Cutting new door to receive knob and hinges

James A
by James A
Bought door for bathroom that had no holes for knobs or recesses for hinges.
*Options I considered for this project:
We could have purchased a predrilled door but that would have strained her budget. Hiring a professional was further out of the question.
*Questions and unexpected events that arose during the project:
Unexpectedly difficult to measure and there's no fixing a bad measure. Door was clumsy.
* Cost Comments:
May need sandpaper $4, file $6 or Chisel, $10
*My motivation to do this project:
My friend asked for help. She had little money budgeted for the job so I agreed to prepare the door, with her assistance.
*Project Steps:
Planning - Went to home improvement store and shopped around keeping price and need in mind. Made choices with the help of an associate and made the needed purchases. Preparation - Removed old door and hinges and strike plate from frame. Secured new door on saw horses. Using the old door, carefully measured, at least twice, the distance from the cylinder bolt center to the bottom of the door. Marked the new door appropriately and secured the template from the installation Kit. Attached the large drill bit cutter and keeping the drill bit perfectly perpendicular to the new door drilled all the way through. Attaching the smaller drill-cutting bit did the same with the lock cylinder bolthole. Attached the knob and tested after sanding and filing some. Assure the knob worked smoothly. Again carefully measured distance from hinge depressions on old door to bottom of door and transferred measures to new door. Attach the template and use the routing bit from the kit and carefully routed hinge cutout. Used chisel to clean it out and made sure hinges rested below the door surface. Attached the hinges. Attached new hardware to the frame. We were now ready to mount the door.
Advice:
Do retain a large area to work with access to electricity. Do have a helper, as this was a little heavy. Don't rush, especially with routing. Do have a level to assure the drill hole is perpendicular.
Materials:
Door - $20.00
Door Lock Installation Kit - $15.00
Door Knobs - $22.00
Hinge Pack - $13.00
Low-priced doors have no knob holes or hinge recesses.
Invaluable Installation Kit has all templates and bits needed for proper installation.
Low-priced knob set served the low traffic area well.
A tight, uniform gap between door and jam means measurements were done correctly, whew!
Attractive door knobs work well because we measured so carefully and used a level while drilling. Adds to functionallity and makes the room more attractive. Yeah!
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