I am remodeling a cottage. It was originally a cape. At some point they added dormers to the front and back to create a second floor. The flat part of the ceiling is low.

There is a hallway across the center of the house. The bedrooms are on either side of the hallway.

The top of the doors are framed with 3 2x3's stacked to work as the door frame and header. Above the doors are 2x6's that act as the ceiling joists and collar ties ( perpendicular to the doors).

With the 3 2x3's I have to cut down 78" doors to fit. Can I cut out one of the 2x3's so that I can use a 78" door? I should have just enough room for trim without hitting the ceiling. I was told by a builder that I would be fine with two because there were only holding the ceiling and there the other side of the hall is also supporting the ceiling.

 

Without being there or at least some pictures of the framing hard to know if it will work.

 

Most likely your header can be modified to accommodate the door frame, but as Joe says, we aren't there and can't see what you see. If the lumber for the header is laying flat, it isn't much of a header anyway. That is not how headers are built.

 

I grabbed a picture last night.

 

The wall is built with 2x3's. All the door frames were cut short and narrowed.

I padded out the wall to 2x4.

I will need to pass a rough inspection.

 

Wow, like Larry said, that's not how a header is built, and I'm not certain there is enough room to put in a proper header. What is above that wall? what size are those joists and how long do they span?

 

The cieling above is made of 2x6's. They do not cross the entire ceiling because of the slopped roof. They are probably 18 feet wide but span across the center hallway.

I have a picture but it will not upload.