Draught Proofing French Doors

[FozzieBear]

Can anyone give me advice on the best material to draught proof the mating rebate on a pair of outward opening timber French Doors. The doors have been manufactured by a reputable joiner and the hardwood frame already has been weatherstripped. Unfortunately I cannot use the milled slit in the rebate of the fixed door to insert a similar length of the weatherstrip provided. This is because I have let in a rebated mortice lock in the centre and two flush bolts top and bottom to secure the door when closed.
The doors are hung on a pair and a half of 4 " 180 degree brass hinges so that they can fold back against the side lights. Although I have adjusted the doors by both bending and packing the hinges, there is still a 5mm gap between the doors. any less than that and they bind when opened.

I had considered the old style copper strip nailed down the rebate of the opening door (can't do closed door or it obstructs access to shoot bolts) which could be bent to meet the closed door,but this is a bit intrusive and ugly on this leaf.
Are there any other draught strips such as self adhesive brushes or silicon strips which would look better but still fill the gap?

 

[squowse]

there are lots of different styles of weatherstrip so you might be able to find one that will fit in your kerf (groove). Without a diagram or picture of what you've got I couldn't say. For starters have a look here and see if any of these will help.

http://www.schlegelonline.com/index.php?cat=Aquamac
more dims here http://www.schlegel.com/B_Kerf_AQ.asp

Otherwise self adhesive foam tape or epdm E or P seals.[/url]

 

[FozzieBear]

there are lots of different styles of weatherstrip so you might be able to find one that will fit in your kerf (groove).

Thanks for the reply Squowse.
I think its the Schlegel Aquamac 89 that the joiner provided with the doors. The problem is I cannot use the kerf as the top and bottom 300mm are obstructed/removed by the fitting of a flush bolt in the rebate http://www.worldofbrass.co.uk/cgi-b...www.worldofbrass.co.uk/shop/8/18/48/index.htm
And the rebated mortice lock in the centre negates a further 200mm. This only leaves about 700mm above and below the lock to which it could be fitted, hence the use of an alternative.
Fozzie

 

[squowse]

probably an aquamac 21 it's much more common - the 89 is massive.
i am trying to visualise on which face the kerf is.
going into the edge of the door? you might be able to use what's left of it to attach a 124, cutting off the prong that fits into the kerf, where the kerf is missing. use some double sided tape in those areas.
or use a totally self adhesive seal - foam tape or an epdm e or p seal depending on the gap. put it on the face of the rebate that's parallel to the glass. you can get the epdm on screwfix. foam tape i don't know off the top of my head, must be easy enough to find. you don't want the double sided stuff though.

the advantage of using the aquamac "flipper" styles like the 21 or 124 is that the closing force is very low and it accomodates a varying gap better than the other shapes.
roger

 

[FozzieBear]

Thanks for the advice Rodger I think I will try the 124 as this appears to have the widest gap filling quality.
Just one final piece of advice. What is the best way to insert the tounge of these strips into the kerf. Do you need a special tool or can it be done with a palett knife or similar.
Fozzie

 

[squowse]

if the kerf is the right size then it should force in with your fingers. haven't used a 124, it does require a slightly larger kerf 3mm instead of 2.8mm for the 21 i think but they all have tolerance. if you need to push it harder i would use a plastic or wooden object rather than metal - that might damage it.