Door design: Sealing the door

[Brimar]

Hello, first time poster here.

I have been designing my own Teardrop for some time now.

Right now the idea is to make the door frame using angle iron and the door itself from square tubing lined with plywood.

This is the current design.







Looking at it now I think I should have gone with a taller angle iron for the door frame to try to get it flush with the outer wall.

Something like this.


The disadvantage of the taller angle iron is having less room to move the door frame itself to get the correct distance between the door and the frame so the seal works properly.

I have never worked with PMF before. I would very much like to know if my design is utterly rubbish and it has to be reworked, any input is very much welcome.

[Pmullen503]

The door does not have to be as thick as the walls, that way your flange could be flush with the inside surface.

You show a continuous foam seal but you could go with something like a D bulb seal.

Either way, give some thought to how you'll deal with water collecting at the bottom of the door.

[tony.latham]

Here's my door seal detail:



It uses this seal:



My concern with your design is the flat rubber (solid) seal. I think you need a bulb or D-shaped seal that is hollow to get a reasonable amount of compression. (And you want less than 50% seal with a bulb seal to avoid it taking a memory.)

Take a look at the seals on your vehicle doors. They are all hollow. The other concern is that your design relies on your door and frame being perfect. No warpage. Perfectly flat. A hollow seal will allow for a slightly imperfect door/frame to seal.

Here's a diagram of my hatch seal:



It uses a D-shaped (hollow) seal. It's dead dry and dust-free because of the compression.

Food for thought.

Tony

[saywhatthat]

when doing a seal . dont let it be crushed over 50% .It will mess up the seal

[JasenC]

If you use a D style stick on weatherstrip you'll need to move your hinge side seal to the hinge leg or you'll pretty much roll it up when you open/close the door.

Tony's second pic is the way to go.