Wood Front Door Replacement — New Mahogany, Oak or Fir Entry Door
You want real wood at the front of the house: the grain, the weight, the sound it makes when it shuts.
Reply within one business day. Or call / text 763-204-2099.
A wood front door replacement is a new prehung mahogany, oak or fir entry door, factory finished or finished on site, set in a sill pan with a rot-resistant jamb bottom. JMB Builders supplies and installs them across the Twin Cities metro, and we tell you first whether your entry has enough overhang for a wood door to last. Priced per door, quoted from photos, and we reply within one business day.
- Priced per door, door supplied
- Mahogany, oak, fir and knotty alder units
- Overhang checked before a wood door is ordered
A wood door is still the one people picture when they picture a front door. Mahogany with a clear finish and beveled glass, white oak stained medium, Douglas fir on a craftsman bungalow, knotty alder on a cabin or a Tuscan-style two story. Nothing in fiberglass has the depth of real grain or the heft on the hinges. The honest part is that wood moves and wood weathers, and in this climate a wood door goes from a July afternoon in the sun to a January night at twenty below. The ones that last are the ones under a roof.
So we start with the overhang. A porch roof or a deep eave that shades the door and keeps rain and snow off the face is what a wood door needs. A door that faces south or west with nothing over it is better in woodgrain fiberglass, and we will say so. When the entry qualifies, the door is ordered as a prehung unit from options such as Pella, Andersen, JELD-WEN or a stile-and-rail door shop, with a composite or rot-resistant jamb bottom where it meets the sill. Factory finishing is the best way to get an even coat on every face including the top and bottom edges; on-site finishing with an exterior urethane or marine spar varnish is the other path and is quoted as its own line.
The install does not change because the door is wood, but the sill does. A sill pan under the threshold, flashing tape lapped to the housewrap, a frame set plumb with even margins so the slab does not bind when it swells in a wet week, low-expansion foam and sealant. We adjust the strike and the threshold on the first cold day if the door asks for it. Staining or clear finishing on site, and painting if the door is a paint-grade species, is a separate line — or take the door raw-sanded and finish it yourself before it goes in.
Get a written quote for this job
Three photos and a sentence is enough: a reply within one business day, or ask for a free in-home estimate. Or text the photos to 763-204-2099.
What you supply
- Photos of the door from outside, a wide shot showing the roof or overhang above it, and which way it faces
- Species and finish: mahogany, oak, fir or alder, clear, stained or painted
- Glass if any, and whether there is a sidelite or transom to match
- Hardware finish, or the handleset you bought
- Whether you want the door factory finished, finished by us, or delivered raw for you to finish
What JMB supplies
- A straight answer on whether the overhang is enough for a wood door, and fiberglass as the alternative if it is not
- Measurement of the opening and the order for a prehung wood door with a rot-resistant jamb bottom
- Removal and haul-away of the old door, frame and trim
- Check of the sill and framing once the old door is out, quoted from the photos
- Sill pan, flashing tape, low-expansion foam and exterior sealant
- Interior casing and exterior brickmould or flat trim, wood or PVC
- Handleset and deadbolt installed, from the door order or the set you bought
- Staining, clear finishing or painting on site, including the top and bottom edges, quoted as its own line
- A return visit to adjust the strike or threshold after the first season if the door needs it
- Photos of the finished door in your job folder
How it is priced: per door
Quoted in writing from your photos, with a reply within one business day. What moves the number:
- Species: fir and alder vs. oak vs. mahogany
- Factory finish vs. finished on site vs. delivered raw
- Glass in the door, and a sidelite or transom to match
- Rot-resistant jamb bottoms and a composite sill vs. an all-wood frame
- Rot at the old sill or jamb bottoms, common under an old wood door
- Wood vs. PVC exterior trim
- Staining or finishing on site, quoted as a separate line
Send a photo from the sidewalk that shows the roofline above the door and tell us which direction it faces. That decides whether we recommend wood.
How long it takes
One prehung wood door in a sound opening: most of a day on site. Finishing on site adds a day or two before the door goes in, weather allowing. The door is ordered after you approve the quote.
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 reply within one business day. Prefer a look in person? A free in-home estimate is always an option.
- 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
Mahogany, clear finish
Deep red-brown grain with a clear or light stain, often with beveled or leaded glass. The classic wood front door. Needs an overhang and a recoat of the clear finish every few years.
White oak, stained
Tight straight grain that takes a medium or dark stain evenly. Heavy and stable. A common pick when the interior trim and floors are oak.
Douglas fir, craftsman
Vertical grain fir with a clear or light finish, in craftsman or shaker layouts. Lighter than oak and the right species for a bungalow.
Knotty alder, rustic
Knots and color variation under a stain, for cabins, lake homes and rustic two stories. Softer than oak, so it is a door for a sheltered entry.
Wood Front Door Replacement — New Mahogany, Oak or Fir Entry Door: questions, answered
Can a wood front door last in Minnesota?
Yes, if it is under a roof. A porch or deep eave that shades the door and keeps rain and snow off the face is what a wood door needs. The finish gets recoated every few years, the top and bottom edges are sealed, and the frame has a rot-resistant jamb bottom. A wood door facing south or west with no overhang is the one that fails, and for that entry we recommend woodgrain fiberglass instead.
Mahogany, oak or fir for a front door?
Mahogany has the deepest color and the classic look with a clear finish. White oak is heavy and stable and matches oak trim and floors inside. Douglas fir is lighter, straight grained and the right species for a craftsman bungalow. All three come as prehung entry units. Knotty alder is the rustic option for cabins and sheltered entries.
Should a new wood door be factory finished or finished on site?
Factory finishing gets an even coat on every face, including the top and bottom edges that get missed on site, and the door arrives ready to hang. On-site finishing lets you pick an exact stain color and is quoted as its own line, with a day or two added for drying before the door goes in. Either way the door is finished before the first night outdoors.
Will a wood door swell and stick in summer?
Wood moves with humidity, so a door hung too tight in January will rub in a wet July. We set the frame with even margins sized for that movement and adjust the strike and threshold after the first season if the door asks for it. A good finish on all six faces slows the moisture change that causes most of the swelling.
What is a rot-resistant jamb bottom on a wood door frame?
The bottom few inches of the side jambs sit at the sill where snowmelt and splash collect, and on an all-wood frame that is where rot starts. Many wood door lines offer a composite or treated section at the bottom of each jamb, with the wood above it. We order that where it is offered and set the frame in a sill pan so water that gets past the threshold drains out.
Can I finish the wood door myself to save money?
Yes. We can have the door delivered raw-sanded and you finish all six faces before the install date, including the top and bottom edges. Use an exterior finish made for doors and follow the maker's instructions, since an unfinished edge is the usual cause of a door that warps. Or have us finish it, quoted as its own line.
Recent JMB work, from our job log
59 installs recorded across 30 Twin Cities communities since Dec 2025. Window and door installs for homeowners and the builders we work with. Counts come straight from our job log; no customer names.
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Read morePage reviewed October 10, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All doors pages
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Door Replacement & Installation near you
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