Doors & Windows

Buying surplus doors & windows: what to know

This category is mis-orders and remodel pull-outs: a door hung wrong-handed, windows measured once and ordered twice, and good units removed in renovations with years of service left. The savings are the largest on the site, and so is the number of ways a unit can not fit your opening.

Check before you buy

• Measure your rough opening, not your old door

  a prehung door needs the frame's outside dimension to fit the wall's hole. Slab-only swaps need the slab size and the hinge mortise positions.

• Confirm the handing before you drive

  left- and right-handed conventions genuinely conflict between door and hardware makers, so skip the mnemonic: send the seller a photo of your existing door, hinge side visible, from the side it opens toward. A wrong-handed prehung cannot be flipped.

• Look for fog between glass panes

  haze or moisture inside an insulated unit means the seal failed. The glass is now single-pane performance in a double-pane frame.

• Know new-construction from replacement windows

  a nailing flange around the frame means it installs from outside with siding open. Replacement units slide into an existing frame. They are not interchangeable.

Rather have it installed? The directory has local windows & doors pros you can message directly, and the cost guide shows what jobs like yours run locally.

Also browse: Siding & Exterior · Lumber · Fixtures & Hardware