Wood Door Installation: Sequence and Fixings

2024 · HIHAUS

A timber door set is installed in a fixed order: assemble and fix the frame, hang the leaf, fit the lock and stop, then apply the architrave. Doing the architrave early is the most common error, because it covers the fixings you still need to reach and it gets damaged while the leaf is being hung.

Steps

• Check the frame against the leaf and the opening. Confirm the leaf size matches the frame rebate, and cut the frame down only at the legs, not at the head, if a reduction is needed.
• Assemble the frame with screws, keeping the architrave off. Check the frame is square by measuring diagonals before it goes into the opening.
• Set the frame into the opening and fix it with metal straps or frame anchors at the hinge positions and at the head. Pack behind the hinge points, because that is where the load is.
• Plumb and level the frame, then check that the leaf will swing without binding before the fixings are final. Adjust the packing rather than the frame.
• Hang the leaf on its hinges, setting the gap evenly at head and lock side, and check the leaf clears the floor across its full swing.
• Fit the lock, the strike and the door stop, then fit the architrave on both faces, mitring the corners and keeping the reveal consistent.

The three checks that prevent callbacks

First, the swing test: open the leaf to 90 degrees and let it go. It should not swing on its own; if it does, the frame is out of plumb. Second, the latch test: the latch should engage the strike with light pressure and without lifting the leaf. Third, the gap test: the gap at the head and both stiles should be consistent, within a millimeter or two, because an uneven gap will show at the architrave line.

Finishing and movement

Timber moves with humidity, and an interior door in a new building will move most in its first heating season. Seal all six faces of the leaf, including the top and bottom edges, before hanging, and leave a small expansion allowance at the lock side rather than fitting the leaf tight. A door fitted tight in a dry season will bind in a wet one.

If you are ordering timber doors for a project, we can supply them pre-hung with the frame and hardware prepared, which removes most of the site fitting and the associated callbacks.