Fiberglass Door Security and Safety
One of the most traditional break-in points in your house or building? Your entry door. While it’s important to consider the security of your property and windows as well, a secure front door is a crucial key to keeping intruders out of your home.
Fiberglass doors are one of the most secure front door options, and should be up for consideration when front door security is a priority for your home. Equipping homes with safe products is central to the Plastpro mission, and our fiberglass doors feature a tough exterior, extended lockblock, and more features that make them some of the most secure front doors in the industry.
Fiberglass doors and composite jambs are more secure than wood and glass alternatives
Fiberglass doors give you the best of both worlds—the ability to replicate the aesthetic appeal of wood or glass in addition to the strength of a steel door. In addition to our sturdy and secure front doors, unlike wood jambs, Plastpro’s Polyfiber (PF) Door Frames are a continuous piece, which adds stability, and made of a composite material that has double the screw-holding power of wood. Combining our fiberglass doors and the composite PF Door Frame will enhance your door security.
Composite Door Skins Aid in Security
Known for their extreme durability, fiberglass doors are much less likely to be dented or damaged by impact compared to their wood counterparts. And for an explanation of what makes fiberglass so durable, look no further than its full name—fiberglass is short for composite glass-fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP), which indicates its structure. These door skins are created by weaving strands of glass fiber within a plastic material that enhances the door’s structural integrity. Specifically, Plastpro’s doors are manufactured with SMC skin technology, a glass fiber reinforced polyester material that is even stronger than standard fiberglass — making them extremely strong against force.
A polyurethane foam core prevents damage
While the outside of Plastpro doors is a high quality, fiberglass shell, the inside of the door is filled with a high-density foam core that provides firm structural support. Plastpro’s doors are specifically engineered with a polyurethane foam core-high-density and tightly packed to add rigidity and offer additional protection against both storms and intruders. With the support of both an impenetrable exterior and interior, Plastpro’s fiberglass doors are an ideal choice when looking for a secure front door.
Extended lock blocks provide the utmost protection
And while what your door is made of is very important when deterring potential intruders, the lock it's equipped with is equally crucial when it comes to protecting your home. Traditional knob locks can be sawed off, or even kicked open if the latch is too short. That’s why utilizing multipoint locks, deadbolts, and/or door latches alongside a door equipped to support these locks can enhance your entryway protection.
A quality lock will only function as well as the lockblock it is attached to. Plastpro’s fiberglass doors are equipped with a full-length lockblock made of laminated veneer lumber (LVL), which also helps create a more secure front door.
Traditionally a fiberglass door’s lockblock is only built to surround the immediate 18- 20” vicinity of the lock, and the rest of the space above and below is filled in with foam. However, our lumber runs the full vertical length of the door, providing additional rigidity and support that keeps the door from being kicked in by an intruder or blown in by severe weather. Additionally, the LVL material will absorb bendable stress without snapping, unlike a wood material. Of course, the extended lockblock length also provides extended holding strength for the lock and it can easily accommodate any lock or additional hardware you choose.
Plastpro’s Impact-Resistant Series Doors prevail against pressure
Plastpro values door security for all of our customers, which is why many of Plastpro’s fiberglass doors are Wind-Borne Debris rated (WBD) and have passed the requisite cycle tests (TAS 201, 202, and 203) that measure against a series of impact and pressure levels. These cycle tests require the doors to withstand hurricane wind load pressure at a minimum of 9,000 cycles, half positive and half negative. This not only emphasizes that Plastpro doors stand up well to severe weather, but also their strength and ability to protect your home against forced entry.
Plastpro also carries High Velocity Hurricane Zone (HVHZ) impact doors that are engineered to meet and exceed the requisite codes and guidelines nationwide, including Florida Building Code HVHZ standards, air infiltration (ASTM E283) and water infiltration (ASTM E331) standards, and the uniform structural load (ASTM E330). In order to meet these codes, each door must pass a large-missile debris test (standing against the impact of 9-pound, 2” x 4” lumber traveling at 34 MPH) and small-missile debris test where the door must allow the 2” x 4” lumber to penetrate the door when ten 2-gram steel balls are launched, three times, at 50 MPH.
HVHZ-rated doors must also pass a water infiltration test as a part of reaching Wind-Borne Debris standards. During the WBD impact test, the greater the wind pressure put on the door, the more water involved in the test. Impact resistant front doors must withstand the pressure without allowing any water to pass over the sill on the home’s interior.
These doors also feature composite edges manufactured to accommodate flexibility and maintain their shape post-impact. By having all of our doors go through third-party testing, Plastpro is committed to delivering the highest quality doors designed with a secure front door in mind.
Many impact fiberglass doors also feature impact glass. Impact-resistant glass is created by putting a polyvinyl butyral (PVB) clear film in the middle of two panes of glass to bond them together. The PVB is a clear, rubbery material that keeps the glass panes sealed to one another, even if they’re shattered as a result of impact. As a result, these panels can make or break (or rather, not break) an intruder’s attempt into your home—they’ll work to prevent glass from shattering and deter an intruder, helping to protect the people and items inside your house from damage and harm.
Privacy glass helps shield your home’s interior
Similar to tinted windows, privacy glass allows you to protect intruders from viewing what’s inside your home without inhibiting your view of the outside, and without blocking natural light. We offer a range of options, including our cordless miniblinds and rain glass, for an aesthetically pleasing modern look while helping keep your home’s features and inventory private from unwanted intrusions.
Check out Plastpro’s Where to Buy page to find the closest distributor for fiberglass doors, including our HVHZ Impact Series. For more information on our fiberglass door offerings, visit our website.