Frenchie! Slidey! Lovely!

Once upon a time (a few days ago), we had french doors. With broken blinds. Attractive.

They were also metal doors, on the west side of an un-shaded house. Sadly, they warped. Even sadder, they were not installed correctly, missing some exterior trim, so they were drafty around the edges, and along all sides of each door. Awww, sad doors.

Now, you know that Doug could never allow any door that made our electricity bills go any higher (again, not that they are very high, honestly). He looked into a ton of options, brought out someone for a custom quote (nixed), and finally decided to go standard at the Home Depot.

We deep-sixed the french door idea - the custom quote guy noted that any metal door on that side of the house will eventually warp. Also, there isn't really a way to keep insects at bay when they are open, so we have had to choose: air flow with insects, no air flow and no insects. The latter usually won. But we really like opening the house. So, we decided on a slider, and to make it a little more stylish, went with the french sliders. Essentially, a wider trim around the windows.

Another big decision: the current doors were a custom size. To use a standard size, we (Doug) would have to build in the opening a bit. We went with standard: way easier to change out later if we decide on something different in 15 years. Or 10. Or 5...

The built-in area to house the new door size

We ordered it, and expected it two weeks later. Three-and-a-half weeks later (!), we picked up the door...

and Doug installed it.

Mostly. True to form, it's not completely done...there's still siding to install and a lot of trim to do. But the house is much more comfortable, being less drafty.

Exterior shot - yes, those stairs also need attention

Interior shot

The kids are also thoroughly excited to have something new to try out. Heaven help us.