Limp Arbor wrote:
On Feb 19, 8:10 pm, "ng_reader" wrote:
So they sell the door slabs and in the jamb. The slabs have come down to $19
at HD. Wow that's cheap.

But, my jambs are all boogered up. Well, especially the part where the door
catches.

Maybe I should do the whole jamb and door.

Except that I did that once before and it was less than perfect.
And then I did it again and it is way less than perfect. I can't get the
door to close or the latch to latch up.

Now the two pros I spoke to said not to do jambs, just do the slabs. So much
easier. For who????

The old jam comes out in about 10 minutes, and the new one, if i knew what
the sam hill I was doing, would only take another 10 minutes to shim plumb.

Don't really have a question here but the doors in jams seem much more
invasive but like a better fix.

Do you pros want me to just buy the slabs, replace the bad piece of the jam
with another piece of wood (because it's so beat) and make that a day.

I'm in a quandary. But, finish work I can handle. Hanging a door by myself
so that it is plumb and square without losing my temper is --- i have found
out --- almost impossible.

A little help and or advice? Forgive me if I don't make sense, it's been a
hard year.

$19 is cheap but not if you butcher the door trying to fit it into a
twisted jam...


Here is how I install a prehung

Check floor for level across opening and throughout the swing area so
you have floor clearance.

If needed trim bottom of jamb and/or door

Remove door via hinge pins

Remove all doorstop trim

Plumb hinge side while making sure it is centered on stud. Shim &
nail jamb where doorstop trim will go on hinge side in several spots.

Put the door back on (don't let it swing all the way open because the
jamb could come loose)

Adjust strike side so that strike hole is same height as hole in door
for the latch. Eyeball the gap at the top to make sure it is close.
Then shim & nail strike side making sure gap is even along the length
of the door.

put in the doorknob and all the strike hardware and make sure it lines
up. Open close the door a few times to make sure it engages the latch
smoothly. If you screwed up it is not hard to fix because all of your
nails are where the door stop trim will be so you can pull & renail if
needed.

shim & nail top

start installing the doorstop at the top of the strike side by putting
pressure against the closed door as if you were trying to open it.
the doorstop should touch the door only at the very top & very
bottom. You are trying to bend the doorstop like a bow so the center
of the doorstop doesn't touch the door (1/16 away at the center).

the doorstop on the top should meet the strikeside doorstop and be
away from the door on the hinge side slightly (1/16 or less)

the doorstop on the hinge side should not touch the door

when you're done the door will close like a new refrigerator





Uh, most of the prehungs around these parts don't have a separate
doorstop- it is milled right into the jamb. Really cheap doors even have
a split jamb, to make them quick to hang in apartments and such, with
the casing on both sides already attached. The doorstop forms one side
of the slot the loose half of the jamb fits into.

--
aem sends....