Simpson is in my opinion the best "off the shelf wood door" available. Jeldwen is a pretty good door it was better when Morgan owned them but they were dumbed down a little in my opinion when they were purchased by Jeldwen. As far as the Aurora F/G door this if I am not mistaken is the IWP doors which were at the time before Jeldwen purchased them shaky at best in my honest opinion and I have seen no evidence in any of the products Jeldwen produces that they are higher quality than under the prior manufacturers.

Home Depot clerks aren't exactly the best place to ask a painting question, but hey at least he didn't lie and give you some answer that would have been his best guess. You should use 100 percent acrylic paint, exterior paint for the exterior side and interior paint for the interior side. You can find paints that are rated for both exterior and interior as well. I would use at least a satin sheen so that the door is durable and somewhat washable when you are done. You can spray, brush or roll, whatever your choice. I usually roll them with small mohair rollers or whiizzies. It's too much effort setting up the sprayer for one door IMO.

Answers: 1. Yes, however, it is more of an advantage from the standpoint of trying create a real wood door look with the composite and stainable material. Are they less attractive to carpenter ants and rot proof...yes. Either jamb selection (assuming the door is installed correctly) should avoid both of those potential problems. 2. Carpenter ants should be treated right now and killed off good and dead before swapping the door. They should not move into the new door if the door is installed properly. Either way, you need to treat for them now. 3. You somewhat answered you own question here. Once it is painted, it very much mutes the graining of the wood. Great door either way and with either jamb option.

I made a 42" wide mahogany 4-panel front entry door for my home several years ago. I used Cetol Door& Window. It is covered and it faces northeast so it only sees some direct sun until around noon. Even though it's not taxed in my installation, Cetol has pretty strong UV protection. One of the advantages of Cetol D&W is that to renew it you clean, dry, then recoat. There's no need for sanding or to take it back down to bare wood, although I'll probably do a very light scuff sanding. My door has been installed for five years now, climate is New England. I thought I'd have to give it a renewal coat around year three, but it still looks fine going into its fifth winter. As to physical wear and durability, I also have a mahogany threshold on the door, also finished with D&W. No damage at all to the wood or to the finish.