Door Installation

With a level sill and a square rough opening, we are ready to install the door. We add the caulk to the sill and the bottom of the door sill. From the outside we work together to connect the sills with the door at a 45 degree angle out from the house. Then we push it in to place and I run around the house to check it from the inside. Turns out that we underestimated the slope of the flooring on this old house and the door does not open all the way! We quickly regroup, remove the door and cut another piece of 5/8" by 5'3/8" redwood to add a layer to the sill. Wood glue and deck screws again to secure the piece. We add caulk again and repeat the process. This time the door opens all the way and we are good to plumb the door.

There is a suggested order for installing the shims, starting with the bottom, then the top, then the hinges then 8" above and below the corners on the handle side. The goal of the order is to create a door that is square and plumb, with a 1/8" gap between the frame and the door on the handle and hinge sides. This means that the door will open and close correctly. This process takes quite a long time, but finally we have the door how we want. So we install the screws through the hinges, shims, and stud for each of the three hinges. Next we install screws on the handle side through the shims 8" from the top and bottom as well as through shims on either side of the deadbolt opening. Now we score the shims and remove them. Look! A fully functional door!

Now we install the deadbolt and handle to make sure that everything lines up and the locking functionality works correctly. It looks more and more like a door every step of the way.

I'll use this space to point out the doggie door. Isn't it lovely?

The final step for the day is the addition of the minimal expanding foam. Don't let the name fool you, this stuff expands and expands and expands. You don't want to go overboard, because it is strong enough to warp the door frame, or at least move it and ruin the perfect 1/8" spacing. Also, this stuff is highly toxic, so if ever there was a time to wear gloves and glasses, this would be it. We wore them the whole time because I didn't want to have to pay Shannon workers comp for an injury. This foam makes a perfect seal and the door has function but not yet form.

The future steps to truly complete this project will have to wait. These are all cosmetic additions however and since my place is a construction zone, it's alright waiting. I need to install new casing around the door on the inside and outside, which covers the door frame and foam insulation. Then some white caulk should create a nice finish. Also this door is only primed, so I will need to remove and paint it at a later point in time. Finally, our process removed the wood threshold that connects nicely to the tile, so I need to find a solution for that as well.