The Basement Renovation: Special Challenges
Installing Doors
The new basement layout features three new doorways-- one for the office, one for the furnace room and one to provide easy access to the hot water tank. Since budget was a concern, I chose to install hollow core slab doors, which are the most economical, and to make my life easier, I opted for the complete kits, which include the door frames, with everything pre-machined, ready to hang. Yes, this was the simplest option, but hanging the doors proved to be a very frustrating experience.
My Unique Situation
The basement floor has a very dramatic slope towards the floor drain. Leveling the slab, by applying a skim coat of concrete, was not an option, because of head room issues. And removing the slab, and digging down a couple more inches and pouring a new one was simply cost-prohibitive (no, I did not get any estimates-- hiring out any portion of the basement renovation would have cost prohibitive). So I was stuck with a sloping floor, and I had to take it into consideration for many aspects of the basement project. The new doors not only had to be trimmed because of the lower ceilings, but the bottoms of two of the doors had to be trimmed on an angle so that, when closed, the bottoms would be parallel with the floor.
Cutting doors to size.
It is very easy to confuse measurements when trimming doors, and that confusion is compounded when a sloping floor is involved. What we did wrong was try to work with the big numbers-- the height of the door and the height of the door frame-- rather than the small numbers-- the amount to cut from each piece. By the time we figured out this not-so-magic formula, we had hung the last door.
The not-so-magic forumla (which should have been obvious):
Measure the rough opening In the case
of having to accomodate a slope, you will have two measurements: one for each
side. Remember which is "left" and which is "right" and
account for the direction of the door swing.
Subtract your measurement from the manufacturer's required rough opening.
This is the amount to trim from the frame and the bottom oof the door. Where
a slope is involved, mark the "left" and "right" measurements
on the door (DON'T mix 'em up like I did) and connect the dots, so to speak.
Now it's just a matter of cutting along the line (use a straight edge)
The manufacturer recommends trimming no more than 1/8 inch from the top or bottom of the door. I had to trim considerably more. In each case, the cut was as wide or a little wider than the bottom rail, so I was able to reuse the rail. After cutting, I removed the scrap material from the rail, applied wood glue to all contact edges, and tapped it back into place with a rubber mallet. I then clamped it and allowed the glue to cure.
The Installation
The instructions make it sound so simple. Fit the frame in the rough opening and install shims to keep everything nice and square, plumb and level. Yep, sounds simple enough. If only it were so! The frame may look good to the naked eye, but the slightest bow or rack can prevent the door from swinging or closing properly. After a lot of trial and error, (there's that phrase again) along with equal parts of head scratching and hair pulling, with an occasional expletive yelled at no one in particular thrown in for good measure, we unceremoniously ripped up the instruction sheet and threw it in the recycle bin.
How We Did It: With the door frame pre-assembled as per the instructions, we placed it in the rough opening. We first leveled the top of the frame and fastened it in place. We then hung the door on the hinges. Starting at the top of the hinge side, we installed a pair of shims. Before installing screws, we checked the swing of the door. Then we moved down and installed the next pair of shims. Each time we installed shims and screws (about every foot or so) we checked the swing of the door and made sure it closed properly. We repeated the process for the latch side. Having the door in position made it easy to fine-tune the position of the frame with the shims.
- « previous
- 1Condition of the basement, stripping the walls and tackling the moisture problem
- 2Designing a floor plan that works. Comparing the existing floor plan with my renovation
- 3Some of the unique challenges in my basement included working around an existing window
- 4
- 5The stairs were located right next to the block exterior wall, but I was still able to add some insulation and drywall
- 6Finishing the wall beside the stairs and finding a new use for an old milk chute
- 7Finding a new use for the space under the stairs led to the discovery of a rotted supporting post
- 8Replacing the rotted supporting post and finishing under the stairs
- 9Dealing with plumbing, ducts and support beams
- 10Turning the root cellar under the porch into small work and storage room.
- 11Replacing the double laundry tub with a single opened up a little more space in the laundry room
- 12With our baby due in about a month, it was time to get the basement finished so we could make room upstairs for the nursury
- 13The completed project, doubling the living space in our house
- 14A look at how the basement evolved during the project
- next »
Share this page
Replacing a screen
door on the garage with a steel entry door required installing a completely
new frame. 
A 24 inch door
on a five foot wide closet just wasn't practical. Widening the doorway
and installing bifold doors allowed full use of the closet space.
A wood fence with
an uncommon design. How to build a fence using as few screws and nails
as possible.
A bathroom
makeover on a budget. Sure, elements may still be stuck in the fifties,
but they are easier to live with. Besides, you never know when peach and
blue tile will be back in style!
A complete
gut and remodel of a subterranean living space from start to finish.
How an ill-fitting
switch plate led me to gut a room to the studs.
The old deck
railing was too short so I replaced it. The new stairs and railing are
sturdy and look good. 
A
temporary fix for a water damaged bathroom wall. It ain't pretty, but
it prevented further damage until we could afford a complete remodel a
few years later.
The second floor
was already finished when we moved in, but improper insulation and electrical
issues led me to completely gut it and start over from scratch. Properly
finishing the attic in a one and a half storey house..
How we rebuilt
our house from the inside out after some bad DIY by the previous owner
compromised the structure. 
Complete professional kitchen remodel that addresses all the design problems of the old kitchen.