Door Installation Redmond WA: Step-by-Step Overview for Homeowners

Replacing or adding a door seems straightforward until you account for jamb depth, threshold height, wind-driven rain, and a Redmond freeze that shows up right after the caulk cures. I have installed and replaced hundreds of doors around the Eastside, from Education Hill colonials with original fir jambs to sleek new builds near Marymoor. The pattern is consistent: a solid result starts long before the door is in the opening. It starts with measurement, moisture management, and an honest plan for how the door will live with your home’s siding, flooring, and weather.

This guide walks through the full process for door installation in Redmond WA, with an eye for how local homes are built and how our climate behaves. If you’re a homeowner weighing DIY against hiring a pro, you will see where the time and risk sit. If you plan to hire, this overview helps you speak the same language as the estimator and installer so your project stays predictable.

What makes Redmond different

The Puget Sound region gives us sideways rain, cool summers, and occasional cold snaps. Doors that would be fine in a dry climate struggle here if you ignore drainage paths and thermal movement. Many Redmond homes use fiber cement or cedar siding, over OSB sheathing and a weather-resistive barrier. Door openings often include metal head flashings tucked beneath the siding. When those components are interrupted or incorrectly tied back into the new door system, you get rot at the lower corners of the jamb within three to five years. I have opened enough mushy jamb toes to know that even small shortcuts show up later.

Another local factor is slab and subfloor variance. Split-levels and mid-century homes around Rose Hill and Grass Lawn often have uneven transitions, so the threshold needs careful shimming and scribing to avoid binding. Modern townhomes may include pan flashing and rainscreen gaps that dictate the door’s setback. Each of these details changes the sequence and the materials you’ll use.

New unit vs. retrofit: choosing the right path

You typically have three options.

Full-frame replacement: Old door, jamb, casing, and brickmould come out. You install a new prehung unit and rebuild the weatherproofing. Best choice when the existing frame is rotted, out of square, or the threshold is failing. It’s more labor but restores integrity. Retrofit slab swap: Keep the frame, replace only the door slab and hardware. This is cost-effective when the frame is sound and square, but it has limits. You inherit any air leakage or threshold problems. New construction installation: For an addition or a remodel where the opening is framed but unfinished. You can dial in sill pan, flashing, and insulation from the start, which usually yields the best long-term performance.

For most door replacement Redmond WA projects in existing homes, a full-frame unit gives the best value. It lets you fix the water management and insulation at the sill, and it usually improves operation and energy efficiency immediately.

Materials, sizing, and insulation choices

In our climate, door materials matter. Fiberglass holds paint and resists swelling, which keeps it stable across seasons. Steel is strong and economical, but the skin can dent and the edges need careful priming to prevent corrosion. Solid wood looks beautiful but demands diligence: prefinish all six sides, expect modest movement, and plan for higher maintenance. Composite jambs have become popular because they shrug off splashback and never rot.

Thresholds and sills should include a thermal break, especially on north and west exposures. You will feel the difference in winter when the interior flooring near the door stays closer to room temperature. I prefer adjustable thresholds with replaceable gasketing. They are not glamorous, but they solve air leaks reliably.

As for insulation, use low-expansion foam labeled for doors and windows. It fills gaps without bowing the jamb. Backer rod and high-quality sealant finish the air seal. If you can see daylight around the door after a windy day, you can bet you’re losing heat.

Measuring the opening: accuracies that matter

Door manufacturers size by the unit, not just the slab. A 36 by 80 inch slab may ship in a unit that measures roughly 37.5 by 81.75 inches. Before ordering, measure the rough opening in three places for width and height, and check jamb depth. In Redmond’s housing stock, 2x4 walls with drywall often need a 4 9/16 inch jamb, while 2x6 walls often need 6 9/16. If you miss jamb depth, you will either need extensions or will see the jamb sit shy of the wall.

Check for plumb on both king studs, level across the sill, and square corner to corner by measuring diagonally. If the diagonals differ by more than 1/4 inch, plan for additional shimming, or consider opening the wall to correct framing. Finally, note the swing. A left-hand inswing in a tight foyer can block a closet or thermostat, while an outswing can be smart for weather but may need a different storm door approach and security hardware.

Permits and HOA

In most cases, simple door replacement doesn’t trigger a structural permit, but exterior changes in townhome communities and some HOAs require approval for style, color, and glass. If you are widening an opening, altering headers, or adding sidelites, get a permit. The City of Redmond is reasonable if you bring a clear plan, and the inspection is straightforward.

The step-by-step installation

This is the sequence I follow on a typical full-frame door installation Redmond WA project. The details vary with each home, but the beats are consistent.

Preparation and protection. Lay down rosin paper or drop cloths inside. Set a temporary dust barrier if you’re cutting casing. Remove the storm door if present. Take off interior casing cleanly with a pry bar and a putty knife as a shield to avoid denting the wall. Score paint lines with a sharp knife first. On the exterior, loosen the old brickmould or trim, taking care not to tear housewrap.

Deconstruction. Pop hinge pins and remove the old slab. Back out screws and nails from the jamb. If the threshold is glued or foamed hard to the substrate, cut it in sections. Clear debris and pull old shims. This is where you often discover moisture issues. A dark stain at the sill corners is common. Probe it. If it’s soft, plan for repair.

Substrate assessment and sill pan. Verify the subfloor or slab at the opening is level and solid. If not, plane high spots or shim low spots. I always install a sill pan, either a preformed composite pan or a site-built pan using self-adhered flashing membrane and a back dam. The pan should slope to the exterior. Think like water: if it gets in, it needs a path out.

Dry fit and shimming plan. Before adhesive or fasteners, test the new unit in the opening. Confirm the reveal against the framing is even and that the exterior trim lands in the right plane with the siding. Check the threshold sits flush with interior flooring. Decide where your shims will go. You want solid bearing at the hinge locations and at the latch strike area.

Set the unit. Apply a bed of high-quality sealant at the pan’s front edge and the sides where the jamb will land. Set the door in from the exterior, center it, and seat the threshold gently. From inside, plumb the hinge jamb first. Fasten loosely through predrilled holes at hinge heights with corrosion-resistant screws long enough to bite framing. Check the head reveal and latch side with the door closed. Adjust with shims until the reveal is consistent, usually about 1/8 inch.

Secure, insulate, and air seal. Drive fasteners through shims so they don’t crush the jamb. Replace two hinge screws per leaf with 3-inch screws into the stud for added strength. Operate the door. It should latch without force and not swing on its own. Fill the perimeter gap with low-expansion foam, leaving room at the sill for movement. Where foam is not appropriate, use backer rod and sealant.

Exterior flashing and trim. Integrate head flashing under the existing housewrap and over the new brickmould or top trim. The side flashing laps over the jamb legs, not under. The sequence is important: side laps over sill pan legs, head laps over sides. Caulk only where you intend to block air and water, not across drainage paths at the bottom.

Interior finishing. Reinstall or replace casing. Scribe where walls are out of plane. Caulk paint-grade trim to the wall, leave stain-grade crisp. Fine-tune the threshold and weatherstripping. The door should seal snugly without requiring a shoulder to close.

Hardware and final checks. Install lockset, deadbolt, and any viewer or smart strike. If you use smart hardware, confirm the latch alignment before you program it, or you will get nuisance lockouts. Test under negative pressure by running a bath fan and feeling around the perimeter for leaks. A scented incense stick can reveal air paths in a pinch.

Time and cost reality

For a single exterior prehung unit, a pro crew typically needs half a day to a full day, depending on repairs and trim. Material costs range widely. A simple steel entry door can start in the mid hundreds for the slab and crest into the low thousands for a fiberglass unit with glass. With labor, quality hardware, and trim, many homeowners in Redmond spend from 1,500 to 4,000 on a straightforward replacement. Custom sizes, sidelites, transoms, and stain-grade finishes push it higher.

DIY saves labor but increases risk at the sill and flashing layers. If you are comfortable with self-adhered membranes and have a patient approach to shimming, you can do it. If moisture repair is required or the opening is far out of square, call a pro.

Weatherproofing pitfalls I see most often

The most common failures come from reversed laps in flashing and from over-foaming. When the head flashing tucks behind the siding but lands under the housewrap, water finds the top of the door and slips into the wall. When foam bows the jamb, the latch never feels right again. I also see thresholds set flat on a flat slab with no back dam. Heavy rain, plus a wind gust, drives water in and it has nowhere to go but under the floor.

A less obvious mistake is sealing the bottom weep path on certain door sills. Many thresholds include tiny weep routes. If you run a continuous bead of caulk across the exterior nose, you block those routes and trap water. Leave the designed channels open.

Energy performance, comfort, and glass choices

Even a standard fiberglass door with good weatherstripping can close a drafty foyer. If you add glass, choose low-E options to reduce heat loss and UV fade. Triple-pane is uncommon on door lites, but low-E coated dual-pane with argon is standard. For doors with large glass areas, consider internal blinds to control privacy and glare without adding weight to the slab.

This topic ties directly to the broader conversation around energy-efficient windows Redmond WA homeowners pursue. If you are planning door replacement alongside window replacement Redmond WA projects, coordinate finishes and sightlines. I often pair a new entry with replacement windows Redmond WA installations so casing and exterior trim align. When you upgrade, the mix of casement windows Redmond WA, double-hung windows Redmond WA, or slider windows Redmond WA should harmonize with the entry’s style, especially on the street elevation. On modern homes, picture windows Redmond WA near an entry can flood the foyer with light, while awning windows Redmond WA placed high keep privacy without sacrificing ventilation. For bay windows Redmond WA and bow windows Redmond WA near a front door, ensure the new door swing clears the projection and that overhangs protect both assemblies from rain.

Many homeowners choose vinyl windows Redmond WA for budget and performance. If you’re swapping doors and windows together, request matching exterior colors or capstock to avoid a checkerboard facade. For window installation Redmond WA and door installation Redmond WA combined, site sequencing matters: window removal first, then door replacement, so your moisture management is continuous around corners and trim lines.

Style, security, and operation

Security begins with a plumb hinge side and long screws through hinges and the strike plate into the stud. A quality deadbolt, a reinforced strike, and proper latch alignment provide more real security than a heavy slab alone. Smart locks are convenient, but test the mechanical operation thoroughly before relying on any motorized components.

For style, think about the first 10 feet inside the entry. If your interior has oak floors and warm whites, a stained wood-look fiberglass door with simple vertical panels reads right. Mid-century homes around Viewpoint often take a flush slab with a single narrow lite. Craftsman homes near Education Hill look best with divided-lite uppers and a wider casing profile. The best design choices fade into your architecture rather than announcing themselves.

Interior transitions and flooring

Threshold height has to negotiate interior flooring thickness. If you plan to replace floors soon, tell the installer. Adding a 3/8 inch engineered wood layer after the door is set can create a trip point or a draft line if the threshold was tuned to the old floor. In basements and lower levels where the slab can wick moisture, I prefer a composite sill pan and a slight interior back dam to keep any incidental water from reaching finished flooring.

Maintenance that pays off

Twice a year, wipe the weatherstripping with a mild cleaner, clear debris from the threshold, and check the screws on hinges and strikes. In Redmond’s pollen season, grit collects in the sill rails and can wear the sweep prematurely. If the door starts rubbing in damp weather, a tiny threshold adjustment or a shim tweak usually solves it. Avoid planing the door edge unless you then seal raw wood. On painted fiberglass or steel, touch up chips quickly to prevent corrosion and UV damage.

For stained or clear-finished doors, UV exposure on west and south elevations is real. Even good finishes need recoat cycles, sometimes every 2 to 3 years on harsh exposures. If you want the wood look without the maintenance, stained fiberglass with a high-quality topcoat is a practical compromise.

When a window project and a door project intersect

I have had several projects where a client planned window installation Redmond WA and door replacement in separate seasons. The challenge, if you split the work, is maintaining the integrity of the weather-resistive barrier at corners and trim transitions. If your window contractor replaces picture windows or casements adjacent to the entry but leaves the old door for later, make sure they do not permanently seal head flashings that the door installer will need to tie into. A quick coordination call can save you from cutting fresh flashing six months later.

On the energy front, replacing a leaky patio door with a tight unit can save as much comfort as switching to energy-efficient windows Redmond WA throughout a single room. A new slider with a low-E, argon-filled glass pack and proper air sealing reduces drafts that make a room feel cold even when the thermostat says it’s warm. If your home has a large glass wall, consider a hinged door for airtightness and sliders for views, balancing convenience with efficiency.

Who should do the work

If your opening is square, the siding is straightforward, and you are meticulous with measurements and membranes, an experienced DIYer can manage a standard prehung install. Still, I recommend a pro when any of the following shows up: rot at the sill or studs, stucco or stone veneer, integrated head flashings that require siding work, oversized or custom units, or any plan to widen or add sidelites. Good installers in Redmond bring the right pan materials, understand how to work with existing housewrap systems, and can adjust for the quirks of older framing without compromising the reveal.

A brief word on timelines and weather

You can install a door in light rain if you control the opening with plastic and work efficiently. I have done many in our shoulder seasons. What you must avoid is sealing over wet wood or trapping moisture under membranes. If the forecast shows heavy rain all day, reschedule. Most sealants cure best above 40 degrees. In winter, keep materials inside the night before so the door isn’t ice-cold during install, which can affect foam expansion and gasket performance.

Real-world example

A homeowner in Overlake called about a sticky entry door that whistled on windy nights. The jamb was square, but the threshold had sagged at the latch side by roughly 3/16 inch due to a soft spot beneath the old aluminum sill. We opened the bottom, found a wet OSB patch, and traced the path back to a head flashing that lapped under the housewrap rather than over. We replaced the unit with a fiberglass prehung, installed a composite sill pan with a back dam, and corrected the flashing sequence. We added long screws at hinges, tuned the reveal, and re-cased the interior. The whistle vanished and the foyer temperature evened out. The fix was less about the new door and more about controlling water and air.

How door choices fit into the broader envelope

A home’s comfort is a system. A tight door can highlight drafts from old windows, and vice versa. If you are already shopping for replacement windows Redmond WA, weigh the styles against function. Casement windows Redmond WA seal more tightly than double-hung windows Redmond WA, which can complement an airtight entry on windward elevations. Slider windows Redmond WA offer simplicity for secondary elevations, while picture windows Redmond WA frame views with zero moving parts and zero drafts. For depth and street presence, bay windows Redmond WA and bow windows Redmond WA can transform a facade, but they add exterior joints and flashing details that need the same discipline as a door install.

Vinyl windows Redmond WA continue to offer solid value. Pair them with a door that matches color and texture. If you choose a darker exterior color for the door, confirm the window manufacturer offers a compatible foil or paint finish. That keeps your curb appeal intentional rather than patchwork.

Final checks before you sign off

Before you call a project complete, stand 10 feet back and sight the reveals. The gap between door and jamb should be even, the threshold aligned with flooring, and the exterior caulk joints neat, not smeared. Spray a light mist of water across the head and sides and look for immediate infiltration. Operate the door ten times, fast and slow, to ensure nothing binds once the foam cures. Save the installation bow window installation Redmond instructions, hardware keys, and any touch-up paint or finish for later maintenance.

If you’re planning both window installation Redmond WA and door installation Redmond WA over the next year, make a simple sequence plan and share it with your contractors. Good communication about flashing tie-ins and trim can prevent rework and keep the house protected through our wetter months.

Solid door work rarely draws attention, and that is the point. A well-installed door looks like it has always belonged, closes with a soft thump, and keeps the weather on the outside where it belongs. In Redmond, that quiet, reliable performance is what makes the entry feel finished, season after season.

Redmond Windows & Doors

Redmond Windows & Doors

Address: 17641 NE 67th Ct, Redmond, WA 98052
Phone: 206-752-3317
Email: [email protected]
Redmond Windows & Doors

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Pub: 14 Dec 2025 15:01 UTC

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