BILCO basement doors allow homeowners to add code-compliant living space or storage areas to their home. Large items such games tables and furniture for finished areas, or pool supplies and patio furniture for storage areas, move easily through the wide opening of a BILCO door.
They are an important part of your basement. If you store items in your basement, for example, your basement doors protect these items from intruders as well as destruction by the elements. Bilco basement doors are a great solution for any basement. They are designed to safeguard your basement.
Bilco was founded by George W. Lyons Sr., whose machine shop made the original metal basement door because his own wooden basement door rotted.
In fact, it is not. uncommon for an original BILCO brand basement door. to last over 30 years. Just ask your neighbors.
A basement bulkhead, also called a basement cellar door, basement hatchway or the brand name BILCO, is an insert that serves as the entry point for your basement or cellar. Bulkheads have a slanted design made for concealing spaces and sealing them from water damage.
BILCO basement doors allow homeowners to add code-compliant living space or storage areas to their home. Large items such games tables and furniture for finished areas, or pool supplies and patio furniture for storage areas, move easily through the wide opening of a BILCO door.
Closing the door is the best option for a uninsulated basement that becomes as cold as the air and ground outdoors. With the door open, the house's main-level thermostat will sense the drop in temperature as the cool air from the basement circulates throughout the house.
Enjoy the convenience of locking and unlocking your Classic Series BILCO basement door from the outside with a basement door keyed lock kit. Install a BILCO keyed entry lock and save the trip into the basement to lock or unlock the door.
Bilco recommends using Sherwin-Williams All Surface Enamel A11 Series in a white or light color. For best results, carefully follow the directions on the Sherwin-Williams label and apply one thin coat of paint followed by a second coat on both the exterior and interior primed steel surfaces of the door.
If you have a finished basement, you don't need to block the view with a door. However, you may want a door to prevent accidental falls down the stairs and onto the concrete floor.
The Bilco Company's competitors and similar companies include Tecnoglass, Anhui Conch Cement, Carborundum Universal and Kibing Group.
Bilco calls them "basement doors" but uses the term "bulkhead doors" too. Others call them "cellar doors". Its always good to avoid tradenames unless that's actually what you want.
Bulkhead doors are the most popular although you can opt for a standing door depending on how frequently the basement will be accessed. You can talk to your contractor to find the best type of door to suit your basement.
However, with egress basement doors, you want them to swing out, according to NFPA 101. This is because when the door swings out in the direction that you're going, it makes escaping your home a lot easier.
Bilco Basement Doors
Doors meet building code requirements for emergency egress in finished basement living areas and feature weather resistant construction.
'Black gives a higher-end look to a home. ' 'If you want to increase your home's value, painting the front door is one of the easiest ways to do so,' the expert adds. If you don't want to paint your door black, the expert suggests that slate blue and olive green are also known to add value to a home.
Caulking and sealing
We use a polyurethane caulk to seal all our bilco doors. This helps ensure a watertight seal.
It is no surprise that black reigns as one of the most popular front door colors, closely followed by other classic shades such as white and gray.
Because basements aren't generally super hard to get into. And considering that they are under the house breaking a window and getting in can happen without somebody inside noticing. So.. it locks from inside of the house so nobody can get inside of the house.
A reinforced steel door is one of the most secure types of front doors you can buy. They're made with thick, heavy-duty steel that's designed to withstand a lot of force. And, they usually have multiple locks to keep intruders out.
Senior editor Patrick McCombe heads to Bilco's Zanesville, Ohio, plant to get a behind-the-scenes look at how basement doors are made.
We know that cold air is heavier than warm air. Cold air will work its way down until it finds the lowest level of the home or a room that it can not go any further. This leaves the warm air to move up and occupy the upper levels.
For the same reason, more dense colder air sinks. Areas divided by floors tend to stratify, holding on to air pockets according to density – for which read temperature – and this, in simple terms, is why most basements are colder than most upper-floor bedrooms, even in well heated houses.
It can be tempting to slam the doors and hope the cool air builds up in the areas where you want it, but the fact is that modern air conditioning units are designed as whole-house systems. So when you shut that door, you're only making it much harder for your system to cool your home.