We're having some new carpets and vinolay fitted, and the carpet shop says their fitters don't remove or cut doors. The doors are also new, so there's a real possibility that some at least will need trimming across the bottom. While it's within my capabilities and should be fairly straightforward, I've not done it before, so any tips, do's and don't's would be welcome.
Remove the door, and support above the ground horizontally. Clamp a batten to use as a guide for a circular saw with nice decent sharp blade. That IMHO is the easiest way to get a nice clean edge with minimal skills. Unlike planing. ;-)
How many doors? I?d be tempted to hire a proper door trimming saw or get a man in who is used to doing it (with the appropriate saw).
Eg.
Tim
Consider fitting rising but hinges and you may get away without having to cut the doors (or limit the cut), especially if there is a metal carpet joining strip at the door which will compress the carpet at that point.
+1
Planing was the traditional way in the days before the common availability of portable circular saws. Since it was the only easy way to take a few mm off the bottom of a door. However it does require some skill, and planing in from both sides so you don't plane off the edge of the jam and split the edge off.
A (small block) plane is still handy once you have cut it with a circular saw though - go round and stick a bevel on all the new sharp corners you have left - makes it less likely to catch on the carpet and stops the edge getting damaged as easily.
Music to my ears! I don't have a circular saw, but do have an old but still serviceable Black & Decker jig saw, which if used steadily without pushing it too hard, does a half-decent job. Thanks.
Interesting. In-situ use it says. Deserves further investigation. Thanks.
alan_m wrote in news:fi6q0bFbihqU1 @mid.individual.net:
If you don't mind ugly hinges!
[snip]
But be aware that the one in that link needs a 110 volt power supply.
A jigsaw used carefully may be OK on one side, but likely not on the other side of something this thick. Even a cheap circular saw will make a better job - and well worth it considering what doors cost.
Sandpaper on a block? ;-)
Yup, that works. Although I find breaking edges with a small plane is somehow quite satisfying ;-)
Hmm...perhaps not so interesting then...
electric plane...watch your fingers.....
If you only have a jig saw and a manual plane lay the door across a table or something with it horizontal. Clamp some bits of wood to the edges of the door at the bottom to prevent the saw splintering it. Position a straight piece of wood across the door to guide the saw, and clamp it firmly. Use the saw with no elliptical action so it doesn't splinter the wood. Also you might decide to score along the cut line with a knife, again to prevent splintering. In that case cut with the saw a tiny distance away from the score line. Use to plane to finish off, being careful not to splinter the edges.
Bill
Thanks Bill, helpful and appropriate for the tools I've got.
Bill Wright submitted this idea :
Which means - never go all the way out to the very edge. When you get close to the edge, plane from edge towards middle of the door.
+1
Do you know how much you need to take off? Hollow internal doors have relatively thin framing at the bottom and, if you take too much off, the frame can disappear altogether. That's happened to me a few times! You then have to make up a new piece of framing of exactly the right thickness to fit between the outer skins, and glue it in place.
Do they not fit internal doors on rising butt hinges any more?
Brian
Door fitters use a plane on vertical surfaces because often they don't have room to lay a door out flat. A circular saw cut is dead fast, dead accurate, and always square. No brainer for most of us. Where is TMH when you need him?
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