All doors aren’t created equal, even though a lot of homeowners think they can use an exterior door inside or vice versa. In reality, there are a lot of big differences between interior doors and exterior doors, even when it comes to door and replacement window shops in Elk Grove, CA and beyond.

These differences are crucial when it comes to the jobs exterior and interior doors do, respectively. From materials and thickness to cores, insulation and even appearance, exterior doors and interior doors have lots of differences. Here are a few big ones:

• Core – Exterior doors are almost always solid all the way through, either with the same material or with a wood or foam center. Conversely, interior doors generally have a hollow or honeycomb core. Some higher quality interior doors have solid cores, and there are a few mid-range models that have a wood fiber core to mimic the heavy feel and noise reduction of a higher quality door.
• Material – Interior doors are usually made out of one single material like fiberboard or wood, while exterior doors are oftentimes made out of many different materials like wood with a reinforced metal frame. Exterior doors are also often made out of metal, while interior doors are almost never made out of metal.
• Thickness – Exterior doors need to be thick and heavy to not only keep out the outside weather, but also to provide extra security and durability. Interior doors are usually very thin, as they don’t need to stand up to elements, intruders, or harsh conditions.
• Insulation – Interior doors don’t separate the inside from the outside, so they don’t need to have any insulation. Exterior doors need to have at least some insulation to protect the home from exterior temperatures. There are higher quality exterior doors with extra insulation to help control energy costs, like steel doors with foam cores that help keep hot summer air or chilly winter winds from entering the home.
• Price – Interior doors are lighter and less detailed, so they are generally less expensive. Exterior doors need to stand up to a lot of use and outdoor elements, and therefore need to be built more solid and more expensive.
• Appearance – Some interior and exterior doors share similar appearances and features, including raised panels and face decorations. However, its more common for exterior doors to have decorative panels on one or both sides, while if an interior door has decoration its almost always on both sides. Also, exterior doors are much more likely to have frosted glass or other decorative elements, while glass is not common in interior doors. French style doors are the exception.

While it may be tempting to slap an exterior door on a frame inside your home or use an interior door as your backdoor or side door, exterior doors and interior doors are very different and are not interchangeable.

If you need new exterior doors, The Window and Door Shop, Inc can help. We have a range of Elk Grove, CA replacement windows and doors and would love to help you find the best ones for your home. Pay us a visit or give us a call for more information on what we can do for you.