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| According to Wikipedia, doors fill the following roles: they create an impression of what lies beyond, they keep formal and utility areas separate, and they act as a barrier to noise.
With this project, you'll
learn to install a door to your laundry room that does all three. |
We ordered a pre-hung door from Simpson Doors that was inspired by a traditional European design.
You can get started before the door arrives by removing your existing doorframe. |
Use a utility knife
to cut through the caulk and paint around the door casing. This helps
prevent damage to the face of the wallboard when the trim is pulled away. |
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| Also, cut along the miter joints at the corners. |
Next, drive a wide putty knife between the back of the casing and the wall, then with a few taps of the hammer, drive in a spoon-shaped pry bar behind the trim. |
Once there's a bit of space behind the casing, switch to a flat pry bar and continue prying. The putty knife keeps the bar from damaging the wall as you leverage the casing away. The putty knife can also be used to keep the prying tool from denting or crushing the jamb. |
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| A cordless
reciprocating saw is just the right tool for this next step. Insert the blade into the gap between the doorframe and rough opening, cutting through the shims and finish nails that hold the frame in place. |
With all the nails cut, you can just push the doorframe out of the opening. |
Now it's time to install the door. If you're working alone, the next few steps are a great way to save you from headaches.
For starters, temporarily attach blocks that will stop the door flush with the inside wall. |
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| Then, if the opening is slightly larger than the doorframe, pre-tack shims along one side. |
Finally, set the door and frame as one unit into the opening, up against both the stops and the shims. |
Now that the door is in place,
check the jamb for plumb or vertical on the hinge side. If necessary, slip additional shims in where they're needed. Attach them with a hammer or nailgun, making sure the nails pass through the shims and into the stud. |
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Once the hinge side is secured, close the door and check the margin or gap between the other side of the door and the frame. |
If the gap between the door and frame gets wider as you go up or down, you'll need to move the frame closer to the door using a flat bar. Then, as with the hinge side, insert and secure shims as necessary. |
Trim the shims to length by first scoring them with a utility knife, then snapping them off. If any bits are left protruding, saw them off with a japanese hand saw. |
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