Sealing a mail slot in a door.

[Dan Mages]

Hi all.

I want to seal the mail slot in the front door of our house. It is nothing more than a giant hole sucking hot/cold air and my money out of the house. Is there an easy way to seal this hole without replacing the door?

Thanks!!

Dan

[Mitchell Andrus]

If you can't hide it, decorate it. A raised panel might look good.

[Lee Schierer]

Most mail slots I've seen have a door that closes, so it shouldn't be open and letting air in or out. If your door is missing you might just want to get a new mail slot to fit the opening with a door. It should be simple enough to carve a block of styrofoam to fit in the space behingd the outside door and fit a piece of brass or wood to the inside of the foam. You can attach the inside piece to the foam with silicone sealant. Just make sure your mail carrier knows the slot is non-functional.

[Pat Germain]

I had the same problem in my old house in Virginia. Whatever doors you put on the slot, they leak and just conduct heat and cold. Putting some styrofoam in the hole, as Lee suggested is a good idea.

I glued a piece of scrap wood into the hole in my door. Then I covered it over with a lot of wood putty on both sides. After much sanding and a new coat of paint, you'd never know there was ever a hole there. Of course, if your door isn't painted on both sides, this option wouldn't work. Also, if the door has some kind of imprinted texture or pattern, the hole would be noticeable.

You could always seal it with wood putty and leave the metal doors in place to hide it.