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Hanging Interior Doors

geoman | Posted in Construction Techniques on October 11, 2005 03:40am

I’m remodeling a mid 60s bilevel.  So far, I’ve hung four interior doors.  I’m cased, primed, painted, trimed and moved in.  One 24 inch master bathroom door, master bedroom door, bedroom #2 and bedroom #3.  My master bedroom door is too tight and doesn’t close.  My bedroom #2 is too tight by the latch.  Bedroom #3 door is too tight at the top of the latch side jamb.  I know we’re dealing with wood here and mass produced millwork, but there has got to be a better way. Does anyone have a simple, time honored approach to this (for me) frustrating process.  I somehow learned over the years to plumb and square the hinge side first, followed by the latch side.  What perplexes me is that the last door seemed to be improperly constructed, because the door was rubbing on the side jamb at the very tippy top of the jamb. 

Anybody want to spend a few lines helping a passionate do it yourselfer?   

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  1. Framer | Oct 11, 2005 04:21am | #1

    Were they rubbing before you trimmed them?

    Every door that I hang I shim the jack stud bottom and top of the hinged side plumb first with a 6'6" level and then I nail the hinged side of the jamb and hold the level on it and shim the middle. Once I'm done with that I lift the latch side until the reveal is the same at the top of the door and nail the top of the jamb on the latch side. Then I shim the latch side until the reveal is the same all the way down.

    I make all the reveals follow the door. I nailed the jamb side one time like I always do but one time years ago what I did was leveled the top and plumbed the latch side and nailed it in and when I shut the door the door hit all over the place. I also used a framing square one time at the top and that didn't work because the door wasn't made square.

    I've always had great success using the door as the guide.

    Joe Carola
  2. calvin | Oct 11, 2005 04:22am | #2

    Long screw in the top hinge to the framing.  Sounds like you got a case of jamb sag.

     

    Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.

    Quittin' Time

  3. andybuildz | Oct 11, 2005 04:25am | #3

    Use screws first just under all "shims" so the shims are held up and can be adjusted without being removed. You are using shims right?

    You can back the screws out re-adjust the shims as needed then retighten the screws.

    I screw the hinge side first. I remove the center hinge screw and use a drywall screw in its place into the stud next to it with the shim shingles just above it.

    The thin ends of the shingles go behind the jams over lapping one another. You know that, right? Its so the jambs stay square rather than beveled to the in or outside.

    When its all squared and working right I I nail everything up and remove the hinge dryway screw and replace with the brass screw.

    I have no idea what you know but four doors out of four that doesn't work ain't to great a track record, no offense so I'm assuming you haven't done much of this before.

    Why would you case the doors before trying them??

    I think you should take us through the procedure that you use before we try and help...or before I go on any further.

    Be well

    andy

    The secret of Zen in two words is, "Not always so"!

    When we meet, we say, Namaste'..it means..

      I honor the place in you where the entire universe resides,

    I honor the place in you of love, of light, of truth, of peace.

    I honor the place within you where if you are in that place in you

    and I am in that place in me, there is only one of us.

     

     


     

     

  4. baseboardking | Oct 13, 2005 01:25am | #4

    Geoman; First of all, I believe your task is installing pre-hung doors, rather than "hanging doors"

    Step 1- Put the door in the opening. Place your level on the door,rather than the jamb. The door becomes the straight edge, so you can use a level shorter than 6'6" ( I use a 4ft, but a 2ft is OK) Shim the hinge jamb directly behind the top and bottom hinges until the level reads dead plumb. Make sure the shims are tight. If you shim the hinge jamb at a location other than directly behind the hinges, the jamb can move, and the door along with it.

    Step 2- Now that the hinge side is plumb and nailed fast, go to the latch side up high.Look at the margin across the head jamb, It should be paralel to the door. Lift or lower the latch side jamb until the head jamb is aligned. No nails at this point.

    Step 3- Look at the latch jamb where it meets the head jamb. Is there an acceptable side margin between the door and the latch jamb? We often have to take a block of wood and open up the side jamb from the head jamb to get an acceptable margin. Once you have the correct margins both vert. & horz. at the head, shim and nail the latch jamb about 4" down. (we do not nail the head jamb)

    Step 4- Shim the lower latch jamb to a margin matching the top. Nail fast

    Step 5- Now that you have established 2 point of reference on the latch side, shim and nail at the lockset, more locations if needed ( up to 7 if that's what it takes)

    Step 6- Now that the latch side and head margins are PERFECT, shim the rest of the hinge jamb to get those margins as well.

    Happy hanging!

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Baseboard been VERRRY good to me
  5. mike4244 | Oct 13, 2005 02:54am | #5

    I'm assuming you are installing prehung doors and jambs. Pull hinge pins and remove the door first. make a spreader exactly the same width of the head jamb. make sure the spreader is square on each end,with a notch for the door stop in the center.

    Check rough opening width top and bottom. Measure width of jamb, out to out. Lets say you have a 3/4" difference, half of that is 3/8". This is a good starting point to shim.Cut shims or use shingle points for shims.I use a brad nailer to hold shims in place, staple guns split the shingles too easily. Mark hinge stud where hinges will be.Tack 3/8" shims at the top hinge on stud. Plumb down and shim at the bottom hinge, shim again at middle hinge. On the latch side tack one shim at three points,top ,behind latch height,and bottom. Do not try to shim latch side perfectly as yet.Install jamb,place spreader on bottom. Check head for level, adjust the low side up as necessary,check head with framing square. Place the short tongue on the side jamb, the blade against the head. Watch for bellied head or side jambs that could fool your eye. The jamb should be square. Fasten the hinge side first,best way for you is to use screws.Remove the door stop and drill pilot holes thru the jamb only.Make sure the pilot holes are larger than the the screw threads.Screw at each hinge height thru shimsTackl the latch side at the top and bottom.Hang door, adjust the latch side with shims,check margins before nailing. Then finish nailing latch side. Reapply door stop, make sure you have 1/16" between door when closed and the stop. If it is too tight the door will bind on the stop when closing.

    The frame now is square ,straight and level. When you trim the doors your cuts will all be 45°.

    mike

  6. Mark | Oct 13, 2005 04:25am | #6

    All of these posts,  while great advice, are for the most part conjecture.  If you can post some snapshots of the problem doors (with a closeup and full view)  we will be able to tell you exactly what happened and what to do.

    " If I were a carpenter"



    Edited 10/12/2005 9:26 pm ET by Mark

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