Build Interior Door Frame

This domestically produced pocket door frame includes the track installation hardware and instructions.

Build interior door frame. Then you can cut the bottom plate out after the wall is installed. The unfinished natural wood frame can be installed to either side of the door opening. Interior doors are usually 1 3 8 thick. To make the door header the top of the door frame cut two 2x4s to the same length as the width of the original opening and nail them securely together.

This yields a stronger more stable door frame which has less tendency to warp or distort over time. Make a header by fitting two 2 x 8s around a 1 2 inch piece of plywood. This keeps the entire wall in one plane as you install it. Then measure the height and width of the doorway you ll be installing the door in and mark the dimensions on the plywood.

To make a door start by getting a 4 foot by 8 foot sheet of plywood that s 1 2 inch thick. When complete you should have a door frame without a bottom piece. Place the head jamb over the top ends of the side jambs. Build the wall with a bottom plate running across the doorway.

Most interior doors today are made from a material called masonite which is a kind of wood fiberboard that is steam cooked and pressure molded onto a thin wood frame to create a slab door that has an appearance of a door with rails stiles and panels. To make it easier to remove the bottom plate under the door cut most of the way through it in the correct places with a circular saw. I usually do these lamination clamp ups in a vacuum press. Next use a circular saw to cut out the plywood and sand the wood so the faces and edges are smooth and level.

Cut the header to fit between the king studs. You will need to add 1 2 of plywood between the 2x4 s to get the right wall thickness of 3 1 2. Use two or three 1 1 2 inch screws to fasten the head jamb to each side jamb depending on how wide the jamb material is. The builder s choice wood pocket door frame is the builder s choice wood pocket door frame is constructed from solid hemlock and is conveniently pre assembled for easy installation.

But they can be done with regular clamps too provided you have enough. Cut the door header. The benefit of these doors is that they are cheap stable and easy to paint. Install the door inside the jamb frame by assembling the hinges.