Single hung
Double hung
Horizontal roller
Casement
Bay & bow
Sliding glass doors
Entry doors
Impact garage doors
PGT
CGIFree in-home measure and quote - PGT, CGI and CWS impact lines compared on your actual openings, style by style
Get your free estimateFast, Reliable Door Installation Across San Francisco
Most door installations in San Francisco run between $1,800 and $6,400 depending on the door type, frame condition, and whether we’re matching a historic entry or replacing a rusted threshold. If you live in the Richmond, Sunset, or Noe Valley and your door sags, sticks, or shows rust blooms at the base, the salt air has already been working on it. We serve every San Francisco neighborhood from Bayview to Pacific Heights, and our crews know exactly what fog and marine moisture do to wood, steel, and fiberglass over time. Call (831) 480-4124 for a free estimate and a written price before any work starts.
Why Lightwell Windows San Francisco Is San Francisco’s Preferred Door Installation Company
Lightwell Windows San Francisco is an independently owned Cedarwell location operating to the Cedarwell Care Promise since 2010. Keith Yamada leads our San Francisco team, and every job runs the same way: a written price before work begins, background-checked uniformed technicians in your home, and a photo of the clean-up before the crew pulls away. We carry eight manufacturer brands including Therma-Tru, ViewLux, and PGT, so the door we recommend matches the house, not our preferred vendor. For San Francisco’s Victorian and Edwardian stock, that means fiberglass and steel doors that hold up in fog, not hollow-core slabs that swell within three years.
Our Door Installation team has handled hundreds of entries across the city, from Daly City-adjacent Excelsior flats to Presidio Heights brown-shingle homes. Every job is covered by the 365-Day Done Right Promise: if the finished door is not right, we make it right. No debate, no countdown. A live person answers our phone 24/7, including the night your new door won’t latch after a winter storm rolls through the Sunset.
Styles & brands we work with
Exterior Door Installation in San Francisco
Exterior Door Installation in San Francisco means replacing an entry that has spent years absorbing fog condensation, salt particles, and the occasional driving rain off the Pacific. The job involves removing the old slab and frame, inspecting the rough opening for rot or rust, flashing and sealing the jambs, setting the new door, and weatherproofing every joint. In neighborhoods like the Outer Sunset and the Richmond, we regularly replace thresholds that have corroded into the subfloor, and jambs so pitted from fog-driven salt air that the door sags visibly. Most single exterior door replacements in San Francisco run $1,800 to $4,200 including framing repairs, hardware, and disposal of the old unit.
Rotted Jamb and Threshold Replacement
Original wood jambs wick salt-laden fog condensation directly into the sill, and within a decade the entire frame loosens. We cut out the damaged sections, sister in pressure-treated or composite stock where codes allow, and seal all joints with marine-grade polyurethane. The threshold gets replaced with stainless steel, never galvanized. Galvanized threshold screws rust through in under five years near Ocean Beach.
Marine-Grade Door Hardware
Doors within two miles of the coast need stainless steel hinges, screws, and thresholds. Standard hardware will show rust blooms within three years. We specify hot-dip galvanized or 316 stainless on every exterior door we install west of Twin Peaks. The cost difference is small. The longevity difference is enormous.
French Door Installation in San Francisco
French Door Installation in San Francisco typically means installing an in-swing or out-swing pair that connects a living room or dining room to a yard, deck, or light well. Fog exposure is the quiet enemy here: unsealed bottom edges invite ocean-driven moisture, causing the lower panels to swell, warp, and peel within a few seasons. We install French doors with fully sealed bottom rails, interlocking astragals, and adjustable stainless thresholds. Most French door replacements in San Francisco run $2,800 to $6,400 per opening, depending on width, glass package, and whether the surrounding framing needs reconstruction.
Weather Sealing and Storm Performance
French doors on the west side of San Francisco take direct wind-driven rain during winter. We use compression weatherstripping and a continuous sill pan that drains water outward, not into the rough opening. Flashing is taped at the bottom corners, where water always finds a way in. The result is a door that closes tight and stays dry through January.
Glass and Light Without the Draft
Many San Francisco owners want French doors for the light, especially in Edwardian dining rooms that face a narrow side yard. We install low-emissivity insulated glass that cuts fog condensation while keeping the room bright. For homes in the fog belt, we recommend a warm-edge spacer bar that reduces glass-edge sweating. It costs a little more and it keeps the finish from blistering.
Trusted Brands We Service in San Francisco
We install and service Therma-Tru, PGT, and ViewLux doors across San Francisco, with other brands available from our eight-line lineup. Therma-Tru fiberglass doors are our most common choice for fog-exposed entries because the material doesn’t rot, warp, or rust the way wood and steel do. PGT makes a strong impact-rated door for homeowners who want storm and intrusion protection in one unit. ViewLux offers full-glass modern doors that hold their finish in salt air when properly sealed. We keep common replacement parts and hardware in our local Bay Area stock, so a follow-up adjustment in the Sunset doesn’t require waiting on a shipped part.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterCommon Door Installation Problems We See in San Francisco Homes
- Rusted thresholds in the Sunset and Richmond. Original steel thresholds corrode into the subfloor from decades of fog condensation and salt. We replace them with solid stainless and seal the underside so water can’t wick underneath.
- Pitted hinge jambs causing door sag. Salt air eats the metal hinge fasteners and the surrounding wood until the door drops 3/8 inch or more. We rebuild the jamb with composite blocking and install stainless hinges sized for the added coastal load.
- Warped and peeled bottom door panels. Unsealed bottom edges absorb fog moisture and swell, cracking the finish on the lower stiles and rails. We specify doors with a factory-sealed bottom edge and reinforce the sweep with a durable triple-fin seal.
- Loose frames on wood Victorians. Over a century of micro-movement from fog-damp wood and seismic settling leaves frames out of square. We re-shim, re-flash, and sometimes reframe the rough opening before a new door goes in.
In the Richmond District, we retrofitted a 1935 stucco home where the front door’s original steel threshold had corroded into the subfloor and the top hinge jamb was so pitted from fog-driven salt air that the door sagged 3/8 inch. We replaced it with a Therma-Tru fiberglass door and a stainless steel threshold, sealing all joints with marine-grade polyurethane and using hot-dip galvanized screws. No more rust blooms at the base. That is the standard we bring to every San Francisco door job.
Pricing for Door Installation in San Francisco, CA
As a starting point for San Francisco’s market: a standard single exterior door replacement runs $1,800 to $4,200. French doors run $2,800 to $6,400 per opening. Storm and screen doors add $450 to $1,100. Marine-grade hardware, stainless thresholds, and composite jamb repairs typically add $200 to $600 to the total, and we always show you that line item before you agree. The inland-spec door, with standard galvanized hardware and unsealed bottom edges, costs less on day one. Along the fog belt, it costs more within a decade once you factor in the second replacement and the water damage behind it. Call (831) 480-4124 for a free estimate and a written price before any work starts. That’s how every Lightwell job in San Francisco begins.
We Also Serve Cities Near San Francisco
Our crews serve Daly City, South San Francisco, Emeryville, and Berkeley as well. The same marine-grade hardware specifications and written pricing apply wherever the fog and bay moisture reach. For homeowners looking for Door Installation in San Francisco and the surrounding communities, we schedule by neighborhood so drive time stays short. A live person answers the phone at (831) 480-4124, day or night.
Serving San Francisco, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the San Francisco area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Door Installation in San Francisco
Because the marine layer pushes salt-laden fog over those neighborhoods most days of the year, and that fog settles directly on metal door hardware. Standard galvanized steel and zinc-plated hinges begin corroding within three to five years, and thresholds near Ocean Beach often fail faster. We specify 316 stainless steel hardware and solid stainless thresholds for every exterior door on the west side of San Francisco. For an exact recommendation and a written price for your door, call (831) 480-4124.
Yes, if you live within two miles of the ocean or in the Sunset, Richmond, or Lake Merced areas, you need marine-grade hardware. San Francisco’s fog carries enough salt to corrode standard hardware nearly as fast as direct coastal spray. The cost difference between standard and stainless hinges, screws, and thresholds is usually under $300 on a full door replacement. Call (831) 480-4124 and we’ll show you the line item before you commit.
Fiberglass is the most practical choice, and Therma-Tru makes a smooth or wood-grain fiberglass slab that holds paint well and doesn’t absorb moisture. It also won’t rot like the original redwood or fir. Steel doors perform acceptably with a full thermal break and marine-grade hardware, though they can show rust if scratched. We’ll match the door to your Victorian’s trim profile rather than your neighbor’s house. Call (831) 480-4124 for an in-home visit and a written estimate.
We install a continuous sill pan that drains water outward, compression weatherstripping on all four sides, and a fully sealed bottom rail on each door panel. That combination handles wind-driven rain off the Pacific without leaking or wicking into the subfloor. For an exact quote on French doors for your San Francisco home, call (831) 480-4124. Estimates are free and the price is in writing before the work starts.
Yes, and we do this regularly in the Sunset and Richmond districts, where original steel casements have rusted shut or corroded beyond repair. We rebuild the rough opening, install a wood or fiberglass door with period-appropriate panel profiles, and use stainless hardware so the new work doesn’t fail the same way. The key is sealing every joint and using the coastal spec, not the inland one. Call (831) 480-4124 to schedule a free estimate with Keith Yamada and the team.
Written by Keith Yamada, Owner at Lightwell Windows San Francisco, serving San Francisco since the Cedarwell network’s founding in 2010.
Six Reasons Homeowners Choose Lightwell Windows San Francisco
Laminated glass and reinforced frames hold up to wind-driven rain, hail and flying debris, so your openings stay sealed when the weather turns.
Low-E insulated impact glass from our manufacturer lines commonly cuts monthly cooling bills 20-30%.
Laminated impact glass shuts out up to 40% of outside noise - traffic, neighbors, weather.
Monitoring services run $30-90 a month. Laminated impact glass resists forced entry around the clock, with no subscription.
Tighter seals and insulated glass even out hot and cold rooms and stop the drafts at the frame.
A full impact package upgrades curb appeal, buyer confidence and appraised value in one project.