Single to Double Door Conversion: How to Give a Traditional Entry a Modern Transformation
Your front entrance does more than provide access to your home. It sets the tone for everything behind it. For Atlanta homeowners with an older or undersized single door, a single to double door conversion can be one of the most dramatic ways to modernize a home’s exterior, increase curb appeal, and create a more impressive arrival experience.
Unlike a standard front door replacement, converting a single opening into double doors can change the proportions and architectural character of the entire facade. And because the project may involve modifying the existing door frame, it’s the kind of high-impact renovation where professional design and installation matter.
At EntryPoint Doors & Windows, we’ve helped Metro Atlanta homeowners transform their entrances for more than 20 years. Here’s what to consider if you’re ready to turn a traditional entry into something bigger, brighter, and more modern.
What is a Single to Double Door Conversion?
A single to double door conversion replaces a traditional single door configuration with a wider pair of entry doors. Depending on the home’s existing opening and structure, the project can range from replacing a single door and sidelights with two doors to modifying the opening itself to accommodate a larger entry system.
That’s an important distinction from simply ordering a new pre-hung front door. A conversion needs to account for the dimensions and structure of the opening, the new door frame, hardware, glass, security, weather protection, and how the finished entrance will complement the architecture.
The result can be transformative. Double doors create a wider, more substantial entrance and can make an otherwise traditional facade feel custom-designed.
Why Convert a Single Entry Door to Double Doors?
For many homeowners, the biggest reason is simple: curb appeal.
A narrow entrance can look undersized on a large home. Replacing traditional single entry doors with a pair of appropriately scaled front entry doors creates symmetry and visual weight.
The practical benefits can be just as valuable. Opening both doors gives you considerably more room when moving large furniture, appliances, or other oversized items into the home.
A single to double door conversion also gives you an opportunity to reconsider the entire entrance, from the door panel configuration and glass to the door handle, deadbolt, and surrounding architectural details.
From Traditional to Modern: Choosing the Right Door Style
“Modern” doesn’t have to mean stark or ultra-contemporary. The best modern front door is one that updates your home while respecting its architecture.
For a mid-century modern home, that might mean asymmetrical glass, clean lines, minimal grilles, and bold hardware. A modern farmhouse may look better with simple black fiberglass entry doors, divided glass, and restrained detailing.
A craftsman front door takes another approach. Traditional craftsman architecture often favors strong proportions, recognizable glass patterns, and rich textures. Today’s craftsman front doors can preserve that character while introducing modern materials and performance.
That’s why custom doors can be especially valuable in a conversion: you’re designing for your home rather than forcing your home to fit a generic product.
Fiberglass, Iron and the Look of Wood
Material is another major consideration when choosing new entry doors.
Fiberglass has become an especially attractive option for Georgia homes because it can combine durability, low maintenance, and energy efficiency. Modern fiberglass entry doors are available with convincing wood grain textures, allowing homeowners to achieve the warmth of wood without necessarily taking on the same maintenance requirements.
A fiberglass entry door can also be painted for a crisp contemporary look. That makes fiberglass versatile enough for everything from traditional craftsman homes to a black-and-white modern farmhouse exterior.
Iron entry doors offer another option for homeowners who prioritize strength, narrow visual profiles, and a distinctive architectural presence.
The right material isn’t simply about appearance. Your new entry door needs to perform through Atlanta heat, humidity, storms, and seasonal temperature changes while maintaining the look you chose.
Use Glass to Make the New Entry Feel Bigger and Brighter
Changing the door configuration creates an opportunity to rethink natural light.
Homeowners can choose full-lite doors with expansive glass, a 4-lite pattern for a cleaner geometric look, a 3-lite design for larger panes, or traditional 9-lite and 8-lite configurations. A second 4-lite door can create symmetry across a double entry, while repeated 3-lite patterns can give a larger opening a contemporary rhythm.
The amount and arrangement of grilles also influence whether the entrance reads as traditional or modern. More elaborate grilles can reinforce classic architecture, while fewer grilles generally produce clean lines and a more contemporary appearance.
A full-lite design maximizes daylight, and clear glass can make an interior foyer feel dramatically brighter. Where safety requirements call for it, tempered glass provides added protection.
The goal isn’t to select glass because it’s fashionable. It’s to choose a configuration that makes the new doors feel intentional to the house.
Sidelights, Sidelites and Transoms: Keep Them or Rethink Them?
Existing sidelights can play an important role in a conversion.
In some homes, the width occupied by two sidelites may help provide the space needed for a new double-door configuration. In others, maintaining one or both sidelights can create an even wider statement entrance.
The same thinking applies overhead. Transoms can preserve architectural character while bringing additional daylight into the foyer. Rectangular transoms tend to work particularly well with updated architecture, while more decorative transoms may complement traditional homes. Because existing transoms affect the proportions of the complete opening, they should be considered as part of the design—not as an afterthought.
Whether you call them sidelites or sidelights, the important question is how the glass, doors, and architecture work together as one composition.
Don’t Modernize the Look and Forget Security
A beautiful entrance still needs to protect your home.
A quality deadbolt remains an important component, but homeowners now have more options. Multi-point locks secure an entry door at multiple locations rather than relying on a single locking point.
A smart lock can add keyless entry and convenient access management. Depending on the system, smart locks can make it easier to manage everyday family access without compromising the clean appearance of a modern entrance.
Hardware matters aesthetically, too. A contemporary door handle can instantly change the personality of otherwise traditional entry doors.
Homeowners who currently use storm doors should also discuss how that feature fits with the new configuration. A new double-door system may change both the need for and feasibility of an existing storm door.
Energy Efficiency Matters in a Larger Opening
Making an entrance larger shouldn’t mean sacrificing comfort.
Modern entry doors can incorporate insulated construction, efficient glass, quality weatherstripping, and precise installation to improve energy efficiency. Proper weatherstripping is particularly important around a larger operable opening because gaps can allow conditioned air to escape.
That’s another reason installation matters. Even premium fiberglass or iron entry doors won’t deliver their intended performance if the frame isn’t square, the doors don’t seal properly, or the weatherstripping isn’t correctly installed.
For Atlanta homeowners, an energy-efficient entrance helps keep outdoor heat where it belongs while creating a more comfortable interior.
Is a Single to Double Door Conversion Right for Your Home?
Not every home needs double doors.
In some cases, replacing an aging single door with one wider modern front door, new sidelights, or updated glass may deliver the transformation you want without altering the opening as extensively. Well-designed single entry doors can still make powerful architectural statements.
But when the scale of the home calls for something more substantial, converting a single door to two entry doors can deliver an entirely different level of impact.
The key is looking at the entrance as a complete design: door size, materials, glass, sidelites, transoms, hardware, security, energy efficiency, and the architecture around it.
Transform Your Front Entrance With EntryPoint
A single-to-double door conversion isn’t simply about adding another door. It’s about changing the way your home welcomes you.
Whether your vision is a bold modern front door, warm wood grain fiberglass, a timeless craftsman front door, or contemporary iron entry doors, EntryPoint Doors & Windows can help you determine what’s possible and design an entrance that feels like it was always meant for your home.
For more than 20 years, our family-owned team has helped Metro Atlanta homeowners improve curb appeal with professionally designed and installed entry doors, windows, and patio doors.
If your traditional entrance no longer fits the home you’ve created around it, it may be time to think bigger.