Adding Pizzazz to Your Old Front Door with a Window Insert

After looking at your front door on your home, you decide it needs something more. Paint just wont work and you want something with a little more pizzazz. Buying a new door is way over budget for you. So what can you do to make your front door look like a million bucks without spending that much? You can buy a window insert relatively cheap and install it yourself if you have a little skill and a circular saw.

Start by going to your local building supply center and ask a salesperson for help. There a million and one designs for window inserts. The sizes are important so before you go to the store, measure your door. You can choose a rectangle, square, oval, octagon, arch or just about any kind of design that you can imagine. Once you have the window insert ordered and it’s at your home, your ready to begin the next step.

Depending on what type of window insert you have purchased you need to find the center of the door horizontally. Measure the window inserts rough opening by flipping the window insert upside down and measuring the back that fits inside the window. Split the measurement in half and from the center of your door; make a mark on each side. Your window insert should be centered vertically. Your horizontal measurement should be up to your preferences and window inserts design. If you have a small oval or arch at the top of the door, you typically leave a small amount at the top, roughly about 12 inches. Some window inserts come with a rough opening size and placement so their warranty is intact. Follow these directions exactly to keep the warranty intact. Use a level or straight edge to mark the rough opening with a pencil. Don’t snap a line with chalk unless you have white chalk, otherwise you will leave chalk marks on your door and repainting will be required.

Flip the door over and transfer the marks to the other side. Set a circular saw and set the depth of the blade so it does not reach through the door all the way. If the door is wood or fiberglass cut the door and flip over and repeat until the opening falls out. If you have a metal door, you need to pre drill the corners and attach a metal blade to a jigsaw. It’s ok to cut through the metal door all the way with the jigsaw. Always wear safety glasses when cutting anything. Use a little sandpaper to knock down the rough edges.

Depending on the manufactures specs, you may or may not need to apply caulk around the rough opening before installing the window. Before you do add any caulk make sure the window fits properly into the rough opening. Make sure the screw side is inside the home and not outside so no one can unscrew your window and break in. With the kit comes inserts that fit over the screw holes and covers the exposed screw.

Re-hang the door from the top down. You should have a beautiful new look for your door without all the work of adding a new door or having the large expense of a remodeling job and contractor.