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About This Project
Project Facts
Cost: $10 to $20 per three-piece weatherstripping kit; $3 to $6 per door sweep
Time: 1 – 2 hours per door
Skills: Novice carpentry
Special Tools: Coping or hacksaw, depending on weatherstripping type
Simple-to-Install Kits Make It Easy to Stop Annoying Drafts
Feeling a winter chill? If you run your hand around the perimeter of your closed door and feel a cool draft, your weatherstripping is probably worn, cracked or deformed.
Maintaining an airtight seal on your doors and windows usually won’t save a lot of energy and money, but it’s essential for stopping cold drafts and keeping your home comfortable. And in older, leaky homes, it actually can be a good money-saving strategy.
Replacing weatherstripping on newer windows and doors (less than about 35 years old) is fairly easy. You can usually slide out the old weatherstripping and push or slide new vinyl or foam into the grooves in the door or the surrounding frame. The biggest hassle is finding replacement weatherstripping that exactly matches the old. See “How to Buy Weatherstripping,” for advice.
Older windows, especially double-hung windows, are difficult to weatherstrip. If they’re in bad shape, consider replacement windows.
Installing new weatherstripping on older doors (and doors for which you can’t find replacement weatherstripping) is fairly easy, and we’ll show you how to do it in this article. Weatherstripping kits are available at most fullservice hardware stores and home centers. They include two side strips, a top strip and fasteners.
We’ll also show you how to install a door sweep ($6) to stop drafts from coming under the door. A wide variety of these are usually available on the hardware store or home center shelf alongside weatherstripping.
Size Up Your Leaky Door
We decided not to replace the old, worn bronze weatherstripping on our door with new bronze because the project is difficult, especially around the latch plates. (You can still find several types of replacement bronze at full-service hardware stores.) The wrapped foam type shown here is easier to install and more effective. We later painted the wood flange to blend with the frame.
Before you go out to buy your materials, check the door to make sure the draft isn’t caused by loose hinge screws. If the screws no longer bite, you may have to glue wood plugs in the holes and redrive the screws.
How to Buy Weatherstripping
You can usually find the types of weatherstripping shown below at well-stocked hardware stores and home centers. Many other types are available, but you’ll probably have to order them from a catalog. Ask to see a catalog at your local hardware store and order through the store if possible. (An on-line catalog is available at www.mdteam.com.)
We like the wrapped foam type (A and B below and shown in our story). It’s durable, retains its shape, withstands abrasions and conforms to a wide range of gaps. The metal flange with slots for screws (B) is a bit more adjustable than the nail-on wood flange type (A).
The vinyl or silicone bulb type (C) won’t cover wide gaps as well as wrapped foam, but it has a smaller profile with a cleaner look.
Finding new weatherstripping to match the exact profile of the old can be difficult. If you know the door manufacturer or where the door was purchased, try there first. (Check the door and frame for a label.) Otherwise, call a local door or window repair service. (Look under “Doors, Repair” or “Windows, Repair” in your Yellow Pages.) It may stock the materials or tell you where to call. Replacement kits for the wrapped foam and magnetic (for steel doors) types are sometimes available at hardware stores and home centers.
A good Internet source for weatherstripping is the Energy Federation Inc. at www.efi.org.
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