Oh boy, this door's light as a feather
A lot of people have doors like this. These are a common six-panel hollow core door
Now, what are some of the advantages? Well, they're lightweight and they're pretty inexpensive
But a disadvantage is that they let a lot of noise through them
Now, these doors are basically just a hardboard finish. Often they have cardboard strips inside of them
of them. What's the alternative? Well, I'll tell you, it's simple. Why not go back with a solid wood door
These are the type of doors that you find in many, many older homes in greater Cincinnati area
Now, you can still get solid wood doors. And what I like about the solid wood doors of today is that they're a lot different from the older doors
The older doors, the panels actually used to be made from solid wood. But a problem with that is with the seasonal changes in humidity
those panels would expand and contract and you would all often get lines showing where the panels
touch the edge of the door frame and that a problem well how do we solve that today the new door manufacturers are using really neat medium density fiber board for the raised panels These are much more stable and the resistance to change when the humidity goes up and down
and you have swings in the weather. Now don't think that you're locked in with the style of door
Yes, a lot of people like the six panel style, but that's more for colonial homes
A popular door of style back in the Victorian times was a four panel door
Now those are easy to come by, and one of the neat things, if you really want to dress it up
where the raised panel comes to the edge of the door frame, why not go ahead and put a raised molding in to really give the door some extra depth and character
Oh, man. Woo! Okay, these solid wood doors, they are heavy, but they're beautiful and they're worth it
You can find them. Just go to some of the older lumber yards here in the greater Cincinnati area
Ask for solid wood doors. If you want to discover more home improvement tips, go to ask thebuilder.com