Why do exterior doors on a house open inward?

Question

I handle all the fix-it stuff around the house and worked with contractors on two gut renovations + come from a family of DIY'ers. My husband, who is not so handy, recently said I screwed up because our door to the back garden opens in instead of out. I told him that is how exterior doors are - it's convention, but I'd love to give him a bonafide answer.

Answer 1

Back in the day porches were smaller and a door that opened out would knock you right off the porch. It is also a security issue, much easier to push a door closed on an uninvited guest than to pull it with them standing in it.

Silly boys.

Answer 2

Don't know why house doors open inwards but public building open outwards for safety reasons, if a crowd run out of a building in a rush, you don't want to push everybody back to swing the door open.

Answer 3

Exterior doors often have screens or storm doors on residential properties. It'd be impossible to have a door open outward and a screen do the same, so they are standardized to make it more simple.

Also what he said about the hinges being on the outside is easy for theft.

Answer 4

Good question.I know for fact in swinging doors are easier for the thieves to kick in.That's what is happening in this area lately.The storm iron doors swing out but aren't real pretty.But safety first.My friend just got his door kicked in so hard they broke the frame around it.Cops had the same thing happen to 4 houses that same day.

Answer 5

Commercial doors swing out for quick exit in case of emergency. Residential doors swing in for two reasons:

1st When you have your hands full, you don't have to pull the door back and get around it to go inside.

2nd Earlier outswing doors were easy to break into. You would just pop the hinge pins and take the door off. However, in recent years they have introduced a tamper proof hinge.

Answer 6

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Answer 7

I agree with the other answerers and add that wind would have a tendency to catch and break an outward opening door.

Answer 8

So thieves, attackers, police and firemen can easily kick it in to gain access. On outward swinging door cannot be breached even with a police battering ram.

Answer 9

Ever try to open a door that swings outward with a guest standing there trying to get "inward"?

Answer 10

Also - Just making things up: if there are several feet of snow on your porch you wouldn't be able to get out of the house to shovel it if your door opened outward. And if it is raining, everytime you opened the door you would get the inside of it wet.