"John Gilmer" wrote in message
...
I have to replace the patio door of my rental townhouse.

The entrance is block inside and brick outside.

It seems that the overall opening is somewhat larger than the nominal
72x80
door size. (Maybe 77" wide and 82" high).

Anyway:

1) Who here has actually done this on a DIY basis?

2) What do you get with, say, a French door from HD/Lowes? How much
"trim" to you either have to salvage or replace?

3) Just how heavy are these things? Did you haul it yourself or have
it delivered?

Thanks

A prehung french door will usually come with all the exterior trim attached.
A sliding door may just have a nailer flange, or it may have brickmold.
Think giant window, which is basically what it is. Interior trim may or may
not be included, and you may or may not be able to reuse the existing
casing. Expect to have to do some minor interior trim and paint work. Note
that the existing slider may have a nailer flange trapped between the block
structural wall and the brick veneer, unless it was surface-applied with
trim over. French door will have brickmold, so needs to be an exact fit to
the opening in your brick veneer. But not being able to see your place from
here, no way to say for sure. Like most things in construction, there are
dozens of ways to do everything, and several of them are usually considered
'right'.

These suckers are heavy. 2-man job, minimum. An extra- wide door needs 3
or 4 people to tilt into place safely. Definitely buy it delivered- if it
breaks en route, they pay to replace. If you haul, and it breaks, SOL. And
in a similar ven, for some fancy brands, the warranty does not apply unless
installed by an approved installer. (not completely a scam- a bad install
job can quickly trash even a quality door.) If you have never installed one
before, I'd pay to have the first one done, and watch and learn. Not real
complicated, but experience helps. (Like how to flash it properly, square
and shim properly, secure properly in the rough opening, etc.) And like I
said, anything beyond a 36" service door is not a one-man job to put in
place.

aem sends...