Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler advice on weatherstripping

Just to let you know, it could be worse. AKA a lesson in aerodynamics.

In our first house at this location, we never thought and the builder placed an in-turn garden door out to the deck on the north-east side with the water view. In the winter, the winds straight off the ocean were so strong that it would blow the door in. After fixing the door and placing a deadbolt for a little more confidence, we discovered that the deadbolt would keep the door shut but the winds were strong enough to bend the door in at the top and bottom, exposing up to 1/4 inch of draft. That could result in a significant snow pile in your living room if you were not home to tend to it.

We tried all kinds of solutions short of a full steel door as it would have been pretty dark and ugly. In the end, we built a frame around the garden doors that allowed for an additional storm door to be placed over the entry side. This solved the problem and allowed us to keep the view and light coming in. It was also removable in the spring.

In our new house, we tried to be smart. We angles the house so the corner split the prevailing winter winds. We still needed a door facing the water but made sure it was an out-turn door so the wind would press it tight instead of bend it in.

We thought we were smart until one day we got a unusually strong wind from the west. It slid nicely along the north side of the house but it was just at the perfect angle or something that when it blew past the far corner, the resulting eddy created such a strong low pressure area that it was actually sucking the door out away from the frame at the top and bottom. Basically, my house was acting like an airplane wing.

I didn't even bother with other solutions this time and immediately built another removable door frame. This time though, I didn't feel the need to keep it as a functioning exit so I encased a large piece of plexiglass within the removable frame and I did a much better job of design assembly, making it look like it somewhat actually belongs there.

Take a look at any older style home in the Maritimes and they all have stormdoors or porches on the windward sides. I'm not sure why modern builders think they are too smart to need them but nature will win every time.

Meh, sounds like an average winter day in Ontario. Not that we have had many of those this year.

yes, but it only happens about two days of the year. Otherwise, I am out golfing year round.