Exterior Door Freezing Closed

I have a manufactured home (it’s less than 15 years old), and we’re having a problem our metal insulated exterior door. When temperatures dip below freezing, the door freezes closed. The inside of the door frame has a metal lip…

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I have a manufactured home (it's less than 15 years old), and we're having a problem our metal insulated exterior door. When temperatures dip below freezing, the door freezes closed. The inside of the door frame has a metal lip across the top and that is where it freezes. Last winter it was bad enough that we had ice on the inside top of the door. What can I do to fix this short of building another room on the back of the house? We live in middle Tennessee so it's not like we have really cold winters, but I am worried the condensation will cause the door frame to rot. As far as I can tell it seals just fine, but when it's below freezing you can walk by the door and tell the temperature change as you walk by.

Thanks for your help,

Daniel

Our Answer

Adding a room onto your home would be overkill! The simplest thing to do in this situation is replace the door, and this time use a fiberglass entry door instead of a metal one. Fiberglass doors are far more insulated. It's your metal door's lack of insulation that's causing the icing you described. The warm air in your house is essentially condensing on it. As an added perk, fiberglass doors don't rust or dent, and they're reasonably priced – slightly more expensive than metal doors, but not much. Even more, energy-efficient fiberglass doors can pay off come tax time. Also keep in mind: Manufactured homes often call for doors slightly smaller than average, so make sure you measure carefully before ordering your nonstandard sized door.