that’s the same size as the gap allows
me to trim
1⁄ 4 inch (or
1⁄ 2 inch) off the
bottom of the door and get a clean
surface for a good glue bond.
Take a door off its hinges, set it
up on sawhorses, and trim the
bottom with a track saw or a
circular saw and saw guide. For the
best results with a circular saw, use
a sharp, new blade and apply
painter’s tape over the cutline to
prevent splintering.
Center the filler on the bottom of
the door, clamp it in place, and use
a countersink bit to drill three evenly
spaced pilot holes through the filler’s
bottom edge and partway into the
door. Make the countersinks deep
enough for the screwheads to be
slightly recessed. Next, using the
holes in the door bottom as guides,
drill three pilot holes as deep as
the thickness of the filler. Apply a
bead of wood glue to the filler, stick
it to the door, and hold it in place
with three flathead wood screws. If
any glue squeezes out, wipe it up
with a damp rag.
While the glue dries, plane the
filler until the plane’s blade begins
to scratch the paint on the door
faces. Switch to a random-orbit
sander with 60-grit paper to make
the filler flush and remove the door
paint, then sand with 80-grit and
120-grit papers. (If the doors are
old and test positive for lead paint,
take the appropriate precautions
when cutting and sanding.)
Trim the filler’s overhanging
ends flush with the door sides, and
fill any voids in the filler’s end grain
with a paste made of wood glue
and sawdust.
The door will be ready to paint
after this one last step: Line up a
rafter square with the inside edge
of a door stile. Run a utility knife
alongside the square to make a
straight, shallow cut in the filler.
Do the same thing front and back
on both door stiles. These cosmetic
cuts create the illusion that the
stiles run from top to bottom, the
way the door was originally built.
Hot water in attic
The tank-type electric water
heater in my attic turns off during
summer months, forcing me to
climb into that very hot space and
press the heater’s reset button.
The heater resumes working, then
shuts down again in a week or so.
I’ve had new thermostats and
DOOR FIXES
Watch Tom
Silva close up
big gaps at
thisoldhouse
.com/
salvaged-door
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