Door Frames

[Andy Kev.]

Hello All,

there are a couple of doors in my flat made from man made materials which I'd like to replace one day with wooden doors I've made myself. There seems to be plenty of information around about making doors but not too much on putting a frame into the gap to take the door.

Can anybody recommend a book which deals with this? Having looked at what's already there, I reckon I could remove it and replace it with wooden frames (it doesn't look like rocket science) but I'm sure there are a few tricks which I need to know about.

 

[AndyT]

Andy, I think you will get better answers if you could say a bit more about what sort of period, construction type and quality of building your flat is in, maybe with some pictures. Much will depend on the thickness of the walls and whether they are solid or timber framed/partitions.

I could point you to plenty of info on 19th century terraced houses, as that's what I have needed to know about, but it would be no good for more modern work.

And it's always possible that German methods of construction are different from what we have in the UK!

 

[Andy Kev.]

Thanks for the quick reply, Andy. It's a modern flat (1994) and so the brickwork will be those pale grey breeze blocky type things. I've got to zoom off out now but will be back tomorrow with some measurements. In the meantime: we're talking internal walls of which a cursory glance indicates that they are about 8" thick.

 

[RobinBHM]

Are you talking about a door liner or a door frame?

-most internal doors in this country are hung on a liner which is the depth of the wall and each side is architraved to cover the joint where the plaster is finished.

 

[No skills]

Are the current doors fire rated in anyway (ie required??), might be worth checking before replacing.

 

[Andy Kev.]

Are you talking about a door liner or a door frame?

-most internal doors in this country are hung on a liner which is the depth of the wall and each side is architraved to cover the joint where the plaster is finished.

That post is proof that I needed to ask the question. I've never even heard of a door liner - although I now guess it's the wood that's in direct contact with the wall.

My current, inexpert plan of action is this: remove the existing door and everything associated with it thus leaving a plaster surface on a door-shaped hole. Then line the hole (is that where liner comes from?) with three one inch thick boards bolted to the door-shaped hole, the bolt heads to be sunken and hidden with plugs cut from the same kind of wood. Conceal the edges of the boards with mitred battens of the same wood (poss only 3/4" thick) on the walls. Then put in what I now guess is called the door frame proper i.e. the bit to which the hinges are attached and against which the door actually closes, this presumably being made of 1" or 1 1/2" thick bits of wood.

You can see why I've asked for a recommendation for a book which has all the guff on this so that I can work it out properly.

 

[Andy Kev.]

Are the current doors fire rated in anyway (ie required??), might be worth checking before replacing.

I hadn't even thought of that. I'll ask the architect who designed the flat.

Mind you I can't see much of a problem with solid wood doors. I'm thinking of using ash because I like the look of it and I like its solidity. Is that an OK wood for a door?.

 

[dzj]

"...on putting a frame into the gap to take the door"

If it's a brick wall, these days it's often done this way:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_iBpcvYOgs

Some temporary stretchers should be put in place so the jambs don't deform as the PU expands.

 

[Andy Kev.]

I just found this link (from B&Q of all people):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqGoSBWixNU

which explains the Basic idea of the lining quite clearly.

 

[Bluekingfisher]

8" for interior walls? what are you in, a bunker?

That dimension should be for cavity or external walls. An internal wall should be around 4" or so.

 

[Andy Kev.]

The walls appear to be 5 and a bit inches i.e. around 150 mm which I suppose could be 4" plus plaster. I got the 8" by not discounting the architraves (oops).

AndyT: I can't find the digital camera but I don't think a pic would add anything to the matter.

So then, back to my question, can anybody recommend a book which has got an idiot's guide to installing the liner and frame or is the general consensus that the stuff available on Youtube contains all the info I need?