Features of entrance doors with glass

Entrance doors imply the “face” of the dwelling. They must combine a guarantee of security and a pleasant appearance, since it is for them that the first impression is created about the interior and the owners of the house, they also ensure the safety and security of the household and their belongings. Designs with glass inserts have become popular recently. It would seem that fragile glass is the worst thing to protect. However, thanks to modern technology, it became possible to combine durability and elegant appearance of this material.

The following requirements are imposed on entrance doors:

• Reliability (break resistance). There are 4 classes of burglary. The most unreliable - the first class, these doors can be opened with any tool.The fourth class includes constructions made of special materials that are much better than ordinary ones in terms of strength characteristics. They are bulletproof and resistant to external influences. The strength, and hence the reliability of the whole structure, is made up of individual elements - the door leaf, box and accessories.

• Thermal insulation and noise reduction. These characteristics depend entirely on the materials used in the design of the product.
• Appearance. Different materials and technologies are used for decoration. Finishing makes a significant contribution to the value of the future product.

It is believed that the door leaf with glass insert is not reliable enough, however, the compliance of the product with the above requirements depends not only on the materials used, but also on the design of the entire system. We list the advantages of doors with glass inserts:

• Natural light source. The presence of glass inserts will not use the constant lighting in the dark hallways. In addition, the door with glazing can be an excellent alternative to the window, in case of its absence.In a country house the presence of such a window will allow to observe part of the yard from the house.

• Security. The use of doors with glass inserts allows security workers to observe people without getting up from their seats. This is especially true for airports and shops.
• Appearance. Glass is a material that can be decorated in many different ways. This will make the front door memorable and elegant.

And disadvantages:

• Cost of. Models with glass inserts are much more expensive than similar options without them.
• Installation difficulty. Installing door panels with glass insert is somewhat more difficult to install simple doors, since it also requires installation of a glass part.

Entrance doors with glass are distinguished by several signs.

To destination:

• General. Manufactured for private use, i.e. for apartment buildings, offices, cottages. There are no special requirements, except the wishes of the buyer and the size of the opening. These products are distinguished by the variety of options offered on the market for appearance, characteristics of reliability and thermal insulation.

• Special. This group includes fire and safe door designs. They have special requirements. For example, fire-fighting products do not burn.As the temperature rises, the integrated circuit swells up and fills the gap between the door leaf and the duct, which prevents movement of fire and smoke.

By design:

• Swing. The most popular option, which is presented in almost every home. In this case, the door opens only in one direction.

• Pendulum models can open in both directions.

• Sliding. Represent two sliding doors. The main advantage of the design is high throughput, which determined their use in hypermarkets, airports, and in crowded places. An additional advantage is the absence of the need to open such doors - people often go with luggage or shopping and do not have the opportunity to open it on their own. In addition, such designs are very economical to spend space.

• Revolving. Systems with several wings, usually two or four, and rotating manually or automatically on the main shaft. Like sliding doors, they are used in crowded places and have similar characteristics. However, they take up much more space than sliding ones.which makes it possible to use them only in large-scale buildings. A small store will look stupid with revolver type doors.

By design:

• single doors - the most common and reliable;

• bivalves - symmetric and asymmetrical;

• double;

• one and a half;

• arched - can be either single or double;

• with a transom (for example, with glass on the sides).

By way of glass insertion:

• Glass canvas in the frame.
• Cloth with glass inserts. They may be different in shape, but they occupy only a part of the entire door leaf.

Doors are made from the following materials:

Popular and very common building material. On sale there are wooden doors of the most different price categories, it depends on the design. They are made the following types:

• From the array. The array is a solid piece of wood, so woodwork is considered to be the strongest of wooden doors, as for their manufacture, wood from precious wood with the highest strength characteristics is used (oak, ash, maple, beech, mahogany, walnut, and others ).Distinguishes such doors high cost.

• Paneled. File called insert into the canvas. It is thinner than the main frame, which gives the whole product an interesting appearance. These doors are made from precious woods (teak, beech, cherry, mahogany), and from a combination of different materials to reduce the cost. So, on sale you can find doors made of MDF, plywood and chipboard.

• Glued. Make of several glued among themselves layers of wood. This method of production is cheaper than solid products, as it allows to combine different types of wood. Expensive and externally beautiful varieties go to the outer layer, and cheap and durable on the inner layer.
• Shield The design consists of shields, which can be solid or empty. Solid are glued wooden slats or chipboard. Empty materials are made from the same materials as solid materials, but they can also have a filler in the form of corrugated cardboard. The outer surfaces of such doors are lined with plastic, fiberboard or veneer. To increase the reliability of such doors can be used internal metal frame.

The advantages of wooden structures are high rates of sound and heat insulation, low weight, as well as a beautiful appearance. Products from a tree do not need an ornament - the natural texture will perfectly fit into any interior, however they lose to products from metal by indicators of durability and breaking resistance.

Plastic does not have sufficient strength, therefore, in the manufacture of plastic doors using a metal frame. Such products are called metal-plastic. PVC doors have high performance characteristics and have good strength, long service life, resistance to negative environmental factors and easy maintenance. Plastic options benefit in terms of sound and heat insulation, performance, cost, but, like wood, they significantly lose to steel structures in strength and reliability.

There are three types of metal doors:

• Metal constructions. About them it was told above - they represent the plastic profile reinforced by aluminum.
• Aluminum constructions represent a glass cloth in an aluminum frame. Most often they are produced in the form of sliding doors. Due to their low strength and reliability, they are rarely used in places of large concentrations of people.

• Steel construction. Distinguished by their reliability and durability. We pay special attention to this type.

Any steel door is a steel frame and a door with internal stiffeners. Hinges welded to the frame, designed to hold the door. Steel doors differ in the following ways:

To destination:

• Bulletproof or armored. They are made of steel sheets with a thickness of 5 cm and equipped with stiffening ribs and internal armored plates. Initially they were intended for banking institutions, however, they are currently being actively installed in residential apartments.

• Fireproof. The principal difference from all other doors is the ability to restrain poisonous smoke and fire for some time. In the manufacture of used steel sheets with a thickness of 2 cm. Like armored doors, previously used only in technical areas.To date, they are often set in the case of a neighborhood of residential with non-residential.
• Technical. They are distinguished by a high class of burglar resistance, as they are intended for technical premises that require the most reliable protection. As in all special purpose doors, functionality, not appearance, plays an important role.

• Cold resistant. Warm doors with thermal break. Their difference from conventional insulated structures is that their inner and outer parts are separated by a material with low thermal conductivity. They are not subject to freezing, retain heat well, they do not form condensate and their sound insulation index is also higher.
• Classic. Doors that are most often installed in ordinary apartments and houses. The thickness of the steel sheets used varies from 1.5 to 2.5 cm. They are distinguished by numerous options for exterior decoration.

The shape of the box:

• single;
• composite (possible options are U-shaped, angular).

By the number of sheets:

• single sheets;
• two-leaf;
• three leaves

According to the materials of the exterior:

• wood (veneer, wood panels, wood, MDF, laminate);
• artificial (PVC, leatherette, artificial leather);
• iron (with forging);
• glass (mirrors).

In the production of doors, the following security features are used:

• The lock can be protected by a plate that protects it from cutting.
• Anti-detachable anchors are designed to hold the door with the hinges knocked down.
• Platbands make inaccessible a gap between the door frame and the opening.

• The nozzles close the space between the inside of the frame and the door and represent a door leaf protruding outside.
• Locks come in various designs - mounted, overhead, mortise.
• Deviators or girders will not allow the door to be bent when breaking.

A street door imposes the same requirements on the glass insert material as on all other materials - impact resistance, fire resistance, tightness and good thermal insulation. In this regard, new glass manufacturing technologies were proposed and mastered.

In modern production of entrance doors the following types of glass are used:

• Hardened, heat treated glass. It possesses higher rates of strength and heat resistance, and, moreover, when destroyed, it breaks up into many fragments with blunt edges, which are incapable of causing significant damage.The disadvantage of this glass is the impossibility of processing - tempered glass is not amenable to cutting and has a weakness to direct end impacts.

• Armored glass is a composite material and is a conventional glass containing in its volume a metal grid. Such glass not only has a higher burglary resistance compared to ordinary glass, but also a higher safety indicator, since it breaks its shape in the same way as triplex.
• Triplex or laminated glass - multilayer sheet with a layer of polymer film, made by pressing during heating. The main advantage is durability. Material is very difficult to damage intentionally, not to mention accidental damage. In addition, during the destruction, triplex retains its shape without breaking up into many small pieces, which makes it the safest of the materials used. Excellent option for the room in which children will live.

• Polycarbonate glass - polymeric material, is made in the form of sheets and has excellent operational characteristics: lightness, low thermal conductivity,fire safety. The main advantage of polycarbonate is the ease of processing, combined with durability. Polycarbonate is a godsend for designers - laser engraving can be applied to its surface and give it any shape.

Glasses also differ in appearance:

• transparent;
• matte;
• colored or tinted;

• stained glass;
• corrugated;
• mirror;
• decorated with carving, photo printing, engraving.

Doors with transparent glass visually increase the space, raise the ceiling. Matte and stained glass are perfect for those who do not want to put their lives on display. Colored, as well as stained glass options, perfectly fit into the modern interior, and sometimes become its highlight. It should be noted that the corrugated versions of glasses have the best sound insulation performance.

Experts offer the following options for choosing colors:

• The floor of the hallway should be a few tones darker than the interior trim of the door. Compliance with this rule will emphasize harmony in the interior.
• Doors of dark varieties of wood in combination with light floors emphasize the elegance of the interior, as the plinth, made in the color of the door.
• The room and doors, made in one color range, will add comfort to the room.

• For lovers of risky decisions, bright doors will do. They can be combined with elements of furniture or decor.

• Dark. These shades emphasize the nobility and luxury of the interior. Please note that dark shades should not be used in the interior as a contrasting pair.

• White. The use of this color in the interior involves a thoughtful design. Please note that it does not go well with dark woods, it often looks tasteless, although there are exceptions. The bright laminate in tone of a door will become the stylish decision. White is perfect for doors from the kitchen to the street.

• Gray. Refers to cold tones. The most successful combinations are obtained when choosing a door and laminate in the same color design. In this case, the door should be a couple of shades lighter than the laminate.

• Combinations of the above colors. In this case, you can choose laminate, made in several colors. In this case, the door can pick up any of the shades found in the laminate.

In the Russian market in large numbers are presented the doors of domestic, European, and Chinese production.Domestic products have a high level of strength and an acceptable cost. Various ready-made models are on the market, and the practice of custom-tailored doors is quite common. In the reviews, users note the advantage of Russian manufacturers - the availability of services, which involves the departure of employees to the site for measurement and installation.

Doors of European production are not only quality, but also high cost. Pay attention that cheap doors under the guise of a European manufacturer may be fake. European manufacturers offer doors of burglary class 3 with a variety of exterior decor options. Thanks to the branches located in Russia, the purchase does not have to overpay for transportation.

Chinese goods are low cost and inadequate quality. By production of Chinese entrance doors steel sheets from 0,5 mm thick which cannot possess rather high class of a break-resistance are used. When buying, carefully review the proposed product, inquire about the thickness of the sheets used, accessories.Only having the full information make the decision on purchase.

In the example of the doors of Chinese manufacturers, Belarusian doors demonstrate high strength and durability, as they are made of steel sheets from 2 mm. This ensured the Belarusian doors recognition and popularity. In the shops there are doors with a variety of finishes.

In the case when beauty is in priority, you can put two doors: external and internal. The outer door will play the role of a decorative element, and the inner will ensure the safety and protection of the home.

The doors to the veranda are single doors with a transom on the side, which allows you to see what is happening on the street. The doors from the veranda to the street are made with a glass insert and bars. The latter performs not only a decorative function, but also a protective one.

Usually it is assumed the use of glass of the same type, but no one excludes the possibility of their combination. The photograph shows a door with several openings into which various types of glass are inserted: colored, corrugated, frosted, and mirrored. This mosaic looks very interesting and inventive.

Another photo shows the original performance of the steel door. The grille on both sides performs a protective and decorative function, and the glass between them is sound and heat insulating. Steel is perfectly adjacent to the glass, as presented in this example. In combination with glass, the metal loses its heaviness and acquires an unusual lightness for it.

Unusual transom will be a highlight not only the appearance of the door, but the whole house. The photo shows an unconventional transom, it represents 3/4 of a circle, only half of which is above the door.The glass insert on the door allows you to continue drawing the transom. It looks fabulous and promising. The color scheme of the door, its unusual elements and drawing on glass add to the whole composition a tint of the fairy tale. Such design is suitable for the entrance doors of cafes, restaurants or apartments of very creative people.

Here is a simple door, but the unusual color in combination with stained glass give a completely unexpected result. An interesting picture attracts the eye, and an asymmetrical transom, also made in stained glass, adds integrity and completeness to the image.

Nearby is another example of the use of bright hues. Such a door will definitely attract the attention of all passersby. Unlike the previous version, the transom here is made symmetrically. However, all this would not have looked so interesting without a pattern on the glass. In addition, inserts of different shapes repeat this pattern in their own way and underline it.

The front door is not changed so often, so the effort spent on choosing it will not be wasted. Reliable and durable, original and beautiful, it will delight for many years.

How to install the front door with glass and forging, see the next video.