Steerpike

Still pondering this one. My doors have what might be described as 'fake' panels. The door is designed to look like a classic 'multi-panel' door, but the whole thing is hollow and the panels / wood grain are 'stamped'. See photo attached. So will planing (or otherwise) do any harm to the 'fascia' of these doors - is planing likely to 'tear' at the fascia at the top? I've never dealt with doors like this before. They are probably like this: Masonite 28 in. x 80 in. Smooth 4-Panel Hollow Core Primed Composite Single Prehung Interior Door-18276 - The Home Depot

Pulaski

My home has doors like that - we hate them and have replaced several with solid pine doors, and I will replace more as time allows.

To your question, they can certainly take a little trimming, but you're right, the hardboard/Masonite facing can tear. I usually take a sharp utility knife and cut through the facing, or at least heavily score the surface along the line to be cut before cutting with a saw or plane. You will still almost certainly need to tidy up the edges afterwards by sanding.

With a hollow door, a little trimming isn't a problem, but the top and bottom timbers can be quite thin, so there is a limit as to how much can be removed before. I once had the problem ASG had, above, and had to cut so much off the bottom that I cut away most of the rail. I then had to strengthen the door by removing what was left of the rail and inserting a new piece of timber into the bottom of the door cavity.

Sheepdip

Well this is a start . Going to concentrate on the front as we're planning on having a pool put in shortly in the back.

Steerpike

Wow - worked like a charm! I have two planes; one really small, the other a more conventional size. I started gently with the small one, but could not deal with the end-grain of the vertical timber, so I switched to the bigger one, and hey-presto - I was able to shave off the required amount quite easily. The end-grain was still a pain - not easy to plane across the end grain, but I developed a rhythm and pretty soon got the job done with zero damage to the fascia, and also hardly any mess (as in, not lots of dust - just some nice curly wood pieces).

In my earlier days, I was an avid woodworker and still have a wide array of tools in the garage; I even have a whetstone and a sharpening guide, just for my chisels and planes. It was with some sadness that I gave away my 10" delta table saw ... and my router ...

Now I need to figure out how to get the strike plate to re-latch. It's quite a ways off ... I tried moving the plate higher but it's not far enough that I can use 'new' holes, but far enough that the existing holes are too low. I need to relocate the existing holes, somehow ... maybe convert the hole to a channel with a drill, then fill the hole with glue and screw in the screw? What's a good trick for minor adjustment (relocation) of existing holes?

I did see this ingenious product ... https://www.amazon.com/GATOR-Door-La...1%2C5595938011 but I need it 'now' ...

chawkins99

You know you should never put a plane down like that? It should be layed on its side to protect the blade.

I have fixed minor latch problems with a file to extend the hole. More serious issues really require the hole filled and re-cut.

Sheepdip

Went to get one last week and was told (admittedly at Home Depot) that they don't stock them any more. It was a new fangled diamond sharpening block (works a treat mind you).

I always glue matchsticks into the old hole and when dry drill the pilot for the new screw hole.

Pulaski

I am glad to hear it went so well. Like many DIY tasks, it really isn't rocket science, and much of the issue, assuming you don't have ten thumbs, is having the confidence to get started and the patience to work through the steps. I have lost count of how many times over the years people have asked me "how I learned to ....". IME people just don't realize how easy most home repairs are, with some experience and enough patience.
That's a great question! I used to use wood filler, but that requires 24-48hrs to set solid before new holes can be drilled, but then I recently discovered this stuff which is an epoxy putty - you just cut a slice off then roll and work it with your fingers (I recommend repeatedly squashing flat and folding many times). Then roll a thin sausage and push it into the hole you want to fill, push as much in as you can, but be sure to smooth it off before it sets hard, which takes about 5-6 minutes IIRC, and for a job like this you only need a wafer thin slice. Once it has set hard it will be harder than the wood, then just drill new holes where you want them.

I am not a huge fan of "ingenious products" they are often expensive for what they are, and are designed only for the homeowner who doesn't know of any other way to fix the problem they're facing.

Sheepdip

I have just found this on a number of doors in the house we've just bought. Bottom rail is completely missing with the cavity open. Will need to remove the door and fit a new piece of timber as you did

Pulaski

That's just a good opportunity to upgrade to solid pine doors!

If you want to insert new bottom rails in the doors you'll need a hand plane and a lot of patience or an electric plane, to get timber exactly the right thickness. If you know someone with a bench plane you could get lengths of timber planed down to the required thickness. I would suggest starting with 2×2's as they are dirt cheap.

Steerpike

Being 'harder than wood', will it present any difficulty in drilling really close to the original location? My new hole needs to be "half in, half out" of the existing hole. If it's harder than wood, hand drilling a pilot hole may prove difficult?

I'm tempted to insert a drill bit in the existing hole, then 'walk' the hole a bit higher. But I'll give this epoxy putty a shot ...

I do, actually ... but I so wanted to compose that shot . I carefully placed the planes on the surface, I promise!

Pulaski

No, it's not that hard, not like, say, trying to drill next to a nail or screw.

That epoxy putty is now my go-to fix for "loose holes" that no longer hold a screw and door hinges and lock mechanisms that need to be moved less than two hole diameters away from an existing hole.

I have had no issue with a drill either skating away from the set putty, nor with the new screw in the new hole pulling out or not holding it's weight, and I suspect that the new screw in the epoxy plug compares favorably in strength with the original screw in the original hole when it was new.

Tip: when the putty starts to harden, and hopefully you have already packed the hole with it, while you wait for the putty to set solid, take the opportunity to rub, scrape and scrub the putty off your fingers, because once it is totally hardened it is a pig to get off!

Steerpike

I went to the store and bought the epoxy putty, but I also bought a simple narrow metal file, and ended up just making the strike plate hole bigger by filing away at one edge of the hole. I chose this option because, had I moved the strike plate up to the desired position, one of the screw holes would have been perilously close to the 'drilled out' cavity.

Now all doors in my house close and latch fully

I love trying new tools / materials though, so now I need to find an excuse for the epoxy putty!

Pulaski

Congratulations!

petitefrancaise

Had to share...
teenage son took a bath a few weeks ago and a big damp patch appeared on the ceiling of the room underneath it. Kids usually take a shower so this was unusual.

Sheetrock removed but unable to find the source of the leak which also seems to have miraculously stopped. However, examination of the removed sheetrock shows evidence of a small leak for quite some time. 2 weeks have gone by with the plumber/handyman unable to find the leak. Ideas for the leak included condensation on the pipes but the handyman suggested we keep the hole open for a few more days to see if it leaks again.

Yesterday morning, it leaked again, just a few drops this time but since I still have the hole in the ceiling I saw it on the floor after son had taken his shower. I couldn't see where it was coming from.
Then I went upstairs later to clean the bathtubs and I noticed that the overflow cover was turned up with the tiny drain hole on the top and not on the bottom. I turned it round.
This morning,no leak after showers. I went upstairs turned the overflow cover around and sprayed water on it. Went downstair to find a huge puddle on the floor. Yep. No pipe connected to the overflow.

Pulaski

Are you sure there's no overflow pipe attached - surely a plumber should have noticed that?

It seems more likely that the overflow is leaking. There should be an L-shaped pipe connecting the overflow to the drain, and there is a foam washer that makes a seal between the top end if the L and the back of the overflow hole. If that is the case you may be able to fix the problem by tightening the overflow cap/cover.

We have had leaks from both the upstairs shower - now FIXED, and the upstairs bath, for which the source has never been conclusively proved, but hasn't leaked in more than a year, since I inserted a foam seal behind the water spout in the tub (so a leak from the same part of the tub as your leak), after trying multiple other fixes.