direction of exterior door opening: inward or outward?
Hi! Lately we have been sending some window companies (European windows) our house plan for quotes. One of the companies’ project manager made a suggestion to have the exterior doors to our back patioyy (1) from the kitchen and (2) from the master bedroom open inward to these rooms instead of outward to the back patio, since he said that way when the HVAC system blows air it also presses the doors against its seal, making it tighter. When I approached the house designer about it, he doesn’t seem to quite agree (although he says he can make the switch for us if we want to). Do we need to follow window manufacturer’s recommendation? Thanks in advance.
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Personally, I would doubt that the AC pressure would have much effect on air tightness of an exterior door, especially as compared to wind....that said, as an architect, I alway open show doors opening in the direction that they make the most sense....is there a wall for them to open against? would the screen door be best inside the house or outside? is the door often left open or not?.....three point hardware should hold the door tight regardless.
If it snows where this design is sited have them swing inward, especially if you ever plan to use them in the winter. If it rains a lot and doesn't snow outswing tends to be a bit better at resisting strong wind-driven rains, but it's personal preference. European windows and doors often include redundant seals and multi-point latching so that point may be moot. HVAC pressure imbalance (if any) will have little to no effect.
Opinions about windows and doors sealing better when they swing one way or the other must be for very low-quality units. There are several things to consider regarding inswing vs outswing but how well they seal against wind or air pressure shouldn't be one of them.
One thing to consider is that if you live in a place where there are bugs and you use window and door screens, it's best to have the doors swing in. On one job my client insisted on an outswing door and an inswing screen door. When they open the screen door at night to go outside, they swing in a screen full of insects into the house. The only time I use outswing doors now is when they lead to a screened porch. If you don't have bugs around, this may not matter to you.
Even if that were true it would probably make such a minimal effect on energy usage it would not be a reason to choose which direction. It’s more important on what direction you want it to swing. If you really want it to swing out and it snows a lot you could maybe put a small roof above the doors, sliding door is nice in back but looks like you only have room for one