French doors intalled to out-of-plumb walls

Yesterday my husband had some contractors install replacement exterior French doors to our patio. I didn't see the doors until after the guys had left and noticed that the door was plumb, but the walls aren't--and worse, I think they are slighty twisted. (The top of the right side of the door is 1/4" farther out than the wall and the bottom recessed 1/8" from the wall. The left side is 1/8" recessed at the top and flush at the bottom.) The doors that were on previously were badly damaged by the previous owner's dog and had a gap between them at the bottom which we assumed was from the dog and never thought about it being because the doors were not plumb. They didn't swing open or closed and latched just fine. Did the contractors install this improperly by not installing in on the same plane as the wall? If they installed it correctly, how can we put mouldings up that look OK?

Reply to
weil
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Some clarification needed here. Are you telling us you live in a house with tilted ( not plumb) walls? Did you determine what was plumb or not with a level? Are you using the word 'plumb' to describe that part of your structure as perfectly perpendicular? These answers would bear upon solving your problem. HTH

Joe

Reply to
Joe

Yes they did the right thing. They did what we call "cheating" the door into the opening. You hang the door plumb, then you have to work your trim to fit. If you aren't experienced at it, it can seem difficult, but it really isn't.

It is too difficult too explain over the internet, but you will have to either remove some of the drywall from the sides and top (if it is too close to the jamb) and overcut your miters so that the corners fit together kind of like crown molding.

The other option is to rabbet the backside of the trim.

If you can't understand these concepts, then you will probably have to call a professional. I can do it easily, but explaining it is another thing entirely.

This site sort of explains it:

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Reply to
Robert Allison

weil wrote in news:1187368075.003454.153850@

19g2000hsx.googlegroups.com:

Indeed, the new doors should be hung 'plumb'.

Otherwise known as: Two wrongs don't make a right.

That they didn't custom fit the trim is also understandable, no doubt this would be an extra expense which would need prior approval and they may not have the tools/skill/time to do it properly anyway.

I suppose the correct thing for them to do after they saw the situation was to ask if you wanted it 'fixed', but if they did the work unattended (not a good idea for the homeowner) they had little choice.

kpg

Reply to
kpg*

If the doors are not installed plumb, they will tend to open or close by themselves. i.e. If you have a door open a "crack", it will not stay put, but close or open further depending on the slant.

And this can be a royal pain. So I would rather have the doors plum so they worked properly.

Reply to
Bill

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