Caming

What type of wood are these made from? These were allegedly "custom units" as well, correct? And that is a glass stop moulding or trim not "caming" in the second picture and definitely should not be doing that if manufactured and sealed properly.

This post was edited by millworkman on Sun, May 19, 13 at 15:30

I believe the exterior is Douglas fir. Yes, this was entirely custom. Why on earth is this happening? What went wrong?

It's the same moisture problems that your entire build has had. They installed the door and let it soak up moisture then sealed that moisture with paint. When wood soaks up moisture it swells. When it starts to dry out, it shrinks. This could have all been predicted from the beginning. And it could have been prevented had the GC done the proper steps in the right order. He didn't. Yet again, it's his fault.

Sap wood, maybe not dried properly, maybe not sealed properly. If it is solid D.Fir probably a combination of all three.

It's not solid Douglas fir, the inside is another species, but I can't remember what.
What a pain! Now we need an entire new unit.

I suspect that this door gets full Sun for at least a few hours per day. The resulting significant temperature changes also affect the humidity in the wood.
The worst thing to do is to paint a door dark that gets full Sun and then put a storm door in front of it. But your door is white.

We don't have a storm door. The trim and side lites are white, the door is green. Yes, it gets sun. Is the sun causing the cracking? I've seen doors and transoms and side lites like this that are 200 years old and not cracking like mine!

The sun certainly will not help, especially if the wood is not properly prepared.

"the door is green"

Any but the lightest of green shades is going to soak up heat.

It sounds almost like the manufacturer used dimension (framing) lumber instead of DF dried to a lower moisture level and graded for higher quality.

Brickeyee, is there any way for me to verify what grade of wood the manufacturer used? Surely if I ask they will tell me they did not use dimension lumber, so I wonder if there is a test I can do myself.

The manufacturer could have used the highest grade lumber imaginable, but then the builder installed the door unsealed and unpainted and left it that way for months. It sat in a damp new build with all of the extra humidity issues that ruined the flooring and it soaked up moisture like a sponge. There's no point in trying to point the fingers anywhere else. If he wanted access control, he should have installed a temp door. Or he should have primed and painted that door as soon as it was installed. That would have sealed out the moisture.

I am curious as to how long the door unit was in place before it was primed and painted? A matter of days? Or weeks/months?

(Off topic ... sort of... I've also been wondering what finally happened with your floors? You were going to meet with the floor co. owner re the filler, etc., I believe, but I don't think you posted again after that? Were the floors replaced in the end, or how were the problems (filler cracking, etc.) resolved?)

I think red is the worst for absorbing heat, and some manufacturer's won't honor the warrantee against cracking if it has been painted red and has a glass storm door mounted over top.

This door will absorb some heat, but there is no greenhouse effect or buildup from a glass storm door.

The door was installed about 6 weeks before being primed and painted!

The floors were inspected by an independent inspector hired by the flooring company and, because they hired him, I don't have access to his report. We have hired one, but he has not had enough time to come by yet, hopefully by the end of the week. I'll post back after he inspects them.

There is a good part of your answer, raw wood door outdoors unfinished during the winter months for about 6 weeks. Should have at least been primed before installing.

This post was edited by millworkman on Mon, May 20, 13 at 19:56

The manufacturer said it was kiln-dried Douglas fir.

Yes but you stated it was not solid, D.Fir meaning probably veneered which is even more of a reason for it to have not been installed without some sort of primer at the very least.

Kiln dried is no longer dry when exposed to the weather and the moisture in a new build. Raw wood soaks up moisture, even if it was bone dry to begin with. It should have been painted immediately.

Your GC is responsible and he should replace the whole door as well as the floors. ALL of the moisture issues can be laid at his door for incorrect order of operations and neglect. Neglect is the only term that I can use here. It's completely irresponsible on his part to not paint that door. Even if he had to get out his paint brush and do it himself, it should have been primed at least.

"The manufacturer said it was kiln-dried Douglas fir."

Kiln dried to what moisture contest?

Framing lumber is left with a higher moisture content than woods intended for molding or other 'fine' work.

Al the time it spent unfinished allowed the moisture content to change radically anyway.

And ANY door exposed to direct sunlight will fare better if painted white rather than some other color.
As an example, lay the palm of your hand on the hood or trunk of some cars of various colors that are in direct sunlight.

With the lack of competency shown by your builder, I'd be worried about things you can't see. Did you get watered down cement that will cause early failure of footings and foundation? Were cheap fittings used for plumbing? Cheap lumber for framing that will be warping like crazy in the next few years. Etc.

I hope you have held back enough payment, so you can use that as leverage to get the GC to correct these issues.