If your handy at all, anyone can install new French doors into an existing opening with no problems and save money at the same time. Installing new French doors into an existing opening that already has doors installed is one of the easiest do-it-yourself jobs to do. The tools you will need are an electric drill with a Philips screwdriver bit, a table to lay the door on to make your work easier, a drill bit to make the holes for the door handle, a pencil, a measuring tape, a square, cedar shims, a chisel, and a rubber mallet. The money you save from doing the work yourself will more than pay for these tools if you need to purchase some of them.
Step by Step Process for Installing French Doors
What follows is a step-by-step explanation of what you need to do. I found it easier to only remove one door at a time as well. If you have someone to help you from time to time to hold the door while you are removing the old door and installing the new one it also makes the job much easier as well.
- Place shims under one door so that it is held in place
- Remove door handle
- Place the new door on a table or some support structure
- Unscrew hinges on the door side
- Remove the door and place it on top of the new door
- Make sure that you match the bottom of both doors
- Line up the new door with the old door. Perfectly align it with the new door.
- Using the square to mark the hinge cut-outs that you need to make
- Trace the hole you need to cut for the door handle
- Remove the old door and begin drilling out the door handle with an appropriate sized drill bit
- Stand the door on its side and chisel out the hinge locations using the rubber mallet and chisel
- Install the new door using the shims to support it at the correct height
- Attach the hinges and test to make sure that the door operates properly and closes properly
- Adjust as needed to ensure that it properly fits with the other door
- Install the new door hardware to ensure that it fits with the other door
Repeat the process to install the other door. Remove the door handles and paint as needed, once you are satisfied with the installation, . Most doors come with one coat of door primer applied.
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