How to Insulate Front Door

A hardware store sells foam with one side glued in different thicknesses and widths. Open Cell foam will compress

Great Stuff.

The type of seal to use depends how the mating faces move as the door is opened/closed and the width of the gap when closed. On double doors the seal may have to go on one of two faces that slide past each unless there is a rebate? Avoid a wiping action if possible or use a seal designed for that situation.

The door that opens moves towards the inside of the house. So that implies the insulator would be on the outside facing edge of the doors? Does someone make insulation that would have a decorative colored appearance so it could be placed on the outside door?

If you know of any specific products what are the brand names or web sites?

Then it wont open

or more likely on the inside facing edge of the rebate on the other door.

Can you sketch the cross section you have?

Here try this sketch..

Shows left hand door opening inwards with seal fitted to inside of right hand door rebate.

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That was helpful thanks. Looking at your diagram, the door on the right is drawn perfectly. The door on the left has no flange on it. The door on the left is a simple rectangle and slides into the corner shape made by the right door. So the insulation would still be placed as you draw it.

So for specific products, do you have a recommendation? Would something like the tape show in this photo be right for this application?

Hard to make out section but probably ok. Try and measure the width of the gap with door closed. Normally seals are made in a range of different thicknesses to suit different width gaps. Too small and it won't seal. Too large and you can't shut the door as the seal can be compressed far enough . May have to experiment a bit.

I'm in the UK so hard to recommend sources.

I like spring bronze weather strip but I'm not sure if you have enough room for it

it's 1 1/8" wide & need at least an 1/8" gap to work

cheers Bob

on 1/20/2009 1:08 PM (ET) W wrote the following:

I have a "4 Seasons" sunroom attached to my house and have french doors between the house and the normally unheated sunroom (I have a propane fireplace in there to be used when we use the sunroom). I bought some 'Henkel SuperV Profile Weatherstrip Seal' ( a subsidiary of LePage} to seal the crack between the doors.

got it at the weatherstrip section in WalMarts. If you are one that 'Never' shops at WalMart, you might search in your local hardware stores.

If the molding's are in the right place then I would recommend what the other guy said. Get a type of rubber bulb seal or if you want, you can insert weather stripping where the gap is and it should stop any drafts. Home depot should have it.

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