%#@(%! storm door!

[Monkeyleg]

A few weeks ago I had Home Depot special order a new outer door for the front of our house. It was an Anderson (Emco) door, and was $300. Pretty standard door except for some ornamentation in the glass.

Today I finally had time to install it, and figured maybe two hours.

Wrong. It took me over five hours. "Some assembly required" is a gross understatement. Every single piece of that door had to be screwed on or snapped on, cut to fit, measured, fit twice, and otherwise assembled by me. The only way they could possibly have made the door more difficult to assemble would be to just provide a sheet of aluminum, a template for cutting, and instructions on how to use a plasma cutter.

At one point I was seriously thinking about taking my shotgun to it. I also thought about having the bean-counter who decided to ship doors in pieces install the door. That way I could whip him while he tried to figure out where to drill the door for the hinges. I could snuff out my lit cigarettes on his back as he tried to get the plastic molding that holds the glass in place to actually snap into the channels. I  could gather all of the piles of dog poop from the neighborhood for him to sit in while he read the directions that had photographs that were completely wrong.

Or maybe I could grab the CEO, tie him up with the lengths of weatherstripping that go I don't know where, and force him to watch the engineer who designed this $#@@#$ door get gang-raped by some Hells Angels.

%$!#(*$ DOOR!

[Manedwolf]

That's how most stuff seems to be delivered. A relative got one of those incredibly expensive backyard forts for their kids. The holes weren't even properly lined up. I called one time, and his wife said that he seemed to be outside yelling at the wood.

[cosine]

C'mon, Monkeyleg, let us know how you really feel. 

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

you really need a second set of hands to do one. i did 2 the other day and they were the same type albeit stock doors.and i've done a bunch over the years . they are getting harder since rather than selling em right or left hinged they are "universal "now

[Monkeyleg]

"they are getting harder since rather than selling em right or left hinged they are "universal "now..."

Oh, yeah. The lock mechanism was marked "up" at one end, but it didn't line up properly. The instructions went into very confusing detail about how to determine which way "up" should be.

Seriously, I've replaced both head gaskets on my motorcycle in less time than this, and that entails removing and reinstalling the gas tanks, rocker boxes, push rods, valve rockers and cylinder heads.

Home Depot said they charged $115 to install. Unless they're paying their installers minimum wage, I don't see how they could do it.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

thats why i quit working for the depot. remember they take 1/3 of the installer labor as their cut.they call the 115 their basic insgtall to survive every job has to have extras added on.and if the doors damaged they expect the instaler to eat the time

[MicroBalrog]

The price of installation on steel doors is not included in their selling price in America?

[Laurent du Var]

%$!#(*$ DOOR!

Is 96$ what you really payed at the Made in China POS store ? 

[Sergeant Bob]

%$!#(*$ DOOR!

Is 96$ what you really payed at the Made in China POS store ? 

Thank you for the translation!

[Bigjake]

Replace storm door with sliding glass shower door, and I feel  your pain.

[Paragon]

I felt your pain a few months ago.  I actually ended up using a small piece of wood and a rubber block to knock the plastic into the channels to work the glass (I figured this out after I thought I was going to snap my thumbs off trying to push the stuff in).  My wife had a great time watching me cuss up a storm, though.  That $115 doesn't seem so bad anymore, does it?

[Hawkmoon]

I could snuff out my lit cigarettes on his back as he tried to get the plastic molding that holds the glass in place to actually snap into the channels. I  could gather all of the piles of dog poop from the neighborhood for him to sit in while he read the directions that had photographs that were completely wrong.

So, did you finally get it?

I ended up with three of the four retainer strips in place, and one standing up in a corner of the hallway near the door ...

[doc2rn]

Sounds like the one I bought the folks, you push down it locks to prevent todlers escaping. My brother nearly broke his nose running into it last year at Christmas time. Funny thing is he was on his third trip out to his Durango.

[MechAg94]

My Dad helped me install a dishwasher at my last house before I moved.  When I had to get a new one at my new house, I just paid the install fee.  It got down is a 1/4 the time.  It was worth it to me. 

I need to get the door and door frame redone on my back door.  Sounds like a lot of fun. 

[Scout26]

I replaced both the front and back storm/screen doors a couple of years ago.  I think it took me all of 2-3 hours to do both, including cutting a hole and installing the doggie door flap in the back one.   

Bought both at Home Depot.  Not much cursing involved with getting them installed.  But then again I worked for remodeling company when in college so I've probably installed 200-300 storm/screen doors, inadditon to doing siding, roofing, concrete, bathrooms and kitchens.

[jrfoxx]

so, it was a standard project, with typical required assembly and typical instructions? Cool. I was expecting some horror story from the thread title.Glad it went as well as they usually do.

[Leatherneck]

I had, overall, an annoying experience with my $40,000 worth of Andersen windows and doors from HD. Eight doors/windows had substantial issues I associate with final assembly or shipping: wrong sizes, LH vs. RH, and one stacked window set that was actually mulled upside down (The "canopy" lower window opened at the top, not bottom--one of four, with the other three correct). The material (wood and glass) was first-rate; but the final steps were screwed up a lot. Not what I expect from premium doors and windows.

TC

[Balog]

$40,000 on windows? Ouchies.....

[Hawkmoon]

I had, overall, an annoying experience with my $40,000 worth of Andersen windows and doors from HD. Eight doors/windows had substantial issues I associate with final assembly or shipping: wrong sizes, LH vs. RH, and one stacked window set that was actually mulled upside down (The "canopy" lower window opened at the top, not bottom--one of four, with the other three correct). The material (wood and glass) was first-rate; but the final steps were screwed up a lot. Not what I expect from premium doors and windows.

TC

Unfortunately, Andersen has not been considered a "premium" door & window company for a couple of decades. They are, at best, middle of the road.