Wooden Interior / Exterior Doors.

[johnson36]

My wife is building a house for her mother in Thailand. She is living in the Uk with me and sending her mum some money each month as the build progresses.

He mother is now ready for some interior doors. I have told her to buy solid hardwood doors, what is the approximate price of these doors in Thailand ( Isaan area) and what are the other alternatives to to solid hard wood. Also what is best alluminium window frames or hardwood ? which is the most expensive ?

[sjeng]

solid hardwood doors (mai deng) redwood, pricerange 2000-4000 thb

alternatives, teac board doors for bedroomdoors about 1000-1500 thb

PVC doors for bathroom about 1000 thb

door and window frames,

wood bows and bent and termites like to eat.

alu, about 2 x expensive but the thai quality (1,5 mm) can not compare with US or europe quality.

it depents on your feeling if you like wood or alu. when u prefere the look of wood dont take alu,

if you like the strait look of alu dont take wood.

[craigt3365]

It really depends on what you are doing with the house. If it is typical Issan, and you won't be living there, go cheap! Don't let wifey talk you into something expensive. And go with something the termites and ants don't like. I would recommend alu. But if you are going after a nice looking house, and you plan to spend a lot of time there, then wood is tough to beat. Looks beautiful. But much more expensive and takes a bit more to care for it.

[trogers]

Go with typical thai plywood door panel with timber frame. Easily replaced at a future date when you move here.

Panel and frame to fit 0.9 x 2.0m opening should cost less than Bt2,000 excluding installation, hardware and painting.

Edited October 30, 2010 by trogers

[gdhm]

May I ask about plastic (I assume UPVC) doors that places such as global sell in white or chocolate in various sizes (but can have them made to specific sizes (I asked and they contacted manufacturer)around 2000 baht

I was told they are perfectly OK for exterior doors use, and they seemed adequately strong. I have noted some residential private urbanization have elected to go the plastic door route (when not sliding glass).

Our current cheap and VERY nasty builder installed splitting, warping wooden doors after only 2 years are all are in need of replacement (1 back kitchen door, 2 upstairs patio doors and 2 outsider utility room doors. The 3 leading to the interior of our house have strong metal security grills on the inside.

I am seriously considering plastic (I assume UPVC)exterior doors as I am not relying on the outer door for security.

My thinking is low maintenance with:

1) hopefully no warping,

2) no risk of damp absorption and swelling or rotting

3) no threat from termites.

Not sure if it is OK to paint Plastic (UPVC) doors and if so whith what tpye of paint.

I am also not sure on short/medium/long term durability to weather and sun and whether if not painted they fade, become brittle or just eventually breakdown as do plastic washing pegs and hangers if left out to Thailand's very strong heat,sun and monsoons etc.

Can anybody provide information of these aspects and the viability of plastic (UPVC)Exterior doors, and any observations on advantages and shortcoming of using this option will be much appreciated.

Thanks, Dave

[WormFarmer]

http://www.woodltd.com/ from the sublime to the ridiculous

[johnson36]

It really depends on what you are doing with the house. If it is typical Issan, and you won't be living there, go cheap! Don't let wifey talk you into something expensive. And go with something the termites and ants don't like. I would recommend alu. But if you are going after a nice looking house, and you plan to spend a lot of time there, then wood is tough to beat. Looks beautiful. But much more expensive and takes a bit more to care for it.

The house my wife is building is mainly for her mother and father. I want her to make a good job of it so I don't want her to buy low quality doors, I would prefer her to pay a bit more money and buy solid hardwood ones. You said " Don't let the wife talk you into something expensive ", well she is paying for the complete build, (she works in the Uk so has her own money)

[trogers]

Our current cheap and VERY nasty builder installed splitting, warping wooden doors after only 2 years are all are in need of replacement (1 back kitchen door, 2 upstairs patio doors and 2 outsider utility room doors. The 3 leading to the interior of our house have strong metal security grills on the inside.

All these door panels mentioned seem to be in locations subjected to constant direct sunlight and rain. Even top quality solid timber door panel will dry and crack under such conditions.

If you look at the houses of the rich, they would spend over Bt20k for the timber front entrance double doors, which are set a couple of metres into the protective shade of a porch or similar.

How you detail the doorway to avoid direct sun and rain is important to the life of the door frame and panel, no matter what material is used.

[gdhm]

http://www.woodltd.com/ from the sublime to the ridiculous

I assume you are referring to my enquiry (which IS a serious one) about UPVC exterior doors.

My reality WormFarmer, is that I spent most of my capital and saving on building my family home here 3 years ago) but the supposedly experienced "in family" builder ran out of money 75% of the way through the build. Despite me giving most of the last of my savings to help him finish it was not enough and he therefore in the final month or two, cut several corners (exterior doors being one ) and hired workers that were well below par but would would work for a song. He did not tell he how bad things really were due to Thai face so I was not able to consider any options. Certainly, I would have found enough more money for better workers as labour here is pretty cheap.)

The exterior doors were the cheapest C**P he could find and his odd job man (who hung them before I realized)failed to varnish the bases of the doors first and then could not, due to lack of gap clearance. I of course found this out the hard way, when the doors started sticking in their frames, weakened and warped and started to rot.

I am not having a go at your comment WormFarmer which I realize was said "tongue in cheek" ands in jest,

the World Financial Crisis has caused me (and many of us) to struggle due to Exchange Rates etc. and that leaves very limited options at times.

In my case: Monthly nett income since Nov 2007 (date I sold my Spanish home and started to build my current home)has dropped over 35% from 65,500 Baht to 42,000 Baht due to to the UK GBP Exchange Rate drop from 69.5 Baht to 46 Baht per 1 GBP and big increases in bank charges (Thai and UK).

Please understand that getting 238,000 Baht Nett pa LESS income from my pension each year, compared to Nov 2007 has made budgeting hard, exasperated by 3 years of rising costs since. I therefore am forced where possible to seek less desirable options such as not being able to consider the sublime or even nice hardwood or aluminium doors which I know would would be best or preferable.

What little savings I have are needed to part cover my Retirement Visa reqts as the pension no longer gets near by itself.

I am not feeling sorry for myself, just stating and recognizing facts of life that I and many Expats living here in Thailand are now facing (unless well off).

I hope you and other members understand now, why I am asking about UVPC doors (not coz I want or like them. I am unwilling to accept what a shop salesman tells me is OK and am hoping input from fellow TV members here will confirm or warn me off as applicable)

SO back to my enquiry , I am trying the best I can to afford replacing 5 doors (that should not have need replacing for years) with something that may last a lot longer than the existing ones have and longer than my buying cheapish slightly better wooden doors than my builder bought.

I am hoping UPVC doors will give me a reasonable number of years before I must replace them and certainly give me more years than me buying more cheapish wood doors (not that I'd buy as bad as my builder did).

Kind regards, Dave

Edited October 30, 2010 by gdhm

[gdhm]

Our current cheap and VERY nasty builder installed splitting, warping wooden doors after only 2 years are all are in need of replacement (1 back kitchen door, 2 upstairs patio doors and 2 outsider utility room doors. The 3 leading to the interior of our house have strong metal security grills on the inside.

All these door panels mentioned seem to be in locations subjected to constant direct sunlight and rain. Even top quality solid timber door panel will dry and crack under such conditions.

If you look at the houses of the rich, they would spend over Bt20k for the timber front entrance double doors, which are set a couple of metres into the protective shade of a porch or similar.

How you detail the doorway to avoid direct sun and rain is important to the life of the door frame and panel, no matter what material is used.

Thanks trogers for your thoughts

In fact only the 2 upper patio doors get hours of midday onwards direct sunlight (partially protected by roof eaves (about .75 metre I would guess) just above them. The main problem for all doors except one that leads to the car port that is roofed) is Heat and Monsoon driving rain. Being a new build the trees have yet to off heat, sun or wind and rain protection (although my wife has done wonders from just mud 2 years ago and the garden is maturing wonderfully for the short time it has existed).

To be honest trogers I doubt almost anybody can protect against the Monsoon rains as often they are torrential and driven almost sideways by the often heavy winds form many directions during the long Monsoon season.

Our worst door is the back kitchen door and that gets only very early morning direct sunlight as its close to North facing and in the shadow of the house. Bad varnishing and very low initial quality has had a lot to do with all 5 doors rapid decline.

Hope this clarifies.

Regards, Dave

Edited October 30, 2010 by gdhm

[jamescollister]

Just finish adding an extensionto the house, used our own wood. The carpender said if we don't want them he can sell them for 20,000 Baht a door in Ubon. Not cheap, but will last long enough for my grandchildren. You get what you pay for.Jim

[tangcoral]

Just to get an idea here in bangkok..

solid hardwood 2500-4000K, I believe its from Burma, slight darker than pinewood

USA redwood 7000-9000K

Teak wood 15K-20K

At our grandmas house built about 35 years ago, the teak door still looks good as new.

You get what you pay for.