Three trades fit doors and they are not interchangeable. A joiner hangs a door in an existing frame and is who you want for an internal door or a repair. A window and door installer fits complete doorsets, frame included, and certifies the work. A general builder does either badly or well depending entirely on the individual. Matching the trade to the job is most of the decision.
Hanging a door against fitting a doorset
Hanging means fitting a new leaf into a frame that stays: planing to fit, cutting hinges, fitting the lock, adjusting until it closes cleanly. It is skilled joinery and it is a half day job. Fitting a doorset means removing the frame as well, which involves the reveal, the threshold, the weather seal and making good inside and out, and on an external door it is controlled work. Quotes for the two are not comparable and people frequently ask for one while pricing the other.
What an external door fitting should include
Removing and disposing of the old door and frame, fitting and packing the new frame square, sealing externally against weather and internally against draughts, fitting and adjusting the hardware, making good the plaster and the outside finish, and the compliance certificate. Ask specifically about making good, because a door fitted into a damaged reveal with a gap filled by expanding foam and no reinstatement is the classic cheap job.
French doors and patio sets
A french pair is two leaves meeting at a central mullion or at each other, and the fitting question is squareness: a pair that is fractionally out will not meet at the top. They also need a threshold detail that drains, like any low external door. Where the pair is replacing a window or a single door, the opening is being altered and the structural position above it needs checking.
Before the deposit
Ask how the work will be certified, whether the guarantee is insurance backed, what happens if the frame does not fit the opening once the old one is out, and what making good is included. If the contract is agreed in your home you normally have a statutory cancellation period. A fitter who works locally and can name recent streets is worth more than a longer guarantee from a company you cannot reach.
Questions people ask about door fitters near me
Does fitting an external door need building regulations approval?
Replacing an external door is controlled work with thermal and safety requirements. Most installers self certify under a competent person scheme and issue a certificate; a joiner hanging a leaf in an existing frame normally is not doing controlled work.
Should I use a joiner or a window company?
A joiner for hanging a leaf, an internal door, or a repair. A registered installer for a complete external doorset, because of the certificate and the weathering detail.
How long does fitting a front door take?
A straightforward external doorset swap is commonly a day including making good. Altering the opening size, or discovering a rotten frame or a failed lintel, extends it.