How to properly install an interior door with your own hands

Recommendation points

• Preparatory work
• Assembling the door frame
• Cut in loops
• Installing the door block
• Fastening the casing
• Installation of interior doors with additional strips
• Insert latches and handles

At first glance, there is nothing difficult in installing doors: just install a door block in the opening, blow it out with foam, cut in the locks, nail the platbands and be done. This is how the installation process looks in general terms, let’s consider it in more detail to determine a rational sequence of actions..

To install an interior door, you will need:

Instruments:

• a hammer;
• plumb line;
• roulette;
• drill;
• feather drill for wood Ø 24 mm;
• end saw or miter box and hacksaw;
• level;
• knife;
• screwdriver or screwdriver;
• router or chisel.

Materials:

• wooden wedges;
• polyurethane foam;
• self-tapping screws;
• handle, door latch, hinges;
• door, box, platbands, dobry.

Preparatory work

The preparation of the doorway for installation depends on the initial state of the room. In a new building, install doors upon completion of all “dirty” construction and finishing work: the ceiling and floor must be ready, the walls must be plastered. You can even glue the wallpaper: installing the doors is a clean job, if everything is done according to the rules, there will be no dirt. When replacing a door block, you need to dismantle the old door frame, clean the surface from crumbling plaster and repair the chips.

Assembling the door frame

The dimensions of the door frame parts are determined based on the dimensions of the door leaf. In the assembled state, the gaps from the door leaf to the frame should be 2 mm at the sides and top and about 4 mm at the bottom. In a U-shaped door frame (without a threshold), the side posts should be 1–1.5 cm longer than the height of the door leaf. Cut the parts of the required size and assemble the frame by connecting them with self-tapping screws. For greater strength, the joints of the box can be glued.

Cut in loops

Put the door frame on the floor, place the door leaf in it. Using strips of cardboard, set the gaps indicated above, mark with a pencil the places where the hinges are attached to the frame and door leaf. The edge of the hinge should be at a distance of 20 cm from the edge of the door leaf. If the doors are heavy, a third hinge can be installed. The main part of the load falls on the upper loop, so it is advisable to install the third loop not in the center, but closer to the upper.

Attach the hinge to the installation site and outline around the perimeter with a sharp knife, cutting through the wood to the depth of the hinge plate thickness. Use a sharp beveled chisel or a manual electric milling cutter to remove the wood layer so that a seat is formed exactly the size of the plate. Install the loop, it should fit snugly in the recess and not protrude beyond the edges. Screw the screws into the holes. Thus, install all halves of the loops.

Hang the door leaf on the hinges and check the gaps between the leaf and the frame. Next, install the door block vertically and check the opening of the doors, the canvas should open freely and not spring when closing.

Installing the door block

Remove the door leaf from the hinges. Place the door frame in the center of the opening and fix its position with wedges. Check the position of the box relative to the edge of the walls – they should be in the same plane. The hinged side of the box is attached first. Align the stand upright using a plumb line or level. Drive the wedges just above the junction of the box post to the top crossbar and secure the entire box by placing the wedges in the corners. Hang the door leaf on the hinges and, tapping with a rubber hammer on the riser of the frame, adjust the position of the door so that the door closes freely and, when closed, adjoins the narthex with the whole plane.

Next, close the door, insert strips of cardboard folded several times into the gap between the door leaf and the frame. This is done in order to prevent the box from deforming with polyurethane foam, which expands when solidified. Fill the space between the door frame and the wall with foam, after it has completely dried, cut off the excess with a knife.

Fastening the casing

To join the planks, trim them by 45 °. It is most convenient to work with an electric miter saw, if such a tool is not available, use a miter box and a hacksaw. The vertical posts of the casing are cut and fastened first, then the upper horizontal plank.

Installation of interior doors with additional strips

Additional strips allow you to beautifully design a doorway in a situation where the width of the box is less than the thickness of the walls of the doorway. Doors on the door frame can be installed in a groove or in a quarter. In the first case, a groove is made in the box, from the side opposite to the opening of the doors, along the thickness of the finish. The strips are attached with glue after installing the box. The space formed between the board and the wall is filled with polyurethane foam. Platbands are nailed to the finish after the foam dries and the excess is cut. In the case when the extensions are installed in a quarter, the strips are attached to the box before installation in the doorway with self-tapping screws from the outside.

Insert latches and handles

Decide on the height of the handle from the floor, usually 95–100 cm. When choosing a distance, be guided by the convenience and design features of the door leaf.

Let’s take a look at an inset door latch with split handles. Mark the places for drilling holes for the square of the handle on the door leaf post and for the latch itself in the center on the end side of the door. The distance from the edge of the web to the center of the hole for the square is determined based on the measurements of the latch, for most latches it is 45 mm.

Use a drill and a 24 mm diameter wood drill to make a square hole. To get a neat edge, stop drilling as soon as the tip of the drill appears on the opposite side. Continue working, but on the other side. Then drill a hole for the latch.

Insert the latch into the end hole, temporarily fix it with self-tapping screws for convenience. Cut the wood around the perimeter to the depth of the latch plate thickness. Unscrew the screws, remove the latch and remove the wood under the seat using a chisel. Insert the latch into place, check the alignment of the hole under the square and fix with self-tapping screws.

Now we turn to the handles – remove the decorative overlays from them, insert a square into one of the handles, fix it with an internal screw using the hexagon that usually comes with the handles. Replace the handle by inserting the square into the latch, then screw it to the door with self-tapping screws. Install the opposite handle and also secure with self-tapping screws, do not forget to tighten the inner screw that fixes the square. Check the handle for operability, after which you can screw on the decorative overlays.

The next step is to install a counter bar on the box riser. In order to determine the place where the latch tongue will rest, apply a little paint on it (it is better to use a water-soluble one). In the marked place, make a recess under the tongue using a chisel and a hammer.

Screw on the counter bar with self-tapping screws, outline around the perimeter with a knife, remove the bar and select the wood for the seat. Then install the counter bar, screw in the self-tapping screws, close the door and check the operation of the latch.