Our last house had locking hardware with a keypad on the garage side for ease of getting in and out. We always kept it locked as an extra precaution, not just for extra security in addition to the garage door, but also to provide barrier in the case we forgot to close the garage door for the night when coming home late (happened more than I'd like to admit). The keypad allowed the door to always be locked, but we didn't have to worry about locking ourselves out if we didn't bring the key and it was slightly easier to unlock while holding onto our things. I guess I would also judge your exposure to break-ins in your area. Where we live we have a greater likeliness of a burglary than the typical suburb so we have put as many impediments to getting into our house as possible. In some areas that may be overkill. But even then there is a definite advantage to being slightly more secure (and visibly so) than your neighbors.

Sounds like you're getting close, threeapples!! We thought about this very question long & hard and finally decided to go with standard entry knob (lever in our case) with a single deadbolt. The thing that tipped the scales for us was thinking back to all the times we inadvertently locked ourselves out of the house using the knob with the lock built in. DH's solution to this when it occurred was to push the lever to it's breaking point and voila the door would open. If it's really that easy to break the darn thing to gain entry, then it's really not worth the hassle. Plus we couldn't get anymore of our lever sets in the new house as they were discontinued shortly after we purchased--no extras to set aside for when we would have eventually had to break a few. Hope this helps!

A storm door will usually be as much as 3/4" thinner than an exterior door, have a small latch set and fit into the outer reveal of the exterior door frame/trim. Storm doors are intended to provide weather protection and entry doors are intended to provide weather protection and security. It is possible to have two thick entrance doors but the exterior door trim usually needs to be altered or replaced to accommodate the thickness and greater hinge projection. Such doors usually have closers and a very strong one would be required for an entry door. I don't know how an entrance lockset would be installed in the outer door without extending or replacing the original door frame. The ease of splitting the frame or removing the hinge pins would make such a design far less secure. Why can't a new lock set be installed on the existing door?

to clarify, I did buy a benchmark TT door from Lowe's. but, at any price, you expect decent craftsmanship, or should. yes, it seems company's today don't care......buyer beware. first install: jamb and 4 foot stabila levels. after taking the door out yesterday, cleaning all areas to be sealed again, and removing brick mold, I was able to shim from both sides (preferred), and used a plumb bob. when jamb was set, the door fit EXACTLY how it did using levels. level at threshold and head, plumb on uprights. plugged hinge holes so screws would hold (as they needed shimmed), and had to rework the shims to make the door fit. not my first rodeo, so let's not go there. I have a very good reputation with my carpentry skills. sprung hinges? or defective? bad jig? possibly. everything else seemed to check out. jamb was square, as I checked when I had it out. the assembly, not quality. the brick mold had a difference of 1/4 inch along the uprights. one hinge had only one screw (and no pre drilled holes in the other 3 missing areas, which seems to verify my thoughts as to the screws being driven in improperly). most definitely not with a vix bit, as the other screws were a terrible fit. before retrofitting the door, I checked everything a second/third time. not a 1/16 out (with the bob again, as well as levels). it's not pretty, and I wouldn't accept it for someone else's home, but for now, it will do as it's my home. have never had so much trouble doing a door install, not even on mobile/manufactured homes. you get what you pay for, and I'm aware of that. but, it should be of decent quality, or don't make it, period. example: an Epiphone guitar doesn't measure up to a Gibson, but it's a good quality for the price. again, as has been stated by others, it seems to be the build process, not the components? maybe TT needs to have some kind of standards as to who puts their product together. if you make a decent product, then put it in the hands of.......let's say, not properly trained/unskilled labor, you have just shot yourself in the foot. after this experience, I certainly would not purchase another one of their products. and I certainly wouldn't recommend their product to anyone. Happy 4th to all!