Solid Wood Doors

Replacing exterior and interior doors is a simple and effective way to add beauty to a home. While replacing doors during a remodeling project contributes to improved aesthetics, some doors are better than others when it comes to quality and function. Rustica’s quality craftsmanship produces both interior and exterior solid wood doors that will last a lifetime from owner to owner. Some of the most popular solid wood doors that we offer include:

Beautiful Solid Wood Doors for Your Home

1. Double X Barn Doors
2. Stable Barn Door 
3. Plantation Barn Door
4. Lewiston Barn Door
5. Ranch Barn Door
6. Herringbone Barn Door
7. Rustica Reclaimed Barn Door
8. Modern Slab Barn Door

If you’ve already taken the time to scroll through the pictures of these doors, it’s easy to see why a homeowner or renovator would fall in love with the design of a solid wooden door. But does this type of door offer benefits that glass, steel, or hollow-core doors do not? In other words, why should someone opt to choose a solid core door made entirely of wood over any other material?

What Are Solid Core Wood Doors? 

“Solid core wood” simply means that the door is made entirely of wood, from core to face. Like other doors, the standard dimensions of a solid core door are 80 inches tall by 36 inches wide by 1 5/16 inches thick.  However, as with other Rustica products, these doors can be customized to fit required or preferred dimensions in terms of height and width.

Our wooden doors can be purchased as single or double panels and can be customized with a variety of beautiful hardware and barn door hardware track systems. As you’ll read below, you can purchase a custom wood door, not only altering size, but also its hardware system, texture, color, and finish. The end result? A one-of-a-kind door that you absolutely love and want to keep for a lifetime!

As with other doors, Rustica offers to deliver their solid core doors as prehung interior doors or exterior doors, allowing for a simple and quick installation process for the owner. Alternatively, these doors can be purchased as a slab door with or without the hardware. A quick review of our website will show that your options are virtually endless. We offer a variety of choices for those in the market for new solid wood interior doors or solid wood exterior doors.

Benefits of Solid Wood Doors

A solid wood door holds several aesthetical benefits that other doors, like hollow metal doors, glass doors, or fiberglass doors, cannot possibly bring to a home.

1. Natural Materials

Nothing makes a greater statement than the bold presence of a wooden door crafted exclusively from real wood. A wooden door’s natural elements can add warmth and a welcoming, cozy spirit to an entryway. It can also add a certain elegance to rooms, such as an office or a dining area. When compared to its close counterpart—the hollow wooden door—a solid wood interior offers a sturdier component and a more striking appearance. Our expert craftsmen handcraft each door in house with precision using the best materials in the industry! Our wood barn doors are made out of solid wood and have a solid wood core. Solid core wood doors are more durable, they last longer, and they’re 100% natural!

2. Added Home Value

A beautiful front entry door crafted of solid wood adds remarkable curb appeal with an unforgettable first impression. Potential homebuyers will take notice as its gorgeous structure sets the scene for the remaining house tour.

Interior solid wood doors will only continue to stun throughout a floor plan. As solid core doors add additional functional value to a home (something we discuss below), homeowners will find that their doors’ aesthetic appeal can also contribute fiscal value to a home.

3. Fully-Customizable

Wooden doors can easily be altered to fit a homeowner’s style preferences and needs. It can be anything from a matching wall or jamb color or something more technical like door opening or track/hinge system requirements.

Unlike steel doors or doors made of artificial materials like fiberglass, which are extremely difficult (or impossible) to alter, hardwood doors can be stained and painted, allowing this process to be repeated over time with a little sanding and re-staining or repainting the door. This allows homeowners to easily change door styles to match home renovation style without the need to invest in an entirely new door.

While most homeowners focus on the cosmetic look and feel of a door without giving much thought to the depth of its functionality, it’s what’s on the inside that really makes a difference.

4. Long-Lasting

Solid wood doors can last decades longer than other doors and maintain their appearance and shape without denting, rusting, or warping like steel and fiberglass tend to do. They’re also easily repaired, whether that be removing scratches, repairing chipped paint, or replacing a panel/beam if damage were to occur. Solid wood interior doors like barn doors, pocket doors, dutch doors, French doors, and other styles of doors all benefit from being made of solid wood.

5. Health and Environmentally Conscious

Since wood doors are made from completely natural materials, homeowners can avoid exposing their home and their family to the chemicals that come with manufactured materials. The manufacturing of wood doors does not emit harmful chemicals like fiberglass or laminate. Additionally, a solid wood door is made purely from a sustainable material: wood. Homeowners can even choose to purchase doors that are crafted with wood logged from a certified forest.

6. Added Security

There’s no doubt about it: the structure of a solid wood door is, well, solid. Its strength is incomparable in terms of the average front entry door, and its durability is long-lasting, even against natural elements or attempted forced entry. For these reasons, solid wood entry doors are a natural choice for those concerned with security.

7. Insulation

Wood itself is a great insulator. Throughout summer and winter, wood doors are excellent at keeping out wind, cold, and heat. This allows the interior of a home to maintain its desired temperature with less energy.

Homeowners who install solid wood doors in front entries may find their energy bills decrease. Other doors, like solid or hollow metal steel doors, also provide this level of insulation, however, metal doors absorb the cold and heat making the door face uncomfortable to the touch at times.

A wooden door also acts as an excellent sound barrier, making wood interior doors a wonderful addition to office spaces or other areas of the home that may require sound muffling. For this reason, many homeowners replace a hollow core office or bedroom door with solid interior wood doors.

Beautiful Solid Wood Doors for Your Home

Now that we’ve covered the basic benefits of replacing exterior doors and interior doors with solid core wood doors, let’s take a look at some of the beautiful options that Rustica currently offers. 

Remember, your home’s floor plan is like a canvas and a new door can serve as a gorgeous focal point of your painting. These eye-catching details can be used wherever you want to draw attention, be it bedroom doors, patio doors, or as a barn door room divider within a living space. Even installing solid wood closet doors is an impactful way to add that “wow!” factor to a home’s design.  

1. Double X Barn Doors 

The Double X Barn Door evokes the history of Dutch settlers and the unmistakable characteristics of their carpentry. Traditionally, Dutch carpenters utilized framed vertical wood slats finished with diagonal overlays, often resulting in an “X” pattern. This style of door will complement any country or modern country design.

2. Stable Barn Door

The Stable Barn Door also brings a time-old design tradition into the modern home. This door resembles those most frequently used in actual stables, featuring a stabilizing central rail placed horizontally across framed vertical slats. Complete with vertical beams that create a “Z” pattern on both top and bottom halves, this door looks amazing either as a single door or as a double door—a coupling that produces a larger “X” pattern from side by side “Z” beams.  

3. Plantation Barn Door

The Plantation Barn Door resembles the types of shutters popularized on southern plantations in the United States. Casting a delightful southern charm on both an interior and exterior space, this door is perfect for both traditional and contemporary design.

This door makes a bold, beautiful, and one-of-a-kind statement, as each plantation door is composed of hardwood trimmings that feature varied wood grain and color.  Plantation shutters are also available if homeowners are looking for ways to carry out the design throughout the home.  

4. Lewiston Barn Door

The Lewiston Barn Door is crafted with simplicity in mind, because not every homeowner wishes to draw attention to a door, especially when they want to create a different focal point in their interior space. Crafted from simple wood slats (which can be purchased with horizontal or vertical patterns) and framed by wider wooden beams and a rail frame, this door is humble and modest.

Each slat is crafted exclusively from knotty alder, a material with straight wood grain that fights against time and weather, thus preventing serious warping and twisting.

5. Ranch Barn Door

The Ranch Style Barn Door can be described in two words: rustic and relaxed. This no-fuss door is ideal for a rustic design, but can also complement a more modern or contemporary design space. Our carpenters craft this beauty from sturdy, solid vertical beams and then add three horizontal slats (spaced evenly from top to bottom) for more durability and security.

This is definitely a door that could make a bold statement as a front entryway door, as well as an interior door! As beautiful as it is with a simple finish, many homeowners choose to add additional detail and character by opting for a distressed stain or a brightly colored paint or finish.

6. Herringbone Barn Door

Our carpenters have taken a modern spin on the traditional with this gorgeous Herringbone Barn Door.  Its unique pattern is crafted using a CNC machine. One of the most popular contemporary doors, the Herringbone Barn door is versatile and will look equally stunning painted in a bright shade of turquoise or stained a deep walnut color. Imagine this door in an eclectically decorated living area or as a standout splash of color within a room of simple design.

7. Rustica Reclaimed Barn Door

The Rustica Reclaimed Barn Door gives a shout out to one of today’s trending design features: reclaimed wood.  Although many companies feature faux reclaimed wood, the slats used on this door are actually gathered over time from a variety of Rustica projects to be repurposed. Like the plantation door, each plank is unique and speaks to the very intention of crafting from reclaimed wood.  

Planks can either be purchased in a horizontal or a vertical design, each creating an eclectic presentation of varied colors and patterns. This door looks wonderful in any rustic space.

8. Modern Slab Barn Door

The Modern Slab Barn Door features another unique display of juxtaposed light and dark vertical or horizontal sleek lines—the perfect accompaniment to a truly modern exterior and interior design! Each piece is created from repurposed, high-quality remnant wood, creating an unmatched design throughout a sustainable crafting process.

When purchasing horizontal slats, homeowners will receive a door with a face made of honey maple and mahogany and a frame crafted from maple. The vertical slats are assembled from black walnut and honey maple beams framed in honey maple.

How to Refinish a Wood Door

When it comes to home improvement projects, one of the few things you can typically repurpose is your home’s wood doors. If you’re tired of your current look, or if your door is looking especially weathered, refinishing your wood door will bring it back to life. Refinishing is a great weekend project and you can do it with a partner or go solo for most parts. If you want to give refinishing a try, you’ll need to:

• Gather supplies
• Remove Door and Hardware
• Use a Sander
• Scrape
• Hand Sand
• Condition
• Stain or Paint
• Reattach Hardware and Remount Door

Few things compare to the beauty of a wooden door on the exterior or interior of your home. Though they need some TLC from time to time, the look and quality they provide are second to none. Even the most weathered exterior door can become a thing of beauty and last a lifetime once refinished.

How to Refinish a Wood Door

1. Gather Supplies

As with any project, gathering supplies is your first step. Once you have everything you need, you can work full-steam ahead without having to run to the store or scrounging around in the garage.
For any solid core wood door refinishing project you’ll need:

• Flathead screwdriver
• Sawhorses
• Drop cloth
• Varnish and stain or paint
• Wood conditioner
• Cotton rag
• Fine-grit sandpaper
• Palm sander
• Safety glasses
• Dust mask
• Scraper

These supplies can be used on any solid wood door slab from an interior door to a wood exterior door. The process is also the same for a wood barn door or a wood door frame.

2. Remove Door and Hardware

The first thing you’ll want to do is remove your old wood door from the hinges. You want complete, unhindered access to the door wood for the next several steps, so taking it down is essential. This is true of exterior doors and interior doors.
Place the slab on two sawhorses for stability and remove all hardware, including hinges and doorknobs.

3. Use a Sander

Next, use a palm sander and evenly sand all the flat surfaces on your entry door with 80, then 100, then 120-grit sandpaper. Keep the pressure light and the sander moving. If the sander remains in one place for too long, you could damage the wood. This step is where you’ll want your safety goggles and a dust mask. When you sand a door, you’re getting down to the surface of your wood door and you don’t want to breathe in the particles of dust, wood, and old varnish during the process.

4. Scrape

If your door has wood moldings, these areas shouldn’t be touched by a palm sander. Instead, use a scraper to remove old varnish in corners, narrow profiles, and raised panels. Pull your scraper with the wood grain, not against it, and use gentle pressure, being careful not to gouge the wood.

5. Hand Sand

Once you’ve scraped the old varnish, hand sand any remaining parts of the wood profile and raised areas that need a little extra TLC. Again, always go with the grain pattern so you don’t damage the wood. This process is the same whether you’re working with a hardwood species or an engineered wood hollow core door. Whether you have an exterior wood door of solid oak, alder wood, white oak, or mahogany, or you’re working with a hollow core wood door with a wood veneer and you need to refinish it, stick with these methods to make sure you do it right.

6. Condition

At this point, you have a sanded door that’s almost ready to be painted or stained. First, wipe all the sanding residue off your interior or exterior door. Then, if you’re planning on staining the wood, use a pre-conditioner and gently work it onto the entire surface of the door. This will help the stain you’re using to soak in for a more even look. Without conditioner, you run a higher risk of stain soaking in unevenly.

Do you have to condition your wood door? Not necessarily. However, working with stains can be tricky depending on the wood species. A conditioner makes the job a bit easier and more predictable.

7. Stain or Paint

Now comes the fun part! Time to make your door shine and give it some serious curb appeal. As you brush the stain or paint on, be sure to wipe the excess off your brush and back into the can. The last thing you want is extra stain dripping down your door. Start at the top and work your way down, beginning with the horizontal and then vertical panels. Coat the moldings last. If any stain gets on a dry surface area, wipe it off with a rag right away, otherwise, you’ll end up with a dark patch where it dripped.

Let your first coat of stain or paint dry, then return for another. You may want to add several layers of stain if the door was particularly weather-beaten and worn-looking. Always allow each layer to dry completely before returning to add another. It’s also a good idea to seal your stain job with a varnish to help protect the door from sun damage. If you chose to paint the door, no varnish is needed.

8. Reattach Hardware and Remount Door

After you’ve finished staining or painting, you’ve applied your varnish, and the door is completely dry, it’s time to reattach the hardware and remount your door. Up until now, you might have gone solo on this project. When it’s time to remount your door, however, it’s a good idea to have an extra pair of hands to help hold the door in place while you work on remounting it.

How Thick Should a Wood Door Be?

The thickness of an interior wood door and a wood front door will vary due to their location and the jobs they perform. Naturally, the thicker the door, the better the insulation and security. This is why exterior doors are always thicker than interior doors. Custom homes will differ. If this is a question you’re asking because you’re working on a new build or remodeling, keep the following in mind:

Entry Doors: A typical solid wood door is 1¾ inches thick. This thickness is the same for solid wood options or a wood front door with glass pane designs. Depending on the supplier you use, some companies specialize in especially thick doors from 2 inches up to 2.5 inches but these are rare. The thicker, non-standard doors also add on expenses for special locks, bigger hinges, more materials, and potentially a retrofitted door frame.

Interior Doors: Doors on the inside of the house used for bedrooms, closets, bathrooms, studies, libraries, and other rooms are typically 1⅜ inch thick. This is true of a wood door with glass, as well.
While these are the standard thicknesses for exterior and interior doors, you’ll find that measurements can vary depending on when the house was built and whether they installed commercial doors or custom-built options. A wood and glass front door typically retains a similar thickness as its solid wood counterparts, whereas a wood screen door or a patio door will trend on the thinner side.

Bringing Solid Wood Doors to Your Home

If you’re a homeowner or a renovator, consider replacing old or outdated doors with new solid wood doors. Their beauty and functionality will add remarkable value to a property’s appraisal, and their varied design will find its rightful place within every home.

Whether you’re going for a rustic look or a modern and contemporary one, Rustica’s collection of handmade solid wood doors should be the first stop on the journey of finding the perfect wooden door for your home.