Replace a glass frame in an exterior doorMost exterior doors have windows and one of the most common doors is a steel exterior door with a 9-letter glass panel. This type of door is the basis of several suburban residential houses.
These doors look like 9 individual glass tiles separated from the mount, but in reality, the door has a large insulated glass panel (usually 20 “x 36” or 22 “x 36”) stretched between a plastic frame or “surround “. Sometimes the mountains break, leaving you with a rather sad door, as seen in this photo.
So then what? Well, unlike the need to replace the door, you can replace the plastic frame, and your door will be restored to its old suburban splendor!
In this tutorial, I will show you how to replace this plastic surround frame and save you hundreds of dollars in replacement door costs.
You can purchase this replacement kit from your large box store, such as Loews or Home Depot, or you can order a glass replacement frame online.
The 9-letter surround frame looks like mounts that separate each panel from individual windows, but is actually a two-piece plastic object that stretches an insulated glass visibility panel in the door. In this tutorial, the outer wall is broken and the plastic space will be replaced.
The two-piece plastic frame will be removed from the inside. Before attempting to remove, however, first use a utility knife / razor blade to mark the corner where the door is located. This will break the paint or the connection between the door and the frame and make it possible to remove the frame. Do this on the inner and outer frames.