Charts
How to determine the correct size door to order
The first step in ordering is determining what size opening you have to work with.This door size chart will help determine the width and height of door units to order.Interior and exterior have similar but also different considerations so make sure to read this chart correctly.
The door slab widths and prehung unit widths are included for both interior and exterior doors.The heights for both interior and exterior doors are listed for the slabs only and the prehung heights.Make sure you are looking at the measurement that applies to the correct unit you are looking to replace.
All exterior doors are 1 3/4 standard slab thicknessand all interior door slabs are the standard 1 3/8″ thickness.The standard door frame width (thickness)is 4 9/16 for interior and exterior doors although the frames are different in composition.All our exterior doors are NO-ROT composite to withstand the exterior elements and are stronger. Exterior composite brickmold must be specified because there are variations. For interior doors they are hung on 4 9/16 primed flat jambs and can come with or without colonial primed trim.
Which way does your door open? How to say it correctly!
How to determine the handing or swing of the door
The handing of the door refers to the way the door swings when it is opened. This is important because you can’t just “turn it around” if it is ordered wrong in most cases. There is no standard swing on any door, it just is determined by what is the most functionally practical swing for a particular opening.
This is especially true with exterior doors. The outswing doors are more secure in high winds because the door jamb prevents the doors from being blown or forced inward compromising the home in severe weather. They are also more secure from forced entry.
Don’t worry about the hinges either because they are special hinges for outswing doors that prevent hinge tampering. Other than the front entry door most exterior doors are handed as outswing.
You need to be aware that inswing doors are taller than outswing door due to the door swinging OVER the threshold rather than swinging lower and INTO the threshold. This can be accommodated by “cutting and rerailing” a new prehung door if you want to change from outswing to inswing. If you want to change from inswing to outswing, the height will not be an issue. Trimming and fillling will accommodate the change here.
The thresholds are also different so that water runs away from the door instead of towards and into the home. In the interior door consideration, etched doors have to be built for the design to be properly applied. This is especially important on doors with signage as the lettering would appear backwards.
How to determine the bore on interior and exterior doors
Interior doors normally have only 1 hole for a knob or lever.The ability to lock the door is determined by the door hardware function such as a privacy or passage knob or lever.The exterior doors usually are locked with a deadbolt and are paired with a passage knob or lever. So exterior doors are usually ordered with a double bore and interior doors are usually ordered with a single bore.
The industry standard is 2 3/8″ hole for the standard door hardware on the market today.The backset is also standard at 2 5/8″.There are no holes, hinge prep, or any prep at all on door slabs ordered without prehanging.These preparations must be done on site and will take carpentry skill and experience.
Pocket doors do not come prepped and will have to be prepped on site if you are retrofitting into an existing opening or using existing hardware.There is no industry standard for the exact positioning of hinges and bore of doors.This is why retrofitting takes experience and carpentry tools. It is also easier to have the old door for taking the exact measurements.
What are the hinge color choices for the prehung doors
The hinges for exterior inswing and outswing doors are different for security purposes. The exterior doors either have non removeable pins or a security tab on outswing doors.Inswing doors need neither of these features.
The hinges for the new prehung doors should coordinate with the color finish of the door hardware knobs and levers.Most people keep a metal tone that is fairly consistent throughout the home.The hinge manufacturers have finishes that coordinate with the hardware manufacturers but they are not manufactured in the same exact way.The finishes coordinate but are not exact.That is the only choices available and chances are that if you were never told you would never notice the slight differences.
The size and shape and hole patterns vary also but here we are just choosing the finish.The hinges come only with prehung doors ordered not when just a slab is ordered. If you are retrofitting, you will probably use the existing hinges.If you are wanting new hinges, then you will need to take 1 hinge with you to make sure you order the exact size, hinge pattern and corner radius.