Interior door hinges are held up by screws.
A correctly installed interior door will go unnoticed by just about everyone, but a poorly installed interior door will be bothering someone every time he or she needs to use it. Whether you are replacing an aging door or simply installing one on a frame, there is no need to call a professional to complete the job. With the right materials you can complete the job yourself in just a few hours. It doesn't matter if the doors are hollow-core or paneled slabs; any type of door can be installed by a determined do-it-yourselfer. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Measure the opening in the door frame. Measure all four sides, in case the frame isn't exactly square. Subtract 1/4 inch from the width measurements and 3/8 inch from the height measurements to allow for door clearance.
2. Transfer those measurements to your door and make any required cuts with a table saw.
3. Position and clamp the door on a table so that you have access to both edges where you will install the hinges and lock set.
4. Place the lock set template that came with the lock set kit over the edge of the door and make the necessary marks for the the face hole and the edge hole. Remove the template and drill the holes, using a drill size specified by the lock set instructions.
5. Place the latch, complete with latch plate, into the hole you drilled through the edge of the door. Hold the plate flush with the door and trace the outline of the plate with your utility knife. Score the wood equal to the thickness of the plate. Remove the latch.
6. Place your chisel at a 90-degree angle inside of the outline that your traced and tap it with a mallet or hammer. Continue to tap it until it reaches the depth equal to the scoring. Move the chisel to another area inside the outline and repeat the process. Continue until these chisel marks cover most of the area. Place your chisel at the end of the outline and angle it low. Tap it with a hammer and some of the wood will come off. Continue until the you have a recess in the wood equal to the size of the latch plate.
7. Screw the latch into place, then screw the door knobs into place, all according to the instructions that came with the lock set.
8. Place one leaf of a door hinge against the edge of the door opposite the latch, halfway up the door. Trace the outline of the hinge with your utility knife. Once the mark is made, move the hinge to a place that is around a foot away from the top of the door and make the marks again. Move it to a place around a foot from the bottom of the door and make the marks.
9. Measure the distance from the bottom of the door to the bottom mark for each hinge. Add 1/4 inch to each measurement. Make a mark on the door frame where the door will hang, using the measurements you just took. Place the bottom of the other leaf of the hinge against these marks, then score the outline with your utility knife.
10. Chisel out the outlines for each hinge piece, using the same method you used for the latch plate.
11. Screw all six hinge pieces into place.
12. Move the door into the door opening and position it so that the teeth on all the hinges overlap. Have someone place the hinge pins into the hinges. Hammer the hinge pins down until they are all the way in.
13. Close the door and mark the midpoint of where the door latch is on the door frame. Open the door and drill two partially overlapping holes into the edge of the door frame. These holes should be centered slightly above and below the midpoint you marked. The size and depth of the holes should be listed on the lock set kit instructions.
14. Place the strike plate over the holes and outline it with your utility knife. Chisel out this area in the same way that you did for the latch plate and the door hinges. Screw the strike plate into place.
Tags: door frame, door make, edge door, into place, latch plate, utility knife, with your