Was my door installed wrong? Help please.

Hello. On my addition, the main door (wood) was framed and installed without regard to the outside security door and the drywall that would be installed later. With the door knobs installed, the doors won't close at the same time because the knobs hit one another (they are on the same side of the door). And, the drywall protudes out from the door frame. What I'm wondering if the wood door frame can be moved back, flush with the drywall? This would allow both doors to close without hitting each other. And, should the drywall have been taken into account when the door was installed? Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

Debbie

 

When the door jamb was installed, it should have been set to compensate for the thickness of the sheetrock. There is NO excuse for that not being done. Call the contractor back and MAKE him fix it (or go get his license!)

The security door was installed long after the door was in place and pretty much everything else was done. I see no reason for the installer of the security door to make such a bonehead mistake. The door is in place -- the lockset and deadbolt are there. A clearance problem is the first thing he should have checked for.

 

Whoaaaa there, ole buddy....there COULD be some legitimate reason WHY the door doesn't set back flush......

Say the door has a standard 4 9/16' jamb, and was set in a wall on new construction where they used 1" foam for sheathing instead of 1/2" standard sheathing.....that will cause this and ain't exactly the door installer's fault......

Or maybe in an older house where there was a non-standard 2x4 ( like a REAL 2x4 )....that will do it....

Or it is a remodel job and they are putting a new layer of drywall on an existing wall adding to the wall thickness....that will do it

Or you have a wall that is out of plumb, and the door need to be plumb, so the door had to be shimmed out some at the top or bottom to correct a screw up in the original wall framing.....that will do it....

Assuming one of these is in play, and so far all we have for info is the observation of homeowner that hasn't told us much, then the cure is to add a strip to the jambs to extend them out to the wall plane, then install the casing. A step normally done AFTER the drywall AND is installed by the finish carpenter.

Si ?


As to the knob conflict, Bluerus....was the main door predrilled for a knob ? If not, measure from the bottom of the door to the knob center.....is it fairly close to 36" ? .....that is standard. Even IF it is off of that some, did the guy that installed the main door even know there was a security door to be installed later ? Did the same guy install the security door ? Did the security door come with a knob ( or hole ) already in place or was it done on the job ? And IF done on the job and NOT by the main door installer, the security door installer is the one at fault for not checking the positioning of the main door knob. ( which is what Lefty said )

 

This is entirely new construction. I did something that I would never advise anyone else to do~I'm playing the role of contractor. And, I'm a female. I didn't realize how big a job adding 1122 sq ft would entail. In my defense, I had to add rooms, bathroom and kitchen (OK, I didn't need the new kitchen, but I am a girl!) due to my son's disability. Due to $ constraints, I hired a "friend", who has built other homes. He quit/I fired him, after he tried to convince me that mildew wood was acceptable. "Hey, it passes inspection everyday." Mildew is NEVER acceptable, especially for a handicapped 6 yr old. So, I hired man number 2, paid him too much early on (the girl thing comes into play again~I didn't know better), and he is working slow as slow can get. Man no. 1 put in the wood house door, and I hired a company to install the security door. The company sent out non-english speaking workers and has not answered my calls. Yes, man #1 knew that there would be a security door and he darn well knew that there would be drywall. He is the one who didn't take that into consideration, and I'm sure he would of corrected his mistake if he were still in the picture. Man number 2 will fix it, but I want to make sure I'm correct in my thought to have him move the frame/door flush with the drywall.
Thank you both for your knowledge. P.S. Neither has a license to go after, not that I would do that to someone anyway.

Bluerus (Debbie)

 

Debbie,

Was the entry door in question a pre-hung door ?

What type of sheathing is used outside, and siding too....?


andy

 

Yes, it is a pre-hung door. I ordered it that way based on recommendation from the lumber yard I ordered it thru. I have the exact same door on the front of my house. I bought it about 10 years ago, and it was never a problem.

What type of sheathing is used outside, and siding too....? I'm not sure what sheating is? But, here is what makes up my addition in non-technical words.

2x4s 16" on center
then, plywood on the outside of the house, with black paper and "chicken wire", then 2 coats (so far) of stucco cement. Color coat has not yet bee applied.

On the inside, drywall that was then primered and painted.

Can't I just have him saw off the nails holding in the frame and move the whole thing back 1/2 inch? Then my doors wouldn't hit, and the door would be flush with the drywall.

Thanks in advance.

Debbie

 

Well. it sounds like a real standard wall....the "sheathing" is the plywood used on the outside to cover the 2x4 studs before exterior siding is applied......or stucco in your case.....


Did the prehung door have a brickmoulding on it ? That is a pre applied moulding that would be on the outside edge of the door frame.....it overhangs the door frame ( called the "jambs") about 3/4" or so and sits snug on the sheathing.....if this is done, it's about impossible to NOT end up flush with the drywall inside, since the jamb depth is 4 1/2", the same as the wall thickness....

ByTheWay, it's called brickmoulding no matter what type exterior finish you used....if brick, you butt the brick too it, using it as a stop point and keeping the brick in a nice verticle line....but if you use siding, same pupose...this moulding is 2" wide, has a slight "step" made into the face of it for decoration, so the outside edge sticks out slightly farther than the inside edge....

Did the door maybe get installed AFTER the chickenwire and stucco coats ? that would explain things......or if the door had the brickmoulding removed, then it could be mounted anywhere in the opening depthwise, and I could see where #1 just mounted it flush inside with the 2x4 instead of allowing another 1/2" for the drywall........but you would STILL have to have some kind of moulding outside to butt the stucco up too, I think.....we don't use stucco here and I rarely see it......


If the door had brickmoulding, it can't pass thru the opening any farther, since that acts as a positive stop....and every prehung exterior door I've ever seen has this.

That security door ( or a storm door if you were using that ) also mounts on top of this brickmoulding....and a prehung door should have had the hole for the lockset already predrilled, so there was no changing or way to screw that up....

There has got to be more to this story.......a picture here would certainly be worth a lot !!