Big news: A mass-market door manufacturer has finally introduced a line of mid century style doors. Yes, Therma-Tru has introduced a new line of retro style front doors. The new “Pulse” line of doors — available in oak grained fiberglass, smooth (paintable) fiberglass, and steel — come in four styles: the Ari, Echo, Linea and Solei. The doors are made in Indiana, Therma-Tru told us.
Introduced in late March (2013), these mid century doors from Therma-Tru are available in several sizes, two finishes of fiberglass(wood look or paintable) or in steel and have quite a few glass options.
- Update: Since Therma-Tru introduced this door, a variety of other manufacturers have added mid century modern front doors to their lineups. For my roundup, see 14 places to Buy or DIY a Mid Century Modern Front Door.
Following is the news release from Therma-Tru on this new product launch:
Therma-Tru Launches Pulse™ Line of Entry Doors
Therma-Tru, the nation’s leading manufacturer and most preferred brand of entry doors, has introduced the bold and inspired new line of Pulse™ modern-style doors.
Accented with clean lines and crisp angles, Pulse entry doors cater to homeowners seeking to celebrate their own special sense of style. The contemporary door styles reflect four aesthetic feelings that many homeowners wish to capture in their home entry areas: Eclectically Chic, Mid-Century Modern, Retrospective and Distinctively Modern.
“These were the show-stopper doors in our booth at the 2013 International Builders’ Show,” says Derek Fielding, senior product manager for Therma-Tru Corp. “Pulse doors capture a modern feel, but at the same time bring you back to the 1940s through 1960s when door styles were simple.
“The Mid-Century Modern style is reflected in architecture, design and even furnishings found in the home from roughly 1933 to 1965. The goal during the post-war era was to bring modernism into America’s suburban areas. For homes, the emphasis was on creating open floor plans with lots of opportunities to bring the outdoors inside. A great example is the classic home found in the old Brady Bunch television show. The interior of the home was spacious, and the front entry door had a sleek, retro style to accent the home.”
Fielding also cites the simple, pure living of Distinctly Modern styles that the Pulse doors complement in the home. “Whether you’re a homeowner with a funky, personalized living space or a completely modern open style of home, these doors are ideal for you,” says Fielding. “Pulse doors deliver a unique blend of geometric glass shapes and door that can be combined to take cues from the past and future so that homeowners who crave artistic expression can select their own special door style.”
Available in oak-grained fiberglass, smooth (paintable) fiberglass and steel, Pulse doors come in both 6’8″ and 8’0″ heights. Therma-Tru offers the Pulse door line in four different styles — Ari, Solei, Echo and Linea. The doors all have four Privacy Glass options (Chord, Chinchilla, Rainglass and Granite) along with Clear Low-E and Internal Blinds. The Linea style is available with these same glass insert options plus decorative glass options of Blackstone®, Crystalline™, Sedona, Salinas®, Element, Maple Park®, Avonlea®, Saratoga™, Texas Star, Arden® and Crystal Diamonds™.
“The new Pulse product line gives design-conscious homeowners the opportunity to select an entry door that was inspired by the simple styles developed originally by architect Frank Lloyd Wright in the United States and the Bauhaus design school in Germany,” says Fielding. “These influences are timeless. We’re finding that homeowners are once again embracing this upbeat living architectural movement as they make a statement on their home with a door that complements feelings of modern sensibilities, retro glamour and fashionably chic.”
Check tax credits when you buy an Energy Star door
Tip: When you’re checking on cost, see if this door qualifies for a federal tax credit related to energy savings.
About fiberglass doors
Since neither Pam nor I have had experience with fiberglass doors — and are not sure how they measure up against wood and steel entry doors — we asked Therma-Tru for info on this, as well. Kathy sent us this (excerpted):
… The polyurethane foam core [of Therma-Tru’s fiberglass doors] offers up to four times the energy efficiency of a wood door and contains no CFCs. A solid hardwood square edge for strong performance that reproduces the look of a real wood door surrounds the foam core and a wood lock stile runs the entire length of the door to add structural integrity and heft. Covering the insulation materials is a door skin. Fiberglass door skins can be made to replicate real wood (which can be stained and finished easily) or come in smooth, paintable surfaces. The fiberglass door skin resists denting, cracking, splitting and splintering. It also resists rust, shrinking or swelling with temperature changes, or warping.
Scott says
Well the Pulse Echo 5-Lite went into today but how I feel about it is a “to be continued” story.
The door itself, I love. Inside and out I’m mixing modern and modest which I think is historically quite valid as some very modest houses (including mine) were originally equipped with some very modern looking doors and it suits the vibe of the house perfectly.
However, the beef, and it may seem really fussy, is that each and every single window has a small but quite visible Therma-Tru watermark etched on it. This does not show on the website and would have been a deal killer if I had known about it as it really detracts from the modern look of the clear glass. The windows are quite small so you can’t look through them without seeing the watermark, which per the factory is not removable. Worse, one of the panes has the watermark on the right with the other four on the left.
I hate to be a downer but I thought the multiple watermark issue was enough of a detraction that people might want to know about it as perhaps there might be some way to special order the door without this. I contacted Therma-Tru but with a Lowe’s install I need to go through them, then they open a service log with the distributor. Lowe’s seemed very receptive to my concerns however so this may still have a happy ending.
PS There were a few hiccups with the Lowe’s installation too (my brand new aluminum awning has a scuff from getting bumped with the door frame and they didn’t have the right type of caulk with them so they have to come back to finish the job), but again, we will have to see what happens over the next few days. Sigh.
pam kueber says
Bummer. Who would have anticipated THAT?
Scott says
I did make contact with Lowe’s today and although they definitely sympathize with my point of view right now their distributor says the best they will do is correct the one pane where the watermark is in a different location.
The appearance of those watermarks so spoil the door’s appearance for me that if the distributor won’t fix it I’ll work with a glass company on my own to make it look the way it should look. I really don’t think that would be fair as the manufacturer’s website says clear glass and describes the door as clean and modern, and does not show the but I know I won’t be able to stand looking at it the way it is now.
Pam, I sent a photo to you, just so you could get an idea of the effect. The window opening is 6 3/4″ wide, the watermark itself is just under 1 3/4″ wide… proportionally that’s a pretty big piece of real estate, and keep in mind, that’s times five. Placing the watermark (which conservatively I’d say is in about 14 pt. font) two inches from the bottom edge don’t help either.
The first photo is an up close shot, the second shot is taken from the other end of the house, through the hallway, through the living room, and through the entryway. Yes, even that far away you can still see it.
Sorry to go on and on, and like you said, who would have expected this? I guess the lesson here is don’t buy anything you can’t see in person first or see high-resolution photos of.
Michael says
First of all, I’ve really enjoyed reading about these new Pulse line of doors. I’m very happy retro renovation.com shared this..after reading Scott’s story I’m giving this a second thought…Every glass having a watermark is insane, then they messed up and have one watermark on the right and the rest on the left. That is a deal breaker I think. With modern clean lines and contemporary designs you don’t want watermarks on glass, like you just bought it at walmart. You want clean clear glass to emphasize the look and design. I’m very sorry Scott that this happened. At least you can work with a company to remedy this.
Scott says
Thanks Michael, I appreciate that.
Here’s the resolution of the story. I called TT twice and emailed once, literally begging for glass without the giant (16pt. bold font at least) logo on each pane. Lowe’s did likewise with the distributor but neither the company nor the distributor would budge an inch nor cared that I was unhappy. The distributor even told Lowe’s “I was lucky four of the five watermarks were aligned to the same side, they don’t even try to do that, they just grab them and stick them in.”
Anyway, I am quite pleased to say Lowe’s bent over backwards to make it right for me after I contacted Customer Care, going as far as offering to have entire new door built with a different vendor. Trouble was I loved the door aside from the glass and to go with someone else meant settling for a somewhat generic color or switching to a wood grain finish.
I solved the problem by going through a local glass company who used laminated automotive safety glass to create new insulated inserts for me which have no markings whatsoever. Unfortunately that voids that factory warranty on a major purchase but at least it finally looks right.
I can’t say enough good things about Lowe’s though, after seeing my photos they understood my point of view, did everything they could to find a solution, and paid to have the glass swapped out.
pam kueber says
Thanks for that update. Way to go, Lowes!
Scott says
I finalized my Echo 5-Lite order today with Lowe’s and the array of options was pretty impressive.
It increases the price of course, but you can select from some quite realistic (I thought) looking wood tones or have the door and/or frame painted. Therma-Tru has a decent range of stock colors but if you want something more unique you can specify any Sherwin-Williams exterior color for a reasonable upcharge. The interior and exterior colors can even be different from each other. I wasn’t expecting either of these two choices and have to admit it was hard not to get completely giddy in the store at this point. 🙂
To give folks who like me are not handy an idea of the price range, my door with fully-painted frame and interior (stock Extra White) and a custom-spec SW exterior color (Stop Red) is just under $1,200. The total with installation will be just over $1,700 but that includes all the contractor’s labor and supplies including re-finishing the exterior so I can blow off the 90’s aluminum trim and storm door and reconnect the door bell. Part of my price also includes some extra supplies needed to integrate the new exterior trim with the stone facing of my house as well. The only thing my figures don’t include is the price of door set and deadbolt as I am going to order those separately.
The grand total is a little more than I had hoped for but to get exactly what I wanted in a fully completed state including all the other modifications I asked for I am pretty pleased. The forecasted time frame is about 21 days for the door to be built, then about a week to get on the contractor’s schedule once the door arrives at the store.
pam kueber says
Thanks for the info, Scott! We can’t wait to see how it all turns out!
Scott says
Oops, one thing I forgot to mention that increased the price locally too was in the city of Columbus houses before 1970 have special lead procedures (they assume lead) which bumps up the price about $200.
Scott says
I was pretty excited about the Echo 5-Lite but seem to have come to a dead end finding someone to install it. I have talked to two people at Lowe’s and either they aren’t interested or don’t understand how to order something from Therma-Tru that’s not on their website.
I checked Therma-Tru’s website and everyone else not Lowe’s locally seems to be a contractor supply type business that doesn’t offer measuring and installation. I called Therma-Tru and they didn’t seem to have any other options either. Sigh.
pam kueber says
Scott, I will ask Kate to ask our contact at Therma-Tru for help on this.
Scott says
Thanks I really appreciate that. 🙂
I had planned on keeping my original 1954 door but unfortunately the mortised box self-destructed last week so I think a new door is probably going to be a more sound investment at this point. Plus the Echo is just so stunning.
Thanks Cheryl on the tips too, you are so right on how much harder you to have to work to get something non-standard. I’m sure it will be worth it once The Door is in place!
Scott says
Update: I called all around town and could find lots of Therma Tru dealers but no installation service. Then it finally dawned on me that just because one Lowe’s store was dysfunctional didn’t mean they all were. So I called one in a different part of town and within ten minutes I’m set up for the measuring appointment. Another exciting bit of news, according to my Lowe’s contact blowing off the storm door and finishing off the exterior trim is a fairly standard procedure and shouldn’t have a really big impact on the installation price. 🙂
pam kueber says
Awesome!
Cheryl says
Both Lowe’s and HD sell the doors through their local distributor. I’ve gone to both for quotes. Lowe’s in the Seattle area was around $450 and HD was $350 (steel and fiberglass were both pretty much the same surprisingly).
At both stores I had to pretty much be the one supplying all the info in order to get the quote. In the Seattle area, the distributor for both stores is Orepac. At Lowes I had to give them the model number off of Therma-Tru’s site. At HD, the guy I talked to had previous experience selling them and eventually did find the appropriate brochure in the Orepac binder they use. I know for sure the model number wasn’t in the HD computerized system and I’m pretty sure Lowe’s didn’t have it either, so don’t be surprised if it isn’t an easy lookup for them.
The doors didn’t come out until February, so if they’re looking through the Therma-Tru brochures from 1/13, the Pulse line won’t be in there, that’s something I’ve learned from experience in looking for these doors. If you really want a quote, go in on a week day when they aren’t as busy. Bring the model number you want and explain that you know this model most likely isn’t in their system but that their distributor should have it. Give them as much detail as possible and then wait for the quote back. Our quote took a week.
When it comes to actually ordering the door, you may need to be an expert on that as well. We had gotten a quote from a pricey door/window store first, but it gave me a listing of all the specs we’d need to place the order. I pretty much had to tell the HD guy all the things we’d need to get it properly ordered (sill depth, hinge/sill color, type of hinges, inswing, righthand, double bore, etc.).
HD wound up being the better price and they don’t charge extra for special orders like Lowe’s does. We were told it would probably take a month for the door to come in though. It definitely isn’t a “it’ll be ready next week” situation.
As far as install goes, the type of door shouldn’t affect the contractor you use. You’d be ordering either fiberglass or metal and those are standard types of doors that are installed all the time. At HD or Lowe’s you just get assigned the next available contractor that’s in their pool of installers. Sometimes you get a really good one, sometimes not so much. You could ask around to neighbors and friends and see if anyone has a door installer they recommend. You could also look into doing it yourself if you’re handy. That’s what we’re opting to do. I watched lots of videos on YouTube and recommend those by AskTheBuilder.
Good luck! Don’t give up on ordering the door you want!
Cheryl says
UPDATE: Our door only took 2 weeks to come in at HD! We picked it up this weekend. We were surprised to find that they had unboxed the door, but there was still a little bit of protective framing around it. Unfortunately we found that the brickmould did suffer some damage, but HD gave us a wood filler kit for free to fix the damage ourselves and also gave us $50 off of the door. Our other option would have been free brickmould from HD to replace all around the door. We thought it would be easier to just fill the minor nicks instead of measuring and cutting new trim. My advice is to please inspect your door when it comes in to make sure it meets your expectations. Hopefully you’re only doing this once, so make sure your door is in quality condition. Also, don’t be surprised by the wood edge around the door like I was. I forgot that was a detail provided by Therma-Tru (and discussed in the above article). For a moment I thought the door was wood core with only a fiberglass skin, and wondered what on earth we bought =)
We are dropping off our door at a friend’s body shop to have him prime and paint both sides of the door for us (he’ll do the window trim separately). He’ll be adding a clear coat layer for added UV protection. Although I wasn’t sure about having a glossy door, at least it will be sprayed on and not have brush marks though it, making me think it will look better than I imagine. The paint will then need to harden and off gas for a couple of weeks.
My husband wanted to check the fit of the new door before dropping off the door sans frame and window at the body shop, so we did bring the door inside (it’s been raining like crazy here in Seattle). I have to say, I LOVE it. It’s just leaning against the wall next to our existing front door and I love looking at it. I can’t wait for it to be installed. We’ll probably do the installation in 2.5 weeks after the off-gassing process.
Oh and I’ll add one thing for pet owners… We were bad owners and let our dogs scratch at our existing front door because it was ugly and we knew we were going to replace it. Now we’re training our dogs to use a doorbell inside and out so that we don’t have scratches on our new door. I am not affiliated with the company at all, but I purchased 2 dog doorbells from a company called Pebble Smart (http://www.pebblesmart.com/) that is based out of Oregon. The owner Keith has a dog named Pebble. He’s an engineer and he researched and came up with the doorbell design. He did a Kickstarter and now he’s got a business selling the doorbells. A single bell is under $30 and the double is $55, and shipping is free in the US. Our dogs have been working with the doorbells for the past 2 weeks and they are doing pretty well. I’d say they are scratch free 85% of the time right now, which is pretty good for untraining a couple years of ingrained behavior. I’m hoping we’ll be closer to 99% by the time the door is ready to install. Just thought I’d pass on the info in case it’s helpful to anyone!
pam kueber says
Thanks for the update, Cheryl. I’m looking forward to the next one — when your door is installed!
Scott says
Cheryl, so glad to hear the door of your dreams is on the verge of installation too! Looking forward to seeing the body shop finish, it should be amazing in appearance and exceptionally durable. What color/colors are you going with?
I have two dogs as well but fortunately no scratching issues.I do predict there might be some moderate roughhousing over who gets the best position to look at the little windows though. 🙂
Betsy DiJulio says
EXACTLY the door I’ve been dreaming about. Thank you!
Luka says
What happened to Crestview! I understand costs increasing but over 300%? I hate to see any company fail but I wonder what the future will hold for them. I am grateful we ordered our doorlite kit a few years ago. I remember it cost us $700 at the time but now we would have to purchase the entire door for $3700 not to mention their doors are 36″ and we needed a 42″ door. I think they had such a great idea, makes it a really sad situation.
Laura Klocko says
As of August 2013 Crestview is not producing their door lite kits! They state that they are “focusing on custom built doors”. Imagine that! Custom doors sell for an avg. of $2500.00 according to web site pricing.
My husband could install kits in our existing door, in a weekend, for about $500.00.
While these Therm-tru doors might be ok for some they just don’t offer the true mid-century look I am hoping to find. So now I guess it is back to trying to find a contractor with glass skills????
What a shame!
Mike says
Oops, sorry. I called Therm-tru and the doors are available in fiberglass. They were shown at the bottom of the webpage, below the fire-rated doors.
And thanks for pushing back. I can now get the doors I wanted. Now I’ve got to get the dealer sorted out, too.
Mike says
I am replacing a pair of Therm-tru steel doors in my front entry and want to stay with the brand so that I can mount the new panels in the existing frame. As the steel doors have had chronic rust problems on the edges, I want to switch to fiberglass. The doors are 3’0 x 8’0, and many of the lite configurations that are available in the 6’8 height are not available in the 8’0 height. I asked my dealer whether he could get the Pulse lite configuration in fiberglass, and he said no. So I came home and checked the Therma-tru website (thermatru.com). Sure enough, it shows the Pulse line as a steel-only line. If you have a source for getting the doors in fiberglass, I would very much appreciate the contact information. Thanks.
Mike says
The Therm-tru Pulse line of doors is steel, not fiberglass. Check the Therma-tru website.
Kate says
Hi Mike,
Therma-tru Pulse doors are available in steel and fiberglass. Thanks for pointing out that they are also available in steel.
Cheryl says
We just got pricing on a steel Therma Tru Pulse in Linea with the window to the right. $770 at a window/door store in Seattle (steel door, Therma Tru’s composite frame, etc. — no installation). It took at least a week to get the quote. They didn’t know anything about the Pulse door style at all, so I had to look it up on my smartphone and give them the model number we wanted so he could contact his distributor to get a price. I knew Home Depot and Lowes sold less well made versions of Therma Tru doors but I didn’t know they would sell the Pulse line. I’ll have to check it out because it sounds like it could be MUCH cheaper.
We were going with a steel door because our dogs like to scratch at the door and they would scratch/gouge fiberglass, but we’re putting in a screen door now too so we’ll probably switch out to fiberglass now. My understanding is that fiberglass is usually more expensive than steel though. We’re opting to do a full light storm door so that the new door can still be on display. We don’t have an overhang or porch to protect our front door and it is exposed to the west and south where all our wet Seattle windy weather comes out of. Thus we have a rotted jamb and sill and rusting door that all need replacing (not to mention it’s an u*** [edited] paneled door with a sunburst window at the top – ugh!).
Thanks for writing up this article. Now I know why they couldn’t find the door model in their books yet =) And it’s giving me hope that we can get the door for less money.