How can I make a french door less drafty?

Question

New weather stripping and a door sweep are already on my to-do list. I've noticed, though, that the steel part of the door itself is really cold, which leads me to think it's not insulated at all. The glass also let in a lot of cold air, obviously. My kitchen freezes because of this door.Short of replacing it (we're moving soon anyway) what can I do to warm things up?

Answer 1

Of course the weather stripping and door sweep are first. Caulk around all of the outside door casing edges, to cut down on unnecessary air flow. The weather stripping only takes a few minutes.

In our house I bought sponge pads that go under the outside wall outlet covers to keep cold from radiating into the house. They work quite well.

The window treatment we put on car windows in the south to keep the heat out, can be used on windows to reflect out the heat and cold also. Just a thought. That might help with the cold coming in through the glass.

On the steel door I would check and see if there is a heavy duty thermal type exterior paint that would add some insulating factors to the door.

Temporarily you might consider a tension rod (top and bottom) and a thermal drape across to help the cold situation. This would be non invasive, since you are going to sell.

Good Luck. I hope something here helps.