New doors.. opinions?

[Fatboy148]

Thanks James, I'll probably mess around with it at my house this weekend and if I need further help I'll contact you.

I called several garage installers and they all said the same thing.. Wood doors require too much precision in the way they link with each other and it would be nearly impossible to fabricate a panel. In fact, they laughed when I asked. Well, someone had to make it at some point, lol. Is it really all that difficult or would they all just assume you bought a new one?

You have a plan. Good luck with trying!

The folks you spoke with sell doors, if you are paying their hourly rate for labor, you are probably better off buying new doors. If you can pull it off and make them work on your own, you will gain another bunch of years out of your efforts. They told you..."the way they link with each other" it is all in the hinge. While you can replace the hinges, you will most likely reuse them. Try one panel and see how it goes. Next scenario if it doesn't go well, you park your vehicles in the drive for a week and make the drive next Saturday morning to take advantage of the generous offer to help building two panels and install them on Sunday. Absolute worse case is you reassemble the door and order two new units install the following weekend. Should be done in two weeks at the extreme.

Just be careful with that stored energy in the springs. It could hurt you bad!

 

[Burley]

Here's 2 more options my wife and I came up with. Wood is now darker, matches fence a little better. The installer came by this morning and explained that anything with overlays wont fit with my low ceiling, so I guess these are my options. Im getting to the point where I'm getting cross eyed.





get a url for a photo

 

[Burley]

I'm tearing into the doors today, it looks like the trim is all rotted and there's a thin piece of composite board (rotted) over solid wood. The solid wood panels themselves are fine, so I'm going to try replacing trim and composit. Is that typical of how these old doors were made?

 

[Burley]

The doors ended up not being solid wood afterall.. They have some insulation inside which makes repairing them challenging. I think I could still fabricate an entire panel from wood, but for the moment I'm going to try to salvage the insulated panel. The top is covered with composite, so I've sanded and chipped away everything thats rotted (not exposing much of the insulation) and replacing the wood trim. Luckily I'll be able to cover the insulation with the trim. Total material cost was $100, including saw horses and paint.

 

[Fatboy148]

Looks like the issue may have been water getting behind the trim at the bottom and setting there "working" on the fiberboard. "Water always wins"! It may be too late but you might consider priming both the new wood and what's left of the fiberboard with a quick drying primer like oil based Kilz and running a bead of good flexible, paintable, caulk behind it before installing. Then another bead at the intersection of the top of the board and the panel after securing it in place.

Looks like your repair will get you by for a few more years. Good to you for taking it on!

 

[Burley]

Looks like the issue may have been water getting behind the trim at the bottom and setting there "working" on the fiberboard. "Water always wins"! It may be too late but you might consider priming both the new wood and what's left of the fiberboard with a quick drying primer like oil based Kilz and running a bead of good flexible, paintable, caulk behind it before installing. Then another bead at the intersection of the top of the board and the panel after securing it in place.

Looks like your repair will get you by for a few more years. Good to you for taking it on!

Riiight, primer. Good thinking! Did I mention that I don't normally work on anything besides cars. Thanks for the advice, I used a circular saw for the first time yesterday.. Not too difficult to start out. As the saying goes, you dont know what you dont know. Now I understand what edge clamps are for, lol.

 

[spudley]

Are you still thinking about Bondo? It could even out the surface and make that repair last even longer. I've repaired some rotten (difficult to replace) wood with it and seems to work well.
And James W is one very special fellow for that offer. Hope he likes northern Wisconsin and has time to help me build a garage this summer

 

[Burley]

Are you still thinking about Bondo? It could even out the surface and make that repair last even longer. I've repaired some rotten (difficult to replace) wood with it and seems to work well.
And James W is one very special fellow for that offer. Hope he likes northern Wisconsin and has time to help me build a garage this summer

I was going to try and stay away from Bondo, maybe wood filler instead? The fiberboard is relatively flat and smooth since I sanded it down. After I lay some caulk down it should be smooth against the trim, but if not I'll consider filler.

I'm so thrilled I decided against new doors. My house is 100 years old and there's nothing *new* about it. Now I can buy a nice circular saw (and maybe a few other toys) completely guilt free because I'm already ahead $3k!

 

[spudley]

Here's a confession...I was thinking about your doors during church today and wood filler came to mind. Not sure if water putty holds up to weather but I've also used that effectively indoors.
The one area you should be inspecting carefully is the bottom roller brackets on the corners. That area need to be structurally solid, as the cable lifting the door is attached to those brkts. Most likely the wood inside the door is fine as it appears the fiberboard outside layer is where the delamination is occurring.
I have similar doors I repainted after I caulked the slight delaminated area I had. Looks fine 3 years later.
You have a beautiful old home and I really like that porch with the crafted spindles. You'll need a band saw to replace those!

 

[Burley]

Day 2 and the new trim lined up fairly well. Learned how to make beveled cuts this weekend with my father in laws 40 years old Black and Decker circ saw. Just waiting for primer to dry and I'm painting! I removed all trim pieces I nailed in yesterday and applied the oil based primed as suggested.. that stuff dries pretty quick!

Thanks for all the help, this is my new favorite site!

 

[readhead]

Good job. Now buy some new operators and the wife will be happy. Step three will be to buy some new tools.

 

[Burley]

Good job. Now buy some new operators and the wife will be happy. Step three will be to buy some new tools.

Yes, tools! Door #2 will be much easier with a miter saw than a circular saw. I honestly had no idea what either were for prior to this project.

Got my eye on this Hitachi.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NKB3LW/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[James-W]

Here's a confession...I was thinking about your doors during church today and wood filler came to mind. Not sure if water putty holds up to weather but I've also used that effectively indoors.
The one area you should be inspecting carefully is the bottom roller brackets on the corners. That area need to be structurally solid, as the cable lifting the door is attached to those brkts. Most likely the wood inside the door is fine as it appears the fiberboard outside layer is where the delamination is occurring.
I have similar doors I repainted after I caulked the slight delaminated area I had. Looks fine 3 years later.
You have a beautiful old home and I really like that porch with the crafted spindles. You'll need a band saw to replace those!

Actually, the new neighbor across the street is putting up a new garage this Spring or early Summer. They tore down the old single car garage because it was in VERY bad condition (rotted in several places) and wasn't worth trying to repair, and also because it was too small for the car and other stuff. A woman lives there with her son her dad is going to pay for the garage. He stopped over and we talked for about an hour and he wants me to be in charge of building the garage. He says he can get some people to help with the "grunt work" but he needs someone to read the plans and has the necessary tools to do the job. I really don't think this will take all that long to do, it is only a 2 car garage. He didn't say the exact size, but he said big enough for 2 cars so I assume that is what he meant.

 

[James-W]

Day 2 and the new trim lined up fairly well. Leaned how to make beveled cuts this weekend with my father in laws 40 years old Black and Decker saw. Just waiting for primer to dry and I'm painting! I removed all trim pieces I nailed in yesterday and applied the oil based primed as suggested.. that stuff dries pretty quick!

Thanks for all the help, this is my new favorite site!

Looks really good, congratulations on a job well done! I think the decision to repair the old doors was the best decision under the circumstances.

 

[Colin Len]

Looks great!

 

[Fatboy148]

I used a circular saw for the first time yesterday.. Not too difficult to start out.

Keep your respect for it. My dad was the only one of the boys in his family to pass with all of his fingers whole. Working with your hands/body can leave some marks at times. It's usually over before you knew it started too!

Best of luck with the second door...

 

[Hatman52]

I'm the first guy to say I liked the old doors better, so I'm taking full credit for this!

Seriously, good job!

 

[Burley]

Good job. Now buy some new operators and the wife will be happy. Step three will be to buy some new tools.

I just found a wifi device for smartphone integration and a wireless keypad that requires no wiring. Both can be had for about $50 each.. The same cost if I had added them to brand new openers. I think I'll keep my old openers, and the wife will still be happy. If it aint broke... My 1/2hp Craftsman openers from the early 90's still have plenty of life!

 

[readhead]

You better go buy a lotto ticket on your way to the tool store.