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Posted: 7th October 2022 | Author: Adam Brown | Category: Doors
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If you’re looking to cut costs on a home renovation job, doing it yourself instead of getting in a specialist fitter can be a good way to keep the price down. Whether you’re a construction worker or a total newbie to DIY, fitting and hanging an interior door is a simple process that doesn’t require special expertise or unusual tools.
Want to find out how you can do it yourself? Keep reading.
Hanging a door usually takes a few hours, though this can depend on what needs to be done. If there’s an existing door in place, removing it will add time to the job, as will any repairs that need to be done to the door lining or jambs. Additionally, it pays to familiarise yourself with the process before you get started – that way you can avoid stumbling into unforeseen problems.
As with any job, proper preparation can reduce the amount of time it takes to complete, so make sure you assemble all your tools, fittings, locks, handles and whatever else you need before you begin hanging the door.
When replacing an existing door, you may be tempted to take its dimensions to be the ideal dimensions of your new interior door. However, this isn’t always the case. If you are fitting a new carpet as well as a new door, for example, you should take into account the height of the carpet, or risk the door catching as it opens and closes.
In order to be sure your new door will be a good fit for the door frame, you should measure the frame, not the existing door. It may be that your door frame is not a uniform shape, in which case you will need to buy a door of a standard size and plane it down until it is right.
In any case, it is best to measure the frame horizontally and vertically at three separate points, forming a grid of nine rectangles. This will help to ensure your measurements aren’t made incorrect by frames of an unusual shape. Take the largest measurements as the smallest possible size of door you should buy – remember that you can always make a door smaller, but you can’t make it bigger.
If your old hinges are in good condition, using those for your new door can help to ensure a good fit. However, if you need new door hinges, there are various types available on the market, many of which are suited to specific purposes such as concealment or to allow a door to open 180°. For an internal door, however, you’ll likely only need either a butt hinge or a graded hinge.
A butt hinge is your standard door hinge that is used for most internal doors in domestic settings. You can get them in various finishes and sizes, making them a highly versatile fitting option. Alternatively, a graded hinge may be a better option. Graded hinges are made to hold heavier doors like hardwood or fire doors, so you’ll need to consider which kind of door you’re installing.
If you need to adjust the size of your new door to fit the frame, use a saw and a planer to cut it down. Always remember to cut an equal amount from the top and the bottom of the door, as this will help to ensure the final product looks natural. Once you’ve got the door to the right size, use abrasive sandpaper to smooth down the edges you’ve cut.
Next, it’s time to measure where the hinges will go. You can do this by holding the door up against the frame and making pencil marks. Then you can clamp the door and use these marks to draw around the hinges where they’ll sit on the wood. Using a chisel and mallet, cut out the recesses where the hinges will sit.
Top tip! If you’re using larger hinges than before, you may also need to make the recesses on the door frame bigger.
Finally, you’ll need to fix the hinges to both the door and the frame. Using the hinges as a guide, make pencil marks where the screws will sit, and use a drill bit slightly smaller than your screw to make pilot holes. This will reduce the risk of the wood splitting. Use a screwdriver to attach the hinges to the door proper.When it comes to hanging the door in the frame, you may need someone else to help you. Position the door in place and slide wedges underneath to take the brunt of the weight and hold the door high enough that the hinges are in the right position on the door frame. This will help to ease the pressure on the hinges as you begin to fix them in place. Fix the screws in place and check the swing of your door. If you’re happy, then that’s the job done!
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The Author: Adam Brown
With a background as a Mechanical Engineer, I started Nationwide Supplies alongside my brother with a vision to modernise what seemed a stuck-in-its-ways industry in the builders merchant sector. Since 2011 it has been my goal to source quality products at the correct prices to be able to offer a saving to customers along with high quality customer service which offers quick delivery and superior technical knowledge in the industry.
