rotting front door and wooden porch - cant afford to be safe.

DevonJedi

so, I find myself in a bit of a bind. My mother (also my carer, I am disabled) suddenly passed away a few weeks ago. I work part time when able (haven't been able while trying to deal with all the paperwork and things with the help of a social worker.) I have applied for Universal Credit and Pip, but waiting for all that of course for a few weeks yet. So, currently I have zero income even to cover electric, and water, and am reliant on foodbanks and selling a few bits of Mums on Facebook marketplace.   The front door, and the old wooden porch, are rotting off the hinges and falling apart. Mum  (on pension credits) couldn't afford to do anything about them, and I cant either, even less than Mum. However, I do want to live in a secure home, is there any help I can get? House insurance have said no it isnt covered and that, I need to find several grand to replace with PVC (I currently own £7.....) .  Mum owned the bungalow so there isnt a landlord, and obviously its still in her name as I have no money to pay for probate to change the deeds over either. 

elsien

Many of the grants operated by local councils vary between areas, so I would suggest that you contact your local council as a starting point.

The porch is less important than the front door, so it may be that if the door is a standard size, you can try and source a secondhand/free and just pay someone to have it fitted when your money comes through. They turn up on Freecycle and some of the other free sites at times.

other options might be to check the grant finder on to turn2us, or any relevant welfare organisations for jobs that you might have had in the past? 

FreeBear

elsien said: The porch is less important than the front door, so it may be that if the door is a standard size, you can try and source a secondhand/free and just pay someone to have it fitted when your money comes through.

Agree the porch is less important than the front door. Whilst you could source a second hand one from a builder's reclamation yard or facebook/freecycle, if it involves fitting a new frame, Building Regs kick in - It is highly unlikely that a second hand door & frame would meet the current requirements.

Should the frame be rotting, I'd suggest biting the bullet and replace the whole lot with a uPVC one. Budget around £800 (yes, I know it is a lot of money when you don't have any). The advantage would be killing of any cold draughts, and it would reduce heat loss through the door. So slightly lower heating bills and an improvement in comfort. The council may be able to provide a grant under the Warm Homes scheme or possibly a loan under one of their other funding schemes. Failing that, a local window/door company might be able to offer financing (just don't go to the likes of Anglain, Zeneth, or Safestyle - They will rip you off and use high pressure sales tactic to get you to sign a contract).

twopenny

Something else may help in the short term. 
Have you tried Age.uk Handyman services?
https://www.ageuk.org.uk/services/in-your-area/handyperson-services/
Now you probably aren't age elligible but it's worth asking or if they know who might help.
They are unlikely to install door and frame but a similar handiman service for disabled could be out there.

If you can find one they could deal with the rot in the door, draught proof it and make it secure with locks - giving you time to deal with the whole situation and get something better.

If you get no joy there you could ring citizens advice 0800 802 1808 and ask if they can give you a volunteer group for handy persons.

I've had boards screwed to the bottoms of doors, I've just done that to my garage door (didnt realise I was capable :-) till i can get to a point where I can get it fixed. I've used wood hardener and filler that has kept things going well and looking good until I can afford it.

May well be that through a temporary fix you meet people who know people who may install a upvc door in the future

Know the size of the door and the size of the frame. Write it in a notebook and keep in your bag/wallet for any time you are asked. Strike when the irons hot 

mi-key

Maybe try local disabled charities? They might know of handymen locally who could do the work to at least fix it up for now so it is secure.

You can get second hand upvc doors with the frame on ebay or marketplace all the time, often for less than £100 and any decent handyman can fit it, so it doesn't have to cost thousands. 

Alderbank

mi-key said:

You can get second hand upvc doors with the frame on ebay or marketplace all the time, often for less than £100 and any decent handyman can fit it if it is exactly the right size, so it doesn't have to cost thousands. 

Fixed it for you.

theoretica

The foodbanks you are already in touch with might also know about local help.  Your existing door may be more rescuable by a handyman or joiner than you think.

FreeBear

Alderbank said:

mi-key said:

You can get second hand upvc doors with the frame on ebay or marketplace all the time, often for less than £100 and any decent handyman can fit it if it is exactly the right size, so it doesn't have to cost thousands. 

Fixed it for you.

If the frame is slightly smaller, it can be packed out to fit. But as I said earlier, a second hand frame & door is unlikely to meet current thermal requirements and wouldn't be acceptable to Building Control. A FENSA or CERTASS installer is unlikely to be willing to risk his/her registration.. That said, you may hit lucky and find a recently manufactured door (within the last year) that was made to the wrong size on another job.

mi-key

FreeBear said:

Alderbank said:

mi-key said:

You can get second hand upvc doors with the frame on ebay or marketplace all the time, often for less than £100 and any decent handyman can fit it if it is exactly the right size, so it doesn't have to cost thousands. 

Fixed it for you.

If the frame is slightly smaller, it can be packed out to fit. But as I said earlier, a second hand frame & door is unlikely to meet current thermal requirements and wouldn't be acceptable to Building Control. A FENSA or CERTASS installer is unlikely to be willing to risk his/her registration.. That said, you may hit lucky and find a recently manufactured door (within the last year) that was made to the wrong size on another job.

I dont think the OP is that bothered about it meeting current thermal requirements or building control inspecting it.

And alderbank, it doesnt need to be exactly the right size. Fitting a smaller door isn't a major issue as it can be packed out with spacers if its a small amount, or even a larger amount can have wood added to decrease the gap, all of which a decent handyman or competent DIYer can do.