Weatherboard and Sills

Weatherboards
Weatherboards are designed to throw out from the face of the door any rain-water that runs down the door when it is raining.

There are two basic types of weather¬board (though many more individual designs). The traditional weatherboard is basically a Hat piece of limber with bevel¬led edges screwed or nailed across the face of the bottom rail of the door.

Modern weatherboards are substantial pieces of timber moulded into a suitable shape and are often known as weather-bars. These may be cither attached on to the face of the bottom rail or tongued-and-grooved in place. They have a drip groove to stop water creeping under the weatherbar.

Traditional weatherboards are the most vulnerable to damage. They may break away from the face of the door quite easily due to their flimsy shape. Both types are likely to decay if they are left unprotected they should be painted or varnished.

Door sills
Door sills (sometimes called thresholds) serve three purposes:

• they provide a weatherlight finish at the base of the door
• they assist the weatherboard in directing water away from the face of the door and from the face of the house
• they form a solid edge to the floor construction in the door opening.

Nowadays, it is common practice to build a door frame with an integral sill. The most suitable woods are the durable hardwoods such as oak and leak, but these are expensive and other, cheaper woods may also be used.

There are a number of different door sill designs. The most usual arrangement is to have a rebated sill (to take the door) and a water bar to stop the water getting in under the sill. Some doors use a different arrangement with the sill sealed on its underside with mastic and fitted with a drought excluder instead of a rebate.

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