Best way to finish off bad door install

[Milleniumaire]

Yet again we have had a joiner install 4 internal solid wood doors and mess up one of them!

Despite me providing him with a print out of the installation instructions and highlighting the bit about taking a maximum of 6mm from the top and 6mm from the bottom, he fit the door and it caught on the carpet so it took more off the bottom, MUCH more than he should have. If only he had measured the gap correctly in the first place and taken some off the top instead of trying to take it all off the bottom!

The last joiner we hired to install 3 internal doors did exactly the same to one of them. I am struggling to understand how experienced joiners are making these rookie mistakes! These doors + fitting cost over £200 each and yet they have been butchered by a joiner!

I appreciate you don't notice when the door is in place, but when I have removed the doors and their furniture to oil them, I saw what he had done to the bottom and it is now showing a lot of particle board/chipboard:

20191203_124544

• Milleniumaire
• 4 Dec 2019

20191203_124619

• Milleniumaire
• 4 Dec 2019

I have used Osmo High solid door oil to treat the door, so I wondered about sanding the edge down and then using Osmo oak filler, which can then be oiled. I appreciate the appearance of the bottom doesn't matter that much, but currently it is a mess as you can see, plus I want it to be sealed to prevent moisture ingress.

I would appreciate any advice on sorting this mess and I will be looking for another joiner to fit the remaining 3 doors!

 

[Ryler]

An iron on edging strip?

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Yes, you do need to do something to seal the bottom if at all possible, however with a planked effect door like that I think you may have major problems trying to do a neat trimming job on an ironed-on strip. Those grooves will be the issue. Maybe just seal the bottom edges with 2 or 3 coats of a clear lacquer (NOT water based, though) to prevent any possiblity of moisture wicking? I'd still be concerned about future chipping of the surface veneer along the bottom edges.

 

[Milleniumaire]

Thanks for the suggestion to use a clear lacquer, I guess this should be thick enough to get into the rough finish and seal it.

It was the roughness that made me think a filler, such as Ronseal 2 part or Osmo filler, might be better to use, but I can see how a clear lacquer would work, possibly giving a harder wearing finish?

 

[foxhole]

Yet again we have had a joiner install 4 internal solid wood doors and mess up one of them!

Despite me providing him with a print out of the installation instructions and highlighting the bit about taking a maximum of 6mm from the top and 6mm from the bottom, he fit the door and it caught on the carpet so it took more off the bottom, MUCH more than he should have. If only he had measured the gap correctly in the first place and taken some off the top instead of trying to take it all off the bottom!

The last joiner we hired to install 3 internal doors did exactly the same to one of them. I am struggling to understand how experienced joiners are making these rookie mistakes! These doors + fitting cost over £200 each and yet they have been butchered by a joiner!

I appreciate you don't notice when the door is in place, but when I have removed the doors and their furniture to oil them, I saw what he had done to the bottom and it is now showing a lot of particle board/chipboard:

20191203_124544

• Milleniumaire
• 4 Dec 2019

20191203_124619

• Milleniumaire
• 4 Dec 2019

I have used Osmo High solid door oil to treat the door, so I wondered about sanding the edge down and then using Osmo oak filler, which can then be oiled. I appreciate the appearance of the bottom doesn't matter that much, but currently it is a mess as you can see, plus I want it to be sealed to prevent moisture ingress.

I would appreciate any advice on sorting this mess and I will be looking for another joiner to fit the remaining 3 doors!

So the carpet only needed 10mm off the door height ?

 

[Milleniumaire]

So the carpet only needed 10mm off the door height ?

Yes, I don't know why the joiner didn't think of trimming the carpet, rather than butchering the bottom of the door

I assume he had a tape measure, but I'm not so sure.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

... I can see how a clear lacquer would work, possibly giving a harder wearing finish?

Wear shouldn't be an issue because the underside of the door should be clear of the carpet. More of an issue is probably moisture, but several coats of lacquer will not only seal against that but also against dirt. I addition if the lacquer is soaked into the grain of the chipboard core it will harden it and make it less likely that accidental chipping of the surface veneer will occur

 

[Ryler]

I don't know why the joiner didn't think of trimming the carpet

How would you trim the carpet?
With a lawn mower?
Or do you mean chop out the area that the door swings above?

 

[plastic_peanut]

How would you trim the carpet?
With a lawn mower?
Or do you mean chop out the area that the door swings above?

Lmao, was t just me scratching my head then

 

[johnny2007]

Sorry to ask, but why did you pay £200 for a chipboard door?
You can get solid wood doors for that price and if you shop around even hardwood.
P.S.: the "joiner" is a bodger.

 

[Milleniumaire]

Sorry to ask, but why did you pay £200 for a chipboard door?
You can get solid wood doors for that price and if you shop around even hardwood.
P.S.: the "joiner" is a bodger.

£200'ish was the cost of the door + handles and hinges + Joiner + proportional cost of Osmo products.

They are XL Joinery Messina Oak doors and were pretty cheap compared to the prices at most places. We like the style. If you know where we can get solid wood versions in the same style please let me know as we still have another 7 to fit before we have replaced all internal doors.

Having now tried 3 different joiners over the years, I might have a go myself next time as it's hard to imagine I could do a worse job

How would you trim the carpet?
With a lawn mower?
Or do you mean chop out the area that the door swings above?

Yes, why not use a lawn mower to reduce the pile of the carpet, or maybe when he measured up he thought we might be fitting one of those tight weaved doormats in the bedroom so he didn't need to worry about the door catching the carpet. Whatever was going through his head, it's hard to understand how he completely missed the fact that the door wouldn't fit and he didn't take ANYTHING off the top. Wouldn't that be the first place you would trim the door when a lot needed to be taken off?

 

[johnny2007]

Surely i would make sure i measure the frame in all directions before fitting the hinges to the door.

 

[plastic_peanut]

You could try Howdens for the doors, can’t quite tell what you have there

 

[johnny2007]

My local Howdens would charge people driving past their shop if they could.
They wanted £114+vat for a white slab 500mm kitchen cabinet door.
I run out of the shop holding my wallet.

 

[Milleniumaire]

You could try Howdens for the doors, can’t quite tell what you have there

We tried Howdens, and many others when we were originally looking for replacement internal doors a couple of years ago. Just had another look, but can't see anything matching the XL Joinery Messina Oak.

Here's a link showing the exact door we are using: XL Joinery Messina Oak