Doors are the connecting link between the interior and exterior of a building and act as the passageways between rooms. They are used everyday, yet often times, they are only passively thought about when it comes to design. In this article we aim to highlight the design choices when it comes to doors and how each choice can impact the overall design of a room, a home, or a business.

1) Exterior or Interior?

When it comes to choosing a door there are numerous choices to be made. One of the first choices that will influence all other decisions is what you intend the door to be used for.  Is it going to act as the point of entry from outside or from room to room? You must consider if you need it for an exterior or interior purpose. Though some materials like wood or glass can be used for either intention, other materials such as metal, and fibreglass are better suited for exterior applications.

2) Functionality

After choosing the material that will best suite your needs, the next aspect you want to consider is the functionality of the door. This too is influenced based on where the door is located. For exterior applications, choosing automatic, revolving, sliding, or overhead doors are best. For interior doors you can consider bi-folding, french, partition systems, or swinging doors.

3) Door Frames

One you have the door picked out, you need to choose a frame. The type of frame you choose will influence safety measures and thermal performance. The most common materials for door frames include vinyl, wood, fiberglass, metal, or composite.

4) Aesthetics

The Aesthetic options available for your doors are heavily dependent on the material you choose.

• With wood doors you have an assortment of options such as staining, painting, or leaving the natural finish of cherry, fir, mahogany, maple, oak, pine or walnut.  

• If you picked aluminum doors, then there are a variety of styles and colours available that won’t rust or require further maintenance.

• Choosing a fiberglass-composite presents itself with the ability to mimic the look of wood with staining plausible.

• Steel doors offer less aesthetic alterations, however since they don’t crack or wrap, their overall appearance lasts longer than other materials.

5) Hardware

One of the final considerations when it comes to the door is the hardware involved with hanging it such as the hinges, the deadbolts used to provide added security to the space, and lastly the door knob that makes operating the door possible. When picking out the hardware for your door, there are an assortment of colours and finishes available. Some of the colours include black, brass, bronze, chrome, nickel or pewter. The most common finishes are antique, distressed, oil-rubbed, satin or shiny.  
 

6) Trim

While most individuals choose a subtle trim that blends into the surrounding area, some choose a bold option that provides a focal point for the room. When you examine various door trims, you’ll start to notice two different common styles. The first and arguably most popular is trim that takes on a complimentary colour to the door and the second is a decorative patterning that enhances the door.

7) Performance Factors

In addition to considering aesthetics, many choose a door based on it's performance ratings in the areas of security, fire resistance, or energy efficiency. They want to ensure that the door can deter tampering, act as a safe exit if a fire arises, and reduce the amount of cool air in the winter or heat in the summer that enters the home. 

Interested in specifying a door for your next project? Search 'Doors' on CADdetails.com to view products that you can use in your project.

cover photo © unsplash