Door Sweep Replacement & Exterior Door Weatherstripping
Daylight under the door, frost on the inside of the jamb, a rug that moves when the wind blows. The seal is shot, or the door is. We figure out which and fix it.
JMB Builders does door sweep replacement and exterior door weatherstripping replacement across the Twin Cities metro. We match the sweep to the door, slide-on for steel and fiberglass and screw-on for wood, replace flattened kerf-in or surface-mount weatherstrip, raise or lower an adjustable threshold, and check the hinges, because a door that has sagged leaves a wedge no seal can close. Priced per door, quoted from photos within one business day.
- Priced per door; several doors in one visit
- Sweeps, kerf-in weatherstrip, threshold adjustment
- Quote from photos in 1 business day
- Licensed MN contractor BC809005
An exterior door seals at three places: the sweep on the bottom of the door against the threshold, the weatherstrip on the jamb against the face of the door, and the corner where those two meet. When any of them is worn, flattened, torn or missing, cold air comes in. In a Minnesota January, that shows up as frost on the inside of the jamb, a cold floor by the door and a furnace that runs more than it should.
Most sweeps and weatherstrip wear out on their own. Foam gets flattened, vinyl cracks, the sweep drags on a new rug until it tears. That is a parts swap. But some drafty doors are not a seal problem. A door that has sagged on its hinges leaves a gap that is wide at one end and tight at the other, and a new sweep will drag on the tight end and still leak at the wide one. Then the door has to be re-hung, and we tell you that instead of selling you a sweep that will not work.
JMB Builders replaces door sweeps and weatherstripping, adjusts thresholds, and re-hangs sagged doors across the Twin Cities metro. Entry doors, back doors, garage service doors and the door into the garage, priced per door, with several doors done in one trip.
What you supply
- A photo of the door from inside with the lights off outside, or from outside at night, so we can see where the light comes through
- A close-up of the bottom of the door and threshold, and one of the jamb weatherstrip
- What the door is: steel, fiberglass or wood, and roughly how old
- The sweep or weatherstrip if you already bought it; otherwise we bring the right one
What JMB supplies
- Slide-on or staple-on sweeps for steel and fiberglass doors, screw-on sweeps for wood doors
- Kerf-in foam or vinyl weatherstrip in the common profiles, or surface-mount aluminum-and-vinyl strip for doors without a kerf
- Corner seal pads where the sweep meets the jamb weatherstrip
- Threshold adjustment, a threshold cap replacement, or a new threshold when the old one is cracked or rotted
- Hinge shims, long screws into the stud, or a full re-hang when the door has sagged
- Strike adjustment so the door pulls tight into the new weatherstrip
- Photos of the finished door in your job folder
How it is priced: per door
Quoted in writing from your photos within one business day. What moves the number:
- Sweep only, weatherstrip only, or both on the same door
- Kerf-in weatherstrip (pull and press in) vs. surface-mount that has to be cut, fitted and screwed to the stop
- Threshold: a screw adjustment vs. a new cap vs. a full threshold replacement
- Whether the door has sagged and needs the hinges shimmed or the door re-hung before any seal will work
- Rot at the bottom of the jamb or under the threshold, found on older doors once the old parts come off
- Number of doors in the same visit — the second door is quick
A photo taken from inside with the outdoor light behind the door shows us exactly where the gap is. Add a close-up of the door bottom and we can quote it firm.
How long it takes
Sweep and weatherstrip on one door: about an hour. Threshold replacement or a re-hang: two to three hours. All the exterior doors on a house in a morning.
How your project works
- 1
Send photos, get a written quote
Send three photos of the space and a sentence about what you want. You get a clear, itemized quote within one business day. We only come out to measure first when the job needs a tape measure — no pressure, no games.
- 2
Pick materials, or bring your own
We help you choose profiles and materials that fit the house and the budget, or match your existing millwork exactly — or you buy the door or trim yourself and we install it. Everything is confirmed before the crew is scheduled.
- 3
Clean, precise installation
The crew shows up on time, protects floors and furniture, and installs with tight joints and consistent reveals. Photos of the finished work go in your job folder.
- 4
Walkthrough and invoice
We walk the finished work with you. If anything is not right, we fix it before we call the job done. Then one invoice, paid by check or direct deposit — no card fees, no payment links.
Situations and options
Kerf-in weatherstrip
Most doors from the last few decades have a thin saw kerf in the jamb stop, and the weatherstrip's barbed fin presses into it. Replacement is pull the old, press in the new, cut to length, with a corner pad at the sill. Fast, and the right profile matters: bulb, foam or fin, matched to the gap the door leaves.
Surface-mount weatherstrip
Older wood doors have no kerf. The fix is an aluminum strip with a vinyl or silicone bulb screwed to the face of the stop, set so the bulb compresses when the door latches. Fitted to each side and the head, mitered at the corners, screws into solid wood.
Door sweeps and door bottoms
Steel and fiberglass doors take a U-shaped sweep that slides onto the bottom of the slab. Wood doors take a screw-on sweep or a drip-cap style door bottom. The sweep has to touch the threshold across its full width without dragging, and that is where a threshold adjustment comes in.
Adjustable thresholds
Most entry doors have a threshold cap on screws under plastic plugs. Turning them raises or lowers the cap to meet the sweep. When the cap is cracked or the wood under it is soft, the cap or the whole threshold gets replaced. A new threshold also fixes a bottom seal on a door that was never adjusted.
Re-hanging a sagged door
When the gap under the door is a wedge, the door has dropped on the latch side. Long screws through the top hinge into the stud, a shim behind a hinge, or pulling the door and resetting the jamb brings it back square. Then the sweep and weatherstrip can do their job.
Door Sweep Replacement & Exterior Door Weatherstripping: questions, answered
Why is cold air coming under my front door?
Either the sweep on the bottom of the door is worn or missing, the threshold has dropped away from it, or the door has sagged so the gap is wider on one end. Look under the door with the outside light on: an even line of light is a sweep or threshold problem, and a wedge of light is a hinge problem. We fix the first with a new sweep or a threshold adjustment and the second by re-hanging the door, then set the sweep.
What is the difference between kerf-in and surface-mount weatherstripping?
Kerf-in weatherstrip presses into a thin slot cut into the door stop, so nothing shows but the strip itself. Most doors made in the last few decades have the kerf. Surface-mount weatherstrip is a metal strip with a vinyl or silicone bulb that screws to the face of the stop, used on older wood doors that have no kerf. Kerf-in is a quick swap; surface-mount is cut and fitted to each side and the head. Both seal well when the door closes evenly against them.
Can you adjust the threshold instead of replacing the door sweep?
Often, yes. Most entry door thresholds have an adjustable cap on screws hidden under small plugs. Raising the cap closes the gap to a sweep that is still in decent shape. If the sweep is torn or flattened, we replace it and then set the threshold to it; the two work together. If the cap is cracked or the wood under the threshold is rotted, the threshold gets replaced.
How do I know which door sweep to buy?
Look at the bottom of the door. A steel or fiberglass door usually has a U-shaped vinyl sweep that slides onto the slab from the end, and the replacement has to match that width and profile. A wood door takes a screw-on sweep with a rubber or brush fin, sold by length and cut to fit. If you send a close-up of the door bottom, we tell you what it takes, or just bring the right one with us.
Why would a door need to be re-hung to fix a draft?
Because a seal can only close an even gap. When a door sags on its hinges, the bottom edge drops on the latch side and the gap becomes a wedge. A new sweep set to the tight end drags; set to the wide end, it still leaks. Long screws through the top hinge into the stud, a shim behind a hinge, or resetting the jamb brings the door square again, and then the sweep and weatherstrip seal the way they were meant to.
Does new weatherstripping fix a door that is hard to latch?
Sometimes it causes it. New weatherstrip is thicker than the flattened strip it replaced, so a door that used to latch easily now has to compress it. The fix is a strike plate moved a hair, not thinner weatherstrip. If the door was already hard to latch before, the cause is usually a sagged door or a strike that has shifted, and we adjust that while we are there.
Get a written quote for this job
Three photos and a sentence is enough. You hear back within one business day. Or text the photos to 763-204-2099.
Related jobs we do
Door Won't Latch — Strike, Hinge and Hardware Fixes
The bedroom door drifts open, the bathroom door needs a shoulder, the front door latches only if you lift it. Small fixes, done right, before anyone talks about replacing the door.
Read moreRotted Door Trim Replacement — Casing, Brickmould & Flashing
The paint is bubbling at the bottom of the door casing and a screwdriver sinks right in. We replace the rotted trim and fix the water path that caused it, so it stays fixed.
Read moreFire-Rated House-to-Garage Door Installation
The door into the garage is the one that gets kicked, slammed and left open. Replace it with a rated, self-closing door that seals against exhaust and cold, installed by a licensed Minnesota contractor.
Read moreShorten Doors After New Flooring — Cut Down Doors That Rub
The flooring crew finished, the doors do not close anymore, and cutting them was not in their contract. We cut them down cleanly and hang them back the same day.
Read moreLabor-Only Door Installation — We Install the Door You Bought
You buy the door, we install it right — entry doors, house-to-garage doors, and interior doors hung plumb, sealed tight, and trimmed out by a licensed Minnesota contractor.
Read moreCloset Door Installation — Bifold, Bypass and Mirrored Doors
Closet doors that fall off the track, drag on the carpet or never quite meet in the middle. Replaced with new hardware on a track that is level, by a crew that hangs doors for a living.
Read morePage reviewed September 24, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All doors pages
Where we work
Doors near you
Based in Zimmerman, scheduling across the Twin Cities metro. Closest first: