Home is where the heart is, a warm bed, a hot delicious meal, a cosy fire, as well as sharing laughs with your nearest and dearest. What ties the feeling of no place like home to us, is the sense of safety and security you have there.   

The importance of good security front doors for your home

Before finally deciding on your dream front door there are many factors that first need to be considered, including colour, style, durability, and most importantly security. Nowadays people take extra precautions to ensure their home is protected and secure against unwanted guests - Outdoor cameras, additional lighting and extra locks are just a few of the options available, but having a strong, secure door is vital to adding to your peace of mind. With the many options available, it’s difficult to know if you’re making the right decision and which system offer the best security for your home. 

Fundamentally it boils down to two elements the door materials and the locking system. Each vary with some seemingly more promising than others. To make this decision a little easier for you at Realistic we have outlined the basics on Timber, PVCu and Composite doors.   

Timber, PVCu or a Composite door

Timber doors

Timber doors were the popular favourite for a long time due to their pleasing look, providing your house with that sense of traditional charm. They are an attractive door choice, sturdy and a secure door option due to the materials used within. The material within timber doors has evolved to a solid, stronger hardwood, offering a more robust door solution, frequently measuring 44mm in thickness.   

Typical locking systems on timber doors include a Yale or mortice lock, which is secure enough, but in no way compares to the newer, stronger locking systems. Multi-locking point systems are also available with timber doors, providing that added peace of mind. It is important that whichever locking system is used, it is correctly installed and checked, to prevent against forced entry.  

All doors require a certain amount of maintenance overtime with timber requiring more than the other options - Painting and priming your door will certainly ensure the security of the materials and increase longevity.  

PVCu doors

PVCu doors are another popular door choice as there is a lot of panels styles and colour options to choose, from Classic to Modern with low maintenance and an appealing price tag. PVCu doors range from poor to strong quality, it is advisable to check the standard before you commit to buying. PVCu doors are mainly made with plastic, with a multichambered reinforced outer frame, providing a sturdy thermally efficient door. PVCu doors with a steel core, are particularly hard to break through.  

Many of the older PVCu doors have a substandard cylinder lock, which can easily be snapped. Most PVCu doors now include anti-snap lock barrels and come as standard with multi-point locking systems. 

PVCu doors tend to have a shorter life expectancy due to the deterioration of the materials, subsequently you maybe having to consider changing your door after 10-15 years, as the security features will no longer be as efficient. 

Composite doors

Composite doors are our most popular door choice of replacement entrance door, they are like a PVCu door but come with better quality and security. Composite doors are a modern advancement in doors, they come in a vast variety of styles and with a colour palette to suit any homeowner, with low maintenance and a long-life span. The main difference between composite doors and PVCu doors is down to the use of materials. Whilst PVCu doors are still great, the materials used within them tend to be plastic with a Styrofoam core, compared to composite doors that are made up of more unique and robust materials. At Realistic we supply and install Apeer composite doors that have a 70mm door thickness high-density polyurethane core, steel mesh reinforced core that is dense and tightly pressed together. This means your door is thicker, and harder for unwanted guests to break through.  

Adding that extra reassurance for you, Apeer composite doors are made with state-of-the-art locking systems. Apeer composite doors have been designed to meet the police standard of security with Secured by Design, including BSI PAS24. Multi-point locking system, anti-pick and anti-snap cylinders are all standard.

2023 update Apeer now also have launched the Apeer 44mm range with the same high security specification but with a lower price entry into the market.  

Click here to download an Apeer 44 or 70 brochure

Are you thinking about replacing your a door for you home and live in Plymouth, Devon or Cornwall?

If you are little unsure about the security of your door and would like to seek an alternative option,” Make us 1 of your 3 Quotes” as we are happy to discuss our dooring options with you call 01752 841008 or call into our Showroom at Tamar View Nurseries, Callington Road, Saltash, Cornwall.