The front door is the gateway to your home, often opening directly onto your kitchen, hallway, or living room. In the UK, between 70% and 76% of burglaries involve forced entry through a door, with the front door being the most common target.
This makes the doors of your home a key focus of any effort to improve home security. In this article, we look at the security features and benefits of three of the most popular choices of door – UPVC, composite, and aluminium.
1. Upvc Door
Unplasticised Polyvinyl Chloride, or UPVC, is one of the most common materials used to create domestic doors. This is for good reason – UPVC combines affordability and low maintenance with decent security. To improve security, some UPVC doors have steel-reinforced frames to generate extra strength, as well as multipoint locking systems that make it more difficult for a would-be burglar to invade the home.
Advantages
- Cost-effective with a good level of basic security for the money
- Available in various styles and finishes to suit most styles of modern home
Disadvantages
- While sturdy, UPVC doors are not as robust as composite doors, and may yield to strong physical force. They can also swell and warp over time, which may affect their security rating. Also, the windows commonly found in UPVC doors can be a security weak point.
2. Composite Front Door
Composite doors are all-round good options for front, back and side entrances, perfectly blending sophistication and durability with modern security features. The solid timber or foam core of composite doors makes them extremely strong as a security feature, strongly resistant to impacts and forced entry attempts. Most composite doors also come with good locking mechanisms with anti-drill and anti-snap cylinders that are resistant to the most common housebreaking techniques used by intruders.
Advantages
- Exceptional strength and durability
- Excellent thermal insulation, giving you great energy efficiency alongside security
- Customisable styles and designs
Disadvantages
- Usually more expensive than UPVC doors.
3. Aluminium Doors
Aluminium doors are sleek, contemporary doors that combine ‘statement piece’ style with durability, security, and value. This makes them the door of choice in many high-value homes and for families concerned about criminals breaking in through the garden. The inherent strength of aluminium frames makes them extremely resistant to forced entry, even with a thinner profile.
Advantages
- Ultra durable and long lasting
- Modern, minimalist style with elegant frames
- Low maintenance and resistant to corrosion, weather, and warping
Disadvantages
- The large glass frame means that most people use aluminium doors as side or back entrances, and not a front door
- An aluminium glass paned door might not look secure, potentially encouraging a would-be burglar to try their luck
- Higher cost compared to some composites and UPVC doors
What’s The Best Choice For Your Family?
As we’ve seen, while composite doors are normally the strongest choice of front door, modern UPVC and aluminium doors also provide excellent security for your home. In general, we recommend a UPVC door if you’re looking for a budget-friendly but secure option for everyday needs in a safe neighbourhood. An aluminium door, on the other hand, gives you a durable and contemporary -looking high security solution to the back or side of the home that will stand the test of time and deliver excellent long-term value for money – although you may want a UPVC or composite door as your front door. Composite doors are also a popular choice for homeowners looking for a secure and stylish upgrade that performs well in most scenarios. Composite doors are strong enough to deter most intruders while also looking great, and are accessible to most budgets.
Find Out More
Take the first steps to making your home and family more secure with a robust and stylish new door from Harvey’s Windows. With composite door prices from just £1200, we have a range of doors to suit most styles, tastes, and budgets. For more information, please call us today on 0116 497 1994, or click here to send us a message.
