Replacing Hollow Doors with Slabs

Bernie Hunt wrote:
> I have a 1951 vintage house and I've started a campaign to change all the
> hollow core doors to 6 panel doors. Because of various settling and trim
> issues, I've decided to change the doors only and not the frames.
>
> The original trim carpenter did a great job. The side to side gaps are 1/32
> or less. Obviously the doors are heavily beveled to make this possible.
> Unfortunately over the years, various home owners have taken their toll on
> the top and bottoms of the doors. The worse offender is the 1 3/4" gap at
> the bottom of a closet door, that is off square by over 1/2" across the face
> of the door.
>
> My question, a couple of the frames are out of square by 1/4" over 18".
> Should I hang the doors square, or make the gap fit the frame?
>
> Second question, what is the normal door gap? Should I be shooting for 1/8"
> on the sides and top? For the bottom I'm using 1/2" off the flooring.
>
> Thanks,
> Bernie
>
>
They had hollow-core doors in 1951? I thought those were a late-50s
innovation. All the houses I've ever seen that are older than me (a 1956
model), had paneled doors.

--
aem sends...

I'll be glad to send you a few if you like, hahaha.

Bernie

"aemeijers" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:NEeak.85556$102.14721@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
> Bernie Hunt wrote:
>> I have a 1951 vintage house and I've started a campaign to change all the
>> hollow core doors to 6 panel doors. Because of various settling and trim
>> issues, I've decided to change the doors only and not the frames.
>>
>> The original trim carpenter did a great job. The side to side gaps are
>> 1/32 or less. Obviously the doors are heavily beveled to make this
>> possible. Unfortunately over the years, various home owners have taken
>> their toll on the top and bottoms of the doors. The worse offender is the
>> 1 3/4" gap at the bottom of a closet door, that is off square by over
>> 1/2" across the face of the door.
>>
>> My question, a couple of the frames are out of square by 1/4" over 18".
>> Should I hang the doors square, or make the gap fit the frame?
>>
>> Second question, what is the normal door gap? Should I be shooting for
>> 1/8" on the sides and top? For the bottom I'm using 1/2" off the
>> flooring.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Bernie
>>
>>
> They had hollow-core doors in 1951? I thought those were a late-50s
> innovation. All the houses I've ever seen that are older than me (a 1956
> model), had paneled doors.
>
> --
> aem sends...

On Mon, 30 Jun 2008 19:56:07 -0400, Bernie Hunt wrote:

> I have a 1951 vintage house and I've started a campaign to change all
> the hollow core doors to 6 panel doors. Because of various settling and
> trim issues, I've decided to change the doors only and not the frames.
>
> The original trim carpenter did a great job. The side to side gaps are
> 1/32 or less. Obviously the doors are heavily beveled to make this
> possible. Unfortunately over the years, various home owners have taken
> their toll on the top and bottoms of the doors. The worse offender is
> the 1 3/4" gap at the bottom of a closet door, that is off square by
> over 1/2" across the face of the door.
>
> My question, a couple of the frames are out of square by 1/4" over 18".
> Should I hang the doors square, or make the gap fit the frame?
>
> Second question, what is the normal door gap? Should I be shooting for
> 1/8" on the sides and top? For the bottom I'm using 1/2" off the
> flooring.
>
> Thanks,
> Bernie

If you can, get the jambs square. It seems that it would be easier to
square the jambs than to make the door fit an opening which is not.

I just measured some prehungs in my circa 1990 vintage house. There
appears to be about 1/16" clearance at the hinge and 3/16" at the latch.
The top is 3/16" and the bottom just brushes across the carpet.

I suspect the bottom dimension is a personal choice: whatever looks good
yet remains functional.

--

=================================================
Franz Fripplfrappl

On Jun 30, 8:42 pm, franz fripplfrappl <[email protected]> wrote:
> On Mon, 30 Jun 2008 19:56:07 -0400, Bernie Hunt wrote:
> > I have a 1951 vintage house and I've started a campaign to change all
> > the hollow core doors to 6 panel doors. Because of various settling and
> > trim issues, I've decided to change the doors only and not the frames.
>
> > The original trim carpenter did a great job. The side to side gaps are
> > 1/32 or less. Obviously the doors are heavily beveled to make this
> > possible. Unfortunately over the years, various home owners have taken
> > their toll on the top and bottoms of the doors. The worse offender is
> > the 1 3/4" gap at the bottom of a closet door, that is off square by
> > over 1/2" across the face of the door.
>
> > My question, a couple of the frames are out of square by 1/4" over 18".
> > Should I hang the doors square, or make the gap fit the frame?
>
> > Second question, what is the normal door gap? Should I be shooting for
> > 1/8" on the sides and top? For the bottom I'm using 1/2" off the
> > flooring.
>
> > Thanks,
> > Bernie
>
> If you can, get the jambs square. It seems that it would be easier to
> square the jambs than to make the door fit an opening which is not.
>
> I just measured some prehungs in my circa 1990 vintage house. There
> appears to be about 1/16" clearance at the hinge and 3/16" at the latch.
> The top is 3/16" and the bottom just brushes across the carpet.

3/16" is a little large - 1/8" is a nice figure to shoot for.

> I suspect the bottom dimension is a personal choice: whatever looks good
> yet remains functional.

Not always. If the house has central heat via ductwork and a central
return it's a good idea to leave a bit of a gap at the bottom to
facilitate air movement.

R

On Jun 30, 6:56 pm, "Bernie Hunt" <[email protected]> wrote:

>snip<

> Second question, what is the normal door gap? Should I be shooting for 1/8"
> on the sides and top? For the bottom I'm using 1/2" off the flooring.

Finish carpenter apprentices are taught that the proper door gap is a
nickel at the latch and top and a dime at the hinge. No bevels are
permitted. Hinge spacing used to follow the 7" (top) and 11" (bottom)
rule, but with modern prehung doors that could vary.
For your problem doors, it may be worth the time and effort to find a
way to remove the trim undamaged and use prehung assemblies. You might
otherwise waste a half day or more trying to fit a new door into an
opening that is not square, plumb or level. The out of kilter opening
could have some structural issues that could then be remedied. Good
luck.

Joe

If I take off the trim, then I'll just retrim the hallway. I need to hang
crown in there anyway. The out of kilter is due to the house having a center
steel beam running down the center of the center hallway. All the rest of
the structure is wood, so the house sags on either side hinging in the
middle of this hallway. I consulted a local engineer about this before we
bought. He laughed and said every house built in the 50s in this section of
town has this problem and to just live with it or rebuild most of the house.
The strutural movement happened 20 30 years ago, so everything done since
then would be disrupted.

I'll have to think about going with prehungs. That brings up a whole
different problem of special ordering all the doors because wider jams are
needed for the plaster.

Bernie

"Joe" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:cfb339e2-64a1-4d5c-9db6-d59d51524a44@d1g2000hsg.googlegroups.com...
On Jun 30, 6:56 pm, "Bernie Hunt" <[email protected]> wrote:

>snip<

For your problem doors, it may be worth the time and effort to find a
way to remove the trim undamaged and use prehung assemblies. You might
otherwise waste a half day or more trying to fit a new door into an
opening that is not square, plumb or level. The out of kilter opening
could have some structural issues that could then be remedied. Good
luck.

Joe