When choosing a new front door, there are many important factors to take into consideration. Of course, style and design are going to be high on the priority list, but a front door does more than just create a good first impression and enhance the kerb appeal of a house. The best external door will also ensure your home is safe and secure, as well as warm and comfortable. Your choice will also need to take into account how much maintenance you’re willing to commit to and how long you want the new door to last.
Read our expert guide to find out what you need to consider when choosing the perfect front door for your home.
In this guide:
Read what factors you should bear in mind when buying a new front door.
Find out what you need to consider when choosing a front door material.
Read the key benefits of choosing aluminium for your front door material.
Find out more about the different front door styles available.
Read about the popular colours for front doors and how to choose the right option.
Find out more about the different options of front door sizes from Origin.
Read what to consider when choosing security options.
Read what else you need to consider when choosing a threshold option.
Read the key benefits of choosing an Origin Front Door.
What should you consider when choosing a new front door?
The front door is the first thing visitors to your home see up close and as such plays a huge role in defining the appearance and tone of your home. It is the barrier between your internal spaces and the elements, the point of entry, and so needs to be solid in its construction and extremely secure. In addition to all of this, your front door should be able to withstand all kinds of weather conditions and temperatures.
Finally, of course, the look of the front door should complement the rest of the house, be it a contemporary style house or a characterful period property. Don’t forget to consider the impact of the position of your front door either – if your new front door is facing a busy main road, for example, you will have different requirements to someone who has a long driveway and wants their front door to take into account views of a pretty front garden.
Read our full guide to choosing a new front door for your home.
What front door materials are available?
Aluminium front doors
Aluminium front doors are an increasingly popular choice – and for good reason. Origin aluminium front doors are strong, durable, low maintenance and available in a plethora of designs and colours, making them suitable for both contemporary and traditional properties. They tend to be more expensive than uPVC but their durability and eye-catching aesthetic makes them worth the initial cost, providing your property with a luxurious appeal. View our full collection of aluminium front doors here.
Wooden front doors
Wooden front doors remain popular with owners of all kinds of homes, although they are particularly suitable for those with period-style houses. On the downside, they do require regular maintenance to retain their good looks. They can also be prone to rotting, twisting, and warping, and although choosing a heat-treated timber or engineered timber should largely overcome this, it will likely add to the cost of your timber door.
Read our guide to aluminium vs wooden front doors here.
Composite front doors
A composite door will usually be made from glass reinforced fibre, with a core of rigid foam or solid timber. They are low maintenance, strong, and offer good thermal efficiency. However, in some cases, the colour or final finish will have been applied to the fibreglass skin in a way that means the door could become scratched or damaged over time.
uPVC front doors
Usually lying at the cheaper end of the market, uPVC front doors tend not to hold the same aesthetic value as aluminium front doors or timber. The colour of these doors can also be prone to fading over time, and they do not offer good durability when compared to other options.
Read our complete guide to choosing a front door material here.
Why choose an aluminium front door?
There are some qualities that should be non-negotiable in a front door. The best front doors are:
Highly secure
Thermally efficient
Weather resistant
Low maintenance
Durable
Stylish
The advantage of aluminium front doors is that they are all the above. High quality aluminium is an incredibly strong yet lightweight material that, unlike timber, is resistant to twisting, warping, or rotting – no matter what the British weather throws at it. Additionally, aluminium front doors can also be extremely thermally efficient.
Read our full guide to the benefits of aluminium here.
Looking for a high-quality, aluminium front door?
Each home has its own unique character, and your front door is a big part of that. Origin front doors are made bespoke to your needs, so you can ensure it’s making the right statement for your home:
- •Specify your size
- •Pick a panel or mid-rail option
- •Pick a colour on the door frame, sash and panel
- •Select your handle & colour
- •Select whether you want your door to include a letterbox, knocker or a spyhole.
- •Pick your threshold.
Choosing a front door style
The front door style you opt for needs to be tailored to suit your home. Some people choose a front door that will seamlessly blend in with the rest of the materials and colours used in the construction of the house, while others prefer to opt for a front door that sits in complete contrast and makes an eye-catching statement.
Find out more about the different options of front doors here.
Modern front doors
Aluminium is a great material for modern front doors, offering brilliant design versatility in terms of panel and glazing options and a huge range of RAL colours. Origin Aluminium Doors can be as narrow as 400mm but as wide as 1200mm and as tall as 3000mm. If you opt for a door with a panel, they will have individual minimum and maximum sizes, so speak to your installer for details on this. Adding side lights or fixed glazed windows around and above the front door will further enhance its proportions.
Are you looking for a high-quality modern front door? Shop our aluminium front door collection here.
Traditional front doors
For some people, traditional is the only way to go when it comes to front door styles, whether that means going down a panelled route – common from the Georgian period right up to the Edwardian era, in a range of guises – or a more cottage-style door.
Owners of traditional homes shouldn’t feel restricted to a timber front door, as aluminium front doors also come in classic styles. Origin Aluminium Front Doors are all bespoke, meaning there is a style to suit every house. The door furniture you choose – handle, letterbox, door knocker – will also have an impact on the final look of your door. Read our full guide to choosing a design and style for your front door.
Glazed front doors
All kinds of front door styles can be glazed, from traditional to super modern designs. The amount of glazing you opt for should be chosen in accordance with the front door positioning and orientation. For example, if your front door opens directly onto a pavement, a fully glazed design would compromise your privacy. On the other hand, a front door that opens to a beautifully manicured front garden would really benefit from glazed panels, along with a range of fixed glazing above and around.
With Origin Front Doors, opting for a design with a mid-rail, a horizontally fixed bar, allows the door to be split (either 60:40 or 50:50) into sections so they can be glazed on either top or bottom, or both.
Find out how the Origin Front Door completely transformed this detached property.
Choosing a front door colour
Your choice of front door colour is a really important one. Not only will it affect how you feel about your home, but it will also play a role in how it sits with surrounding properties and can, if chosen wisely, enhance the overall architecture of the building. While grey remains a hugely popular choice, from stormy and bold to soft and pastel, don’t feel restricted to neutrals – a brave, happy splash of colour, such as pink or yellow can really add character and personality to modern and traditional homes alike.
Aluminium front doors are a great option for those who want a really broad choice of colours, plus they won’t need repainting, unlike timber. All Origin Aluminium Front Doors are available in a choice of over 150 RAL shades and if you still can’t make up your mind, you should be pleased to hear that you can select different colours for the outer frame, door sash and panels.
Though we offer a huge range of colours to choose from, popular colours for the Origin Residential Door include:
Black Grey (7021M)
Slate Grey (7015M)
Hipca White (9910G and 9910M)
Anthracite Grey (7016M)
Jet Black (9005M)
9910G in/ 7016M out (dual option)
Dark Silver Metallic (9007M)
Shop our full collection of aluminium front doors to find out more about the popular colour options available.
Read our full guide to front door colours here.
Front door accessories
Once you have selected your dream front door, you will need some equally beautiful front door furniture to finish it off to perfection.
You can choose a handle – either a lever handle or one from the bar handle range – or go sleek and simple with your front door accessories, opting for a handle-less finish. Other front door hardware to consider includes door knockers, letterboxes, spyholes, and escutcheon plates.
You might also be interested to know that at Origin, you can select from either stainless steel hinges or a colour-coordinated hinge in any RAL colour – a great way to ensure a fully cohesive finish.
Read our full guide to choosing front door accessories here.
Front door size options
Front doors can be bought in both standard sizes as well as bespoke. Although at Origin, all our products are manufactured bespoke to size and spec. Widths range from 400mm up to 1200mm, but different panels will have different minimum and maximum sizes. If you have an existing aperture that is wider than 900mm, double front doors might be the best option for you, or you might instead consider filling the opening with a front door combined with glazed side panels.
Read our full guide to front door sizes here.
Front door security
As one of the principal and visually obvious barriers between inside and out, your front door needs to be completely secure against unwanted visitors. Most insurers usually require at least one lock to conform to British Standard BS 3621, but in order to ensure superior protection, look out for products with the Secured by Design accreditation, which covers not only the locks, but also the hinges, construction materials and the strength of any glass used in the design. Origin Front Doors have been accredited with the Secured By Design certification.
Origin Front Doors are fitted with a multipoint locking system and a 3 Star Diamond cylinder as standard. This cylinder protects against snapping, picking, drilling, and bumping.
Furthermore, depending on your choice of handle, you can choose from a 5-point automatic locking system or an 8-point multipoint locking system.
Lastly, do consider fitting a viewer or video doorbell to complete your front door security features.
Read our full front door security guide here.
Choosing energy efficient front doors
Any element of your home’s overall shell that forms a barrier between the inside and out needs to be as thermally efficient as possible if you want your home to be a comfortable temperature all year round, lower your heating bills and do your bit for the environment.
Some materials are more thermally efficient than others. Plus, there are additional front door features that can further enhance the energy performance. As an example, the profile of the frame used in Origin Front Doors have an advanced polyamide break that’s been designed to minimise heat transfer between in and out. The panels also have a highly insulating Therminax core sandwiched between the two aluminium facing layers.
Why choose the Origin Front Door?
The Origin Aluminium Front Door is a precision-driven, sleek modern front door. From single front doors and French doors that can be used in a home or garage space through to grand entranceways with side flags and transom windows, our range of front doors are made from exclusive premium-grade aluminium. This enables you to create a personal statement with ease; because first impressions matter.
At Origin, we use premium quality aluminium to ensure your door will stand the test of time. On top of this – you will also enjoy unbeatable lead times, with our Kensington range being available on a one-week lead time in our six most popular colours. Shop our aluminium front door range today.
The Origin Front Door is manufactured with premium-grade aluminium, comprised of only prime billets and an ultra-insulating core. This makes it one of the highest-quality yet affordable aluminium residential doors.
