I have a rotted door sill (among other things), a consequence of contact
a concrete stoop. I've taken care of the stoop issues, and I need to
replace stuff. The wood (oak) sills I've seen aren't exactly what I'm
looking for, and I'm thinking whether to make my own. My question is,
these undersides of these sills are grooved (lengthwise). Does anyone
know why that is?

Thanks

George wrote:
I have a rotted door sill (among other things), a consequence of
contact a concrete stoop. I've taken care of the stoop issues, and I
need to replace stuff. The wood (oak) sills I've seen aren't exactly
what I'm looking for, and I'm thinking whether to make my own. My
question is, these undersides of these sills are grooved
(lengthwise). Does anyone know why that is?

Thanks

Helps them to resist cupping and warping .

--
Snag

On Thu, 02 Oct 2014 10:27:44 -0400, George
wrote:

I have a rotted door sill (among other things), a consequence of contact
a concrete stoop. I've taken care of the stoop issues, and I need to
replace stuff. The wood (oak) sills I've seen aren't exactly what I'm
looking for, and I'm thinking whether to make my own. My question is,
these undersides of these sills are grooved (lengthwise). Does anyone
know why that is?

Thanks

I looked into this years ago, and basically got nowhere. Talking
about thresholds and flooring. Sills are usually cut on the job to
fit and aren't grooved.
You hear speculation like reduced weight for shipping, and resistance
to cupping. I like the "flexibility" theory. Allows for surface
inconsistencies and won't crack.
For a threshold I wouldn't worry about it. Same with a sill, but you
want to use pressure treated wood for a sill, and level the concrete.

On Thu, 02 Oct 2014 10:27:44 -0400, George
wrote:

I have a rotted door sill (among other things), a consequence of contact
a concrete stoop. I've taken care of the stoop issues, and I need to
replace stuff. The wood (oak) sills I've seen aren't exactly what I'm
looking for, and I'm thinking whether to make my own. My question is,
these undersides of these sills are grooved (lengthwise). Does anyone
know why that is?

Thanks
To reduce the tendancy to warp - just like the bottoms of hardwood
flooring are grooved.

On Thu, 02 Oct 2014 09:54:03 -0500, Vic Smith
wrote:

On Thu, 02 Oct 2014 10:27:44 -0400, George
wrote:

I have a rotted door sill (among other things), a consequence of contact
a concrete stoop. I've taken care of the stoop issues, and I need to
replace stuff. The wood (oak) sills I've seen aren't exactly what I'm
looking for, and I'm thinking whether to make my own. My question is,
these undersides of these sills are grooved (lengthwise). Does anyone
know why that is?

Thanks

I looked into this years ago, and basically got nowhere. Talking
about thresholds and flooring. Sills are usually cut on the job to
fit and aren't grooved.
You hear speculation like reduced weight for shipping, and resistance
to cupping. I like the "flexibility" theory. Allows for surface
inconsistencies and won't crack.
For a threshold I wouldn't worry about it. Same with a sill, but you
want to use pressure treated wood for a sill, and level the concrete.
Regardless what wood you use over the concrete I would be installing
a "gasket" - as simple as a layer or 2 of heavy building felt - or a
layer of "blueseal" to keep the wood from directly contacting the
concrete.

I have a rotted door sill (among other things), a consequence of contact
a concrete stoop. I've taken care of the stoop issues, and I need to
replace stuff. The wood (oak) sills I've seen aren't exactly what I'm
looking for, and I'm thinking whether to make my own. My question is,
these undersides of these sills are grooved (lengthwise). Does anyone
know why that is?

The bottom of the sill is grooved to reduce warping.

In recent years I have had to repair several doors with rotted sills. I
chose to replace the entire door frame with a frame made of composite
materials. Then I installed a jamsill pan liner before installing the new
door frame.

I measured my door carefully (to the nearest 1/32"), door size and
thickness, hinge sizes and locations measured from the top of the door,
latch and deadbolt positions, etc. Then I took my measurements to my local
Lowes store and ordered the composite door frame. They're not cheap, about
$400, but unlike the wood frames they won't rot. The jamsill pan liner also
ensures that any moisture that makes it's way past the door frame gets
directed outside the building instead of rotting the subfloor.

Anthony Watson
www.mountainsoftware.com
www.watsondiy.com

On 10/2/2014 10:27 AM, George wrote:
I have a rotted door sill (among other things), a consequence of contact
a concrete stoop. I've taken care of the stoop issues, and I need to
replace stuff. The wood (oak) sills I've seen aren't exactly what I'm
looking for, and I'm thinking whether to make my own. My question is,
these undersides of these sills are grooved (lengthwise). Does anyone
know why that is?

Thanks

Have you tried a real lumber store? The mills around here stock the oak
sills, just like the ones from the old days. Tapered, grooved, notched,
etc. All you need is the width of the door.

I think if you are not finding one with exact measurement than you must try to make own because in this way you get exact sill with wood that you like and afford.
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