I wonder how many other posters are replying thinking he's talking about a panel from an overhead garage door, as opposed to the garage entry door. I just can't see building one when it's a std size door where a pre-hung can be had for $100. Even if I could buy a door minus frame that might work, I would replace the whole thing, especially given that the prior door was "sagging". With a pre-hung it goes in and you don't have all the alignment, fitting issues to deal with.
0500, dpb =A0wrote: 80x32 is a standard size. Besides saying that he can't find a "suitable" replacement he hasn't made clear what the exact fitment issue is. I think it's that he's refusing to use a pre-hung door because for some reason he thinks replacing the door and the frame is a big deal, expensive and harder than constructing a door. So, I suspect he's trying to find a door, minus the frame that will exactly fit what he has there now. And that isn't likely to be solved by a trip to the salvage yard or anyplace else. Even if he finds something, I think he's underestimating what it takes to then get it to work.
Also, the other point I've been trying to get across is that he had a problem with the old door "sagging". What are the chances that the existing frame is perfectly square? Replace the whole thing with a pre-hung door for $100 and it's a sure solution, less work than making and hanging just a door, and drama free.
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OP is probably a lot like I am--he'll spend inordinate amount of time to save something old just on the general principle of the thing... :)
I don't see building a whole new door as permanent solution here, either; the door in the pictures posted didn't really look to be in _that_ bad of shape; it's a little effort to refurbish one but nothing of great complexity, just a little patience and care in dissasembling w/o destroying... :)
As noted elsewhere, I've done any number of these over the years from the garages and shops here on the farm to some gorgeous antebellum 40x96 entry doors in old restoration work in Lynchburg, VA. Those, of course, and many of the other entry and general interior and exterior doors and windows were well worth considerable effort given their age and general architectural significance for the restorations underway.
Knox Rail Salvage in downtown Knoxville, TN, generally would have several hundred doors from recent trashed rentals hollow-cores w/ knoced thru holes in a face to salvaged exterior double entries from rework mansions being retrofitted. Somewhere in there would always be half a dozen or more of just what OP needs in good shape for probably $25 or less...
I think I mentioned in the previous thread of picking up a pair of slab walnut 7- or 8-ft office doors for a pittance because were intended for a business remodel but one had received a large scratch on one face so they tossed the both and ordered new for the job...I had intention of desk and/or table tops but they're still in the barn...another oak slab from the same clutch is the top for the office desk here, though.
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A good bit less than $100, the way I (mistakenly) conceptualized it.
Try this: the garage was built in 1955. There is no frame around this door, just double 2x4's. Shoddy construction, I suppose, but that's how they sometimes did it back then.
I had hoped for a simple fix. Doesn't now look that way.
P"Law Without Equity Is No Law At All. It Is A Form Of Jungle Rule."
re: "There is no frame around this door..."
First, let's make sure we are using the correct terminology. It's call a "jamb", not a "frame".
30" is a standard door width and a prehung 30" door should fit in your rough opening since it fit a 32" door without a jamb. The jamb will be about 1 1/2" wide total, so you"ll have room for shims to square it all up. Yes, you will lose 2" of opening and only you can tell us if that will be an issue.One issue might be the height. Since you have no jamb, it's hard for us to say whether an 80" pre-hung door with threshold and jamb will fit. You may need to get a shorter door or one without a threshold or adjust the header.
I called. Evidently it's just a yard full of junk. I asked if they *might* have an ext. door 1.25" in thickness. Poor gal had noooooooo idea.
Habitat Restore. I've already done a walk-thru, but their stuff is so disorganized I wouldn't be surprised if I walked right by one. Will likely go back. Without AC it's brutal in there.
Ah, lemme see ... whasis? $400 for the bits, $500 for a router rig (but I'd need to stop and build the table?)?? :-)
Maybe if it drags into Sept. and I'm not in a strait-jacket.
Yes, yes, I've been in -that- situation ...
HD has got a Jeld-wen steel-skin 32 x 79 x 1.75" for $96. It's close, but it'd be a headache.
Thanks, P
"Law Without Equity Is No Law At All. It Is A Form Of Jungle Rule."
You can also get more wood for the screws by making the door undersize length and width and gluing/screwing on wood strips over the frame AND ply.
Naturally, I wouldn't worry about it. The last door I built as i described was to enclose the water heater - not to worry, there are vents in the door - in our laundry. This is in Florida and the laundry is the hottest and most humid place in the house. Built it maybe 10 years ago, still flat as a pancake.
Good luck in having that plywood stay flat. Or even START flat.
Agree. Normally you'd have framing consisting of 2x4's and then a door jamb. But it sounds like he has no jamb? Which is weird because then without a jamb on the sides you would have exposed not only the 2 x 4's, but also the edge of the sheathing on the outside, so how is that sealed against the rain? And on the inside, where the 2 x4 ends, you'd be seeing the edge of the drywall or whatever the interior material is. In other words, you'd see what you usually see when you take off the jamb. Can he tell us that is what he has?
Agree. If I understand what he's saying, he has a 2x4 door frame that is 32" wide. A 30" door should then fit between the existing framing.
That's a good point. The height could be an issue. But it looks like HD has one that is a 30X78:
On 7/11/2012 4:32 PM, Puddin' Man wrote: ...
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I found several six-panel wood or fiberglass at various Menard's over the country from $25 to $75 from their returned/never picked/etc.
That kind of place is another possibility for cheap if that's the ultimate goal...
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That is essentially what I have. There are some 1 x 2 strips nailed to the 2x4 frames -outside-, against which the door closes. Otherwise it's all 2x4's.
It's undesirable. Best to restore what they did back in '55.
No!
I just took measurements against one of these at the local HD this afternoon. It's close but no cigar. And it's steel-skin.
I've just about given up on "build new". Was just an idea.
Thanks, P
"Law Without Equity Is No Law At All. It Is A Form Of Jungle Rule."
What they did back in '55 was wrong. They hung a door slab in a RO with no jamb. Why would it be best to restore what they did in '55? Is Better Homes and Gardens coming to put your house on some historic homes list? Oh wait...1955? I don't think so.
So if you want to restore it back to what they did in '55, why can't you just buy a 32" door and hang it the same way they did? This thread has gotten so long that I don't recall if you ever told us why a 32" x
80" slab won't just fit into the opening. As far as I can tell, the extra thickness of doors today should not be an issue since the door opens in......
"No" to what?
You said you have a 32" door. You said you have no jamb.
Therefore the width of your opening must be just a bit wider than 32"
A prehung 30" door requires a 32" rough opening to allow for the jamb and some shims.
I ask again "No" to what?
How about telling us what "close but no cigar" means. Too big? Too small? Too wide? To short? What exactly is the problem with a 30 x 78 prehung door.
BTW...they make 30 x 78 wooden doors too. And guess what? Wooden doors can be trimmed down if they are too big. BTDT.
Only if you are over 79 inches tall or have a real spring in your step
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It's part of it.
No Menards within 100+ mi.
P"Law Without Equity Is No Law At All. It Is A Form Of Jungle Rule."
On 7/11/2012 10:35 PM, Puddin' Man wrote: ...
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Didn't say it _had_ to be Menards...others must deal w/ same things...
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Then what happens when those 2x4's meet the sheathing, siding, etc? Same thing inside the garage? Normally those areas would be covered, sealed against the weather by the door jamb and casement molding. A couple of pics of this would be a great help in making suggestions.
Agree. That door was installed incorrectly according to not only the practices of 1955, but probably 100+ years before that. Sure, if it's something vintage that's consistent with that period, then it's worth preserving, but I'm not getting that here.
When I do repairs, if what was done before was wrong, then if I have an opportunity to do it right, I will. And in this case, from what I've heard so far, doing it right not only sounds possible, but I suspect it's less work than building a new door from scratch and will produce a much better finished product.
I asked a few posts ago what the fitment issue was. AFAIK, all we have to go on is this:
"What with the Big Heat, etc, it's not practical to repair the door. Have been to Lowes, Restore, etc. Can't find suitable replacement. How difficult is it to "build" a door? 32 x 80 x 1.25"?
I didn't pay much attention to the first part. But re-reading it, if climate is the big concern, why not just wait until Sept and repair the existing door? Or, alternatively, take off the door, fix it in the cool basement where he's proposing to build a door, and put up a sheet of plywood temporarily to secure the opening. It's just a garage entry door, so securing it in that fashion should be easy.
I think we have a failure to communicate here.....
If I had to guess, it's because his existing door has no door jamb, no TRIM MOLDING and he's unfamiliar with how a door is normally installed. So, he's looking for something that has to fit EXACTLY to what's there, instead of fitting in loosely in a rough opeing, then being SHIMMED, which is what you do with a pre-hung.
I'd suggest he find some videos of how doors are supposed to be installed online. Putting in a new pre-hung and cutting some moldings sounds a lot easier and more within the skill grade of a typical home project than building a door. And in this case, it would make what is apparently an oddball, half-assed door into a normal one.
I am surprised that you are having a problem finding a replacement door that is that size. 32 x 80 is a standard size. I don't remember the standard thickness, so I don't know if they are 1.25 inches thick. But a door that is not exactly the same thickness can still be installed by either adjusting the trim or having Building a new one seems like it would be a real project and a pain to have to do.
For those who didn't see the original "Sagging Garage Door" post (I had to look it up), here it is:
--------------- I have a detached garage (built in 1955) door made of wood segments joined by woodwork that looks something like tongue-in-groove flooring. Replacing the door is probably impractical.
On the garage door, some of the grooves are working loose making one end of the door sag. I had to plane the knob end of the door to keep it from scraping the floor. Worked for a while, now it scrapes again.
You can see what is going on if you view the following Photobucket pix
1-at-a-time:Does anybody know of any tricks/techniques for reinforcing/repairing such wood doors?
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Yeah, take it apart and reglue with waterproof glue.
Heck, for that I'd just use lag bolts, way easier than trying to take the door apart or build a new one...
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