How To Make An Exterior Door Frame Larger

Wedge shims behind both side jambs at the top bottom and middle.

How to make an exterior door frame larger.

Stand the new prehung door in the opening and nail the exterior trim at one top corner. Measure and mark the exterior siding to widen the opening the difference between the old and new doors. Pull the studs from the existing doorway. You will need to add 1 2 of plywood between the 2x4 s to get the right wall thickness of 3 1 2.

With the same 38 inch wide opening and a door or set of doors 48. To fit a specific door use the rough framing measurements the width of the door plus 2 1 2 inches to allow for shims and jambs. Pull the framing from the existing doorway. Cut the door header.

To make the door header the top of the door frame cut two 2x4s to the same length as the width of the original opening and nail them securely together. To make a door frame wider the do it yourself should also ensure that the planned construction does not cut into any existing electrical or heating and air conditioning equipment. Remove bricks or house siding on the entryway exterior to make room for the bigger door system. Cut through the nails that secure the doorjamb to the rest of the framing with a reciprocating saw.

Ask this old house general contractor tom silva trims a front door that s getting caught on a homeowner s entry rug. Step 1 remove the existing door from the frame by unscrewing the screws on the hinges and lifting the door away. Cut through the nails at the foot of the studs. Chisel bricks carefully and use a pry bar or reciprocating saw to take off siding making sure you re not cutting through any plumbing or electrical wiring.

This is the actual thickness of a 2x4. Subscribe to this old house. Cut 1 2 inch plywood spacers. Working on the floor stack the pieces with the crowns facing the same direction see next step and use a square to make sure they are aligned.

Step 6 build wall reinforcement to create a header beam for the new door if needed. If you re narrowing the frame by more than an inch remove the hinge side.