Door install

[wingcarenvy]

Hey folks,

I have a ton of questions but this is the one that has me stumped. I need to install a man door in my garage and I already have it framed. I need to cut out the stucco and the concrete footer to create the opening. Here is a pic of it. At the bottom of the pic is the footer. I realize a concrete saw is probably the best bet but I wont be able to cut along the bottom close to the floor. Also the sides might be tough to cut since the door jamb is in the way. Please feel free to share your thoughts on this. Thanks.

The jamb/frame is not in place yet but you can see the footer better in this pic.

 

[ambenz]

My door is actually installed above the concrete footer.
I have to step over the raised sill to get into my garage thru the mandoor.
I was thinking I could add ramps on both sides but usually I use the big door to wheel in and out equipment so it isn't an issue for me.

 

[waterman1971]

You could form up a small step and avoid cutting the ledge.

 

[creativecars]

There is no easy way. You can rent a small jack hammer, work from the center out and go slowly towards you door frame. You may have to finish with a hammer and masonry chisel. You may have to get a bag of concrete mix to patch some corners. Remember to use treated wood where it touches the concrete.

 

[Kevin54]

What you need to do is treat the concrete just like you would wood. If you had to cut a notch into a board, you would cut a series of cuts to the correct depth then chisel it out. Same thing with the concrete. Cut a series of notches down to the depth you need, then take a concrete chisel and hammer and go at it. Just remember to caulk real well under the threshold. 1 tube of caulk per mandoor. Just remember to mark out the rough opening before you make your first cut, then cut each side, then all cuts in between afterwards. If you do go too deep in places, you can always level it back out with hydraulic cement.

 

[5lima30]

Is this something that has to be inspected? If so that would be a consideration. Like what the others said a series of saw cuts combined with a hammer drill w/ masonry bit and some chisel work.

 

[nehog]

They make concrete saws that are like chain saws, a bar and a big gas motor. They are horribly expensive so you won't buy one, but there are companies who will come in and cut that piece right out as if it were wood! Because they have a bar, they can cut right next to the wood without any problems. They can also cut the bottom, horizontal, cut as well.

 

[wingcarenvy]

Well here is what happened. I went out and rented a concrete saw and a jack hammer.
I took the saw and cut the opening.

And here is the pile of stucco.

I tried to cut the footing as close to the framing as possible but still was a few inches shy.

Then I took great care and chalked out a straight line. Then I cut this friggin crooked one!

Out came the sledge hammer and it gave up pretty easily.

 

[Kevin54]

Hows come in the 4th pic it looks like you have a ledge but in the 5th pic it looks like it is flush with the outer sidewalk? When I said earlier about kerfing it out, I thought everything was going down flush with the floor and sidewalk. You wouldn't be able to do that by running the saw on it's side. Are you going to have to step up and over to get through the door? Or am I missing something in the pics?

 

[GarageEnvy]

Don't beat yourself up too much on that cut. Anyone who has ever used that type of saw knows how hard it would be to laterally make a straight cut. I'd say you did a pretty good job. Had I found the thread sooner I might have suggested a large diamond wheel on a grinder and then grinding down the last little bit.

 

[wingcarenvy]

Hows come in the 4th pic it looks like you have a ledge but in the 5th pic it looks like it is flush with the outer sidewalk? When I said earlier about kerfing it out, I thought everything was going down flush with the floor and sidewalk. You wouldn't be able to do that by running the saw on it's side. Are you going to have to step up and over to get through the door? Or am I missing something in the pics?

Its flush with the garage floor and it has a 2 inch ledge on the outside. I figured I would leave it this way so that water from the outside wouldn't find its way to the inside.

 

[wingcarenvy]

Time to finish this one. It turned out way better that I imagined. I have hung the door and I used two concrete anchors underneath the door with two 1/2 inch bolts and lock nuts to creat a perfectly level surface for the threshold to sit on. Then I mixed up some concrete and shoved it under the threshold and finished the part you can see with a trowel. Here are some pics of it.

Here is the finished picture of the threshold.

 

[54FordPanel]

Looks good to me.

 

[chillrich]

Good job, I have to do the same and was pondering what to do. What did you do for the top (header).

 

[wingcarenvy]

Good job, I have to do the same and was pondering what to do. What did you do for the top (header).

I bought a prehung door at the Home Depot, and when I had framed in the wall for structural reasons I put two 2x4s stacked on top of each other for the header. The header was as straight as I could get it adn the floor wasn't. That was one of the dilemas I had to deal with. The other was cutting out the footer. Overall it was pretty easy after all was said and done.