People always go for best and that is the reason why people start shifting towards steel or fiber glass doors rather than traditional wooden doors. The reason is obvious that steel and fiberglass provides much more resistant and durability to doors than wood. Wood doors sustain damage or rot over time but steel and fiberglass don't have such problems. They stand firm against different weather conditions. Wood doors sustain moisture damage and finally give way to environmental variations. Here we are giving comparative studies of the two widely used door designs, i.e. steel doors and fiberglass doors.

Structure

Structure of both steel and fiberglass doors are quite different from each other. Steel doors are usually made of resinous honey combed or Styrofoam core swathed in sheets of metal. The durability of steel doors depends on their gauge (or thickness of steel). Lower the gauge, thicker will be the steel. Fiberglass doors are made from thin layers of glass compressed together with resin or binders. They are not made of a wrapped core, instead from solid piece of material.

Cost

If we compare the cost of the two doors, we will see that steel doors are relatively economical than fiberglass doors. Fiberglass doors usually have high purchasing costs. Fiberglass doors have longer life span than steel doors. However, steel doors are also long lasting but require regular maintenance throughout. Fiberglass doors need very less maintenance work as compared to steel doors.

Advantages/Benefits

Steel doors are much economical and durable. They possess good insulation properties than fiberglass or wood. Foam core is used to enhance the insulation property of steel doors. With steel doors you need not to worry about rot or splinters. Fiberglass doors are sturdy and long lasting. They don't sustain dent or scratch like other materials. They reduce the cost on regular maintenances due to unique structure and design. Fiberglass doors usually equipped with integral dyes that means that they don't require any paint work. Also most of the fiberglass doors are designed like wood grain and resemble to real wood but have the properties of fiberglass without any chances of getting rotted or twist.

Disadvantages/Drawbacks

Disadvantages and drawbacks are the part of every thing. Both steel and fiberglass doors have some disadvantages as well. The major problem with steel doors is rust and corrosion. They sustain rust and corrosion over time; especially those living in coastal areas face this problem in excess. Steel doors require regular maintenance in the form of painting. Fiberglass doors are very much expensive and many people cannot afford to have fiberglass doors. They are usually painted and designed to resemble the wood, but they don't look as real as wood in their designs, yet serve the purpose well for some people.

Characteristics

Both fiberglass doors and steel doors have some distinct features. Fiberglass doors have the tendency to use integral dyes or pigments to provide multiple color schemes. However, they can be painted or tinted like wood. Steel doors on the other hand are conventionally painted without having any tendency to use integral dyes.

Both steel and fiberglass doors come in smooth paneled finishes.  Both the doors are available with windows or various other designs like wood grain etc.