Excel Doors
Entry Doors
Your front door is the first thing people see and the last thing keeping the cold out. We install steel and fiberglass doors that seal tight and look sharp.
An entry door has to do two unrelated jobs at once. It's the face of the house, and it's a moving part in an exterior wall that has to stay sealed through twenty Chicago winters. Most doors are good at one of those. The ones worth buying are good at both.
Excel installs ProVia entry doors, and only ProVia. That's deliberate. Every door is built to order and shipped already finished from the factory — the stain or paint goes on in controlled conditions, not brushed on in your driveway on a humid August afternoon. It's the single biggest reason a door still looks right in year ten.
The first real decision is fiberglass or steel, and it's a fit question rather than a quality one. Fiberglass takes a convincing woodgrain and won't dent, rust or rot — it's the choice for curb appeal and for a door that catches weather. Steel is the security answer: ProVia's Legacy uses 20-gauge steel, about 49% more steel than the 24-gauge most doors use, with a 20-gauge security plate included to resist kick-ins. Neither is right for every house.
The part nobody looks at is the hinge stile — the vertical edge the hinges screw into. It carries the whole weight of the slab every time the door swings, and it's where a cheap door eventually sags until it drags on the threshold. Signet uses a 2⅝-inch three-ply hardwood hinge stile, with stiles and rails dovetailed and glued at each corner. Most fiberglass doors use a thinner composite. You will never see this part, and it decides how the door feels in a decade.
The threshold is the other quiet one. Houses settle, and a fixed threshold slowly stops meeting the bottom of the door — that's the draft you feel at your ankles on a door that otherwise looks fine. Signet and Legacy both carry the Z-AC threshold, with an auto-adjusting riser that keeps the seal held as the house moves.
We measure the opening, order the door built to it, and hang it so it closes with one hand and locks without a shove. Since 1982, in south-suburb homes.
Your options
ProVia Signet (fiberglass)
Our primary entry line and the most customizable door ProVia makes. The one to look at when the door is a curb-appeal decision as much as a performance one.
- U-factor as low as 0.16 — near the top of the category
- 2⅝″ three-ply hardwood hinge stile, dovetailed and glued at every corner
- Door edge finished in matching real wood — Cherry, Mahogany or Oak — so there's no plastic-edge tell
- Woodgrain in Cherry, Mahogany, Oak, Knotty Alder, Fir, or Smooth
- 8-foot doors, inscribed panels, sidelites and transoms available
- 15-year finish warranty — DuraFuse with P3 Fusion, the longest in the category
ProVia Ascent (fiberglass)
The value step into a ProVia fiberglass door. Streamlined rather than stripped — one grain instead of six, but the same hardware and glass range as Signet.
- Authentic White Oak woodgrain etched from real wood, or Smooth
- 2⅜″ wood stiles with glued, dowel-pinned rod corner construction
- Thicker fiberglass skin than many doors on the market
- Polyurethane foam core, computer-driven fill so there are no voids
- Composite bottom rail that resists rot where doors fail first
- 30+ styles, 8-foot and 42-inch options; 10-year finish warranty
ProVia Legacy (steel)
The security pick, and often the value pick. If the door takes abuse, faces an alley, or you just want the most solid slab on the list, this is it.
- 20-gauge steel — about 49% more steel than typical 24-gauge doors
- 20-gauge security plate included, to resist kick-ins
- U-factor as low as 0.17
- Smooth or woodgrain-textured steel; Shaker and high-definition embossing
- Z-AC auto-adjusting threshold, shared with Signet
- Most Legacy steel entry systems qualify for Energy Star, depending on the glass you choose
BRANDS WE INSTALL
Worth knowing
Fiberglass or steel — how we actually decide
Both are good doors. This is the conversation we have at the kitchen table, and it's about the opening and how you live, not about which one is better.
| Feature | Fiberglass (Signet / Ascent) | Steel (Legacy) |
|---|---|---|
| Best at | Looking like real wood, with no maintenance | Taking a hit — dents, kicks, hard use |
| Efficiency | U-factor as low as 0.16 | U-factor as low as 0.17 |
| Exposed to weather | Won't rust, rot or dent — the better call on an unprotected entry | Can dent, and a deep scratch on an exposed door wants attention |
| Security | Strong, with a solid hardwood hinge stile | The strongest slab we sell, security plate included |
| Finish warranty | 15 years on Signet, 10 on Ascent | 10 years |
| Customization | The widest range — grains, inscribed panels, 8-foot, sidelites, transoms | More limited, though Shaker and embossed options look sharp |
A covered front porch and a design-led homeowner usually lands on Signet. A side or alley door that gets shouldered open with grocery bags usually lands on Legacy. We'll tell you which yours is.
Let's talk about your project.
How it works
- 1
Free consultation
We measure the opening and go through slab, glass, grain, finish and hardware. You get a clear written proposal — no pressure and no same-day-only pricing.
- 2
Built to order, finished at the factory
Your door is built to your opening and the stain or paint is applied at the factory in controlled conditions, not on site. Most orders take a few weeks.
- 3
Install day
Same crews, job after job. Most entry doors are a one-day install. On homes built before 1978 we work as an EPA Lead-Safe Certified Firm, which governs how the opening is contained and cleaned.
- 4
Walk-through & after
We check the door closes with one hand, the lock throws without lifting, and the threshold seals. Warranty visits carry no service fee during your labor-warranty period.
Let's talk about your project.
Flexible monthly payments available through Service Finance. See financing options →
Last updated — we keep product specs and warranty terms on this page current with what we actually install.
Entry Doors — common questions
Reviewed August 2026
Fiberglass or steel — which should I get?
It depends on the opening. Fiberglass takes a convincing woodgrain and won't rust, rot or dent, so it's usually the answer for a front door that's on display or catching weather. Steel is the security answer — Legacy's 20-gauge slab is about 49% more steel than a typical 24-gauge door and includes a security plate. Hard use, steel. The face of the house, fiberglass.
Will a fiberglass door actually look like wood?
Closer than most people expect. ProVia's grain is embossed from real wood and the door edge is finished in matching real wood — Cherry, Mahogany or Oak — so you don't get the plastic-looking edge that gives cheaper fiberglass away. It's the detail we point at when someone says they'd rather have real wood.
Why does the door have to be built to order?
Because a stock door fitted to a non-stock opening is where the draft comes from. We measure your actual opening and the door is built to it, then finished at the factory before it ships. A factory finish applied in controlled conditions holds up far better than paint brushed on in a driveway.
What's causing the draft at the bottom of my current door?
Usually the threshold. Houses settle, and a fixed threshold gradually stops meeting the bottom of the door. Signet and Legacy both use the Z-AC threshold, with an auto-adjusting riser that keeps that seal held as the house moves. It's one of the more useful things on the door and nobody ever asks about it.
Can I get sidelites, a transom, or an 8-foot door?
Yes — Signet is the widest customization we carry: door and sidelite styles with or without glass, transoms, 8-foot doors, inscribed panels and decorative glass. We work the whole opening at the consultation, not just the slab.
Can both of my exterior doors use the same key?
Often, yes, and it is worth asking. Because we install ProVia on the entry door and on the outer door that hangs in front of it, the outer door's multi-point mortise hardware can be keyed to match your entry door. One key opens both. A shop that mixes vendors between the two usually cannot do that.
How long does the install take?
Most entry doors are a one-day install. The lead time is the build — a few weeks, because the door is made to your opening and finished before it ships.
My house is older — does that change anything?
It can. Homes built before 1978 may have lead paint around the opening, and disturbing it is regulated. Excel is an EPA Lead-Safe Certified Firm, certificate NAT-42606-4, so containment and cleanup are done to that standard.
What's the warranty?
Two separate warranties. ProVia warrants the product — Lifetime Limited, transferable to one owner — plus a finish warranty of 15 years on Signet and 10 on Ascent and Legacy. Excel warrants the labor for five years, with no service fee to come out during that period. The specifics are written into your contract — read them, and ask us anything.
Will the same crew be on my job?
Yes. We send the same crews job after job — low turnover, same faces from start to finish.
Ready When You Are
Let's talk about your entry doors.
A free, no-pressure in-home consultation. We bring the product samples, measure what we need to measure, and leave you with a clear written proposal — not a sales pitch.
