protect the door finish from fading. A general rule for correct overhang measurement is the Depth to equal half the Height from the base of the door. For instance, if the measurement from the base to the bottom of the overhang is 10 feet, then the overhang should have a depth of at least 5 feet. Without a proper overhang, doors exposed to south, southeast, southwest and west will need more frequent care and maintenance due to rapid finish deterioration

 

  • Color Selection

Darker colors do not reflect solar rays, has well has light colors, they absorb a greater amount of the wavelengths of radiation which generate a greater amount of heat, thereby expanding the outside door skin to a greater amount. The darker the color, the more heat will it absorb. Selecting a lighter color for the door helps protect the surface by slowing down heat build-up and prolong the time between each re-finishing. The climate, temperature and exposure determine the rapidness of fading colors.  All materials expand or contract relative to temperature change, Plastpro doors have greater resistance to temperature change due to the LVL structure, the Fiberglass skin and some other minor contributing factors.
. Dark colors are considered any color that falls within the  lightness (L) value of 56 to 0, where 100 is white and 0 is black.

 

  • Storm Doors

Storm doors are installed to protect exterior doors from rain and wind. Those with double pane Low-E glass will also block UV rays. However, in hot temperatures and climates, storm doors can cause significant damages such as warping and color fading due to heat build- up between the two doors. The darker the door color, the more heat will build up. A solution to minimize is to have vented storm doors to relieve excess heat.

  • Climate, Temperature and Exposure

Climate, temperature and exposure play a major difference on the need for refinishing and selecting a proper overhang. For instance, doors facing south are most likely to be affected since they are exposed to the sun from sunrise to sunset.  Doors facing west are exposed during the hottest hours of the day. With the proper overhang however, doors are less likely to deteriorate.  Door with dark color and installed with non-venting storm door could increase temperature on the door surface. Exposure of the door to extreme temperature may avoid the warranty.

 

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