hello,

Can someone in the group comment on the following installation procedure and tell me if it was done properly and how I should handle the remaining problems.

I had a front entry door with side lights and a transom installed last week. They shimmed 3 sides of the door,checked for level and plumb and nailed 16 gauge finish nails through the shims. This was the ONLY method used to fasten the door to the blocking. There were no 3'' screws attached anywhere along the frame securing it to the blocking. There was no silicon caullk applied to the bottom of the threshold nor any butyl rubber flashing used on the botton/sides of the door before it was secured in place. Is what they did standard practice in the industry?

The door is somewhat protected by a portico/overhand but still vulnerable to wind driven rain and snow.


Now for the rest of the problems. When the door arrived, the inside transom was bare wood. No primer or stain. There were nail heads unfilled. The interior of the door appeared to be just primed. They told me it would have a finish coat when delivered.
The installers dropped a hammer and caulk gun on my wood floors resulting in large indentations even though ther was a padded moving planket and canvas tarp covering the floor. I provided the padded blanket when I discovered that all they had was a thin drop cloth to protect the wood floors. The bottom of the threshold on the outside has the worst caulking job I have ever seen. My 3 year old could have done a better job. They used white caulk. Should have used brown to match the color of the threshold. I should add that this was the most expensive door Pella sells. Any comments?

 

You certainly have some valid complaints.

Regarding the shims and finish nails, that is likely all that is needed on a unit of that type and size. The only purpose those shims and nails serve is to keep the jamb lined up so that it will be straight with the casing. Your unit has a nailing flange that secures the door to the exterior. The shims and finish nails just keep the interior side of the jamb lined up. A unit with sidelites is not installed in exactly the same manner as a 36" door with no sidelites.

Regarding the sealant under the door, it's a good practice to use sealant, and I would recommend it. You probably are unaware that Pella doors come equipped with a foam gasket (like backer rod) which fits in a groove on the bottom of the door, and it will seal the bottom of the door provided it is sitting evenly across the bottom. Some installers set doors on sill sealers, and this is similar, but it comes attached to the door. Personally, I don't think it should be the only seal used. I'm not sure what Pella recommends. I have always used additional sealant.

Regarding the interior finish, that depends on what your contract states. The Pella products we order come to us with no interior finish, just like your transom. It is either up to the homeowner to finish them, or if it is written in the contract and we are paid to do it, we will gladly finish the interior. We usually do it prior to installation. I have no way of knowing what your contract stated, but it is not unusual for the transom to be unfinished. That is standard.

The incident with the hammer and caulking gun may have been avoidable, but that certainly sounds like an accident that could happen to anyone. I'm not sure what the solution to that might be. Perhaps someone in the wood floors forum might have an idea.

Regarding the caulking, brown or bronze would have been a better choice. I would think that caulking could be removed and be replaced with a better looking bead that is the correct color.

If the door was installed by a Pella Window and Door company, or one of their authorized installers, you should contact them and voice your concerns. The same could be said if you purchased from a big box and had one of their installers do the work. You can go back on the company and discuss your concerns. If you just got a general contractor to install the door, you'll have to talk to him about the crew that came to do your work.

 

Thanks for the info. The door was purchased directly through Pella and they installed it. It's funny you mention the nailing flange because I saw them tear them off the door frame before they installed it. What is the reasoning behind this???? I don't know why this was done. I do believe the only thing holding the door in the frame are the finish nails.

 

Most of the Pella units i'm familiar with have an aluminum clad exterior and integral nailing fin. When you say, "I saw them tear off the door frame" that makes me think of the way some doors (that are not aluminum clad on the exterior) will have a wooden exterior trim called brickmould. Often, this needs to be removed so as to get the door plumb in the wall. It is sometimes discarded, and other times it is reinstalled.

I've had hundreds of customers watch me install, and they usually do not catch or understand 100% of what is going on, so I can relate to what you are experiencing. At the same time, it's nerve wracking for the installers to have someone watching their every move.

If your door has a nailing flange, it would probably be covered up by an exterior trim of some sort. Unless you were watching them from outside, it's possible that you might not have seen it.

 

Let me guess.........Lowes installation???

 

The door most definately has an aluminum exterior trim. Aluminum moulding was installed on the outside where standard wood/pvc brickmold would normally be used. I am almost positive they removed the nailing flange. The front entrance is brick and it didn't appear that there was any blocking accessible in which to nail the door too. And thus the flange would have been in the way. The blocking seemed to be flush with the exterior brick. Does this makes sense?

 

Not it wasn't Lowes. Lowes only carries the ProLine doors from Pella. The door I bought is the Architect series purchased directly from a Pella store.

 

Yes, that makes sense. In a brick opening, it might be necessary for the installers to snap off all or part of the nailing flange in order to install the door. No suprise there. But as you mentioned, finish nails alone to secure the door seems a little wimpy. I guess it depends how long the nails were, how many they used, and what the final result was. In other words, if the door is solid, it should be fine. If it wiggles at all, that will just get worse over time. Is the door caulked to the exterior brick along the sides?

 

The door is built like a tank. Two guys could barely lift it up the 3 steps to the opening. 4'' molding on the inside keeps it flush against the drywall. It is caulked along the exterior brick. I don't think a strong wind will affect it at all. It fells strudy opening and closing. Just curius if it could withstand a hit from a 300 lbs person intent on breaking in or the next class 3 huricane. Why couldn't they sink one or two 3'' screws in top or bottom of the door or toe nail a few 16d galvanized finish nails into the jamb before putting the trim back on ?? At the very least they should have used the expanding foam to "glue" it in place. Do you think this is worth pursuing further?

 

I suppose it's worth pursuing. You could simply ASK them how they secured the door to the framing and why. They probably should come back anyway to change the caulk from white to brown at the bottom of the door.

As for the foam insulation, they should NOT use expanding foam. They should use non-expanding foam to insulate around the door.

 

I stand corrected. If it was purchased thru a Pella dealer, and installed by a Pella installer, you definitely have a legitimate complaint. What or how it was done is no longer important, it was not done correctly.

 

How should it have been done?