Doors – How to reduce a rough opening height 1-1/4″

doorsframingrough-in

I'm building a new master bedroom closet. The wife wants a specific 30×80" door which requires a rough-in of 32×82. Unfortunately, the measurement from the top plate to the subfloor is 83 1/4". I'm not sure how to handle this. The jack studs for the rough-in would be 82" which would mean no top plate would fit (A 2×4 is 1.5" thick and I only have 1.25" available).

Do I just not put a top plate, make the jack stud 83 1/4" and just deal with the extra 1 1/4 at the top of the pre-hung casing? Do I try to trim the 1.5" of the top plate down to 1.25" somehow?

Greg

Best Answer

Cut a 2x4 to length and rip 1-1/4" off each side. Put those up against the top plate, one inside and one outside. The half inch hollow in between is inconsequential.

End view
 _____
|_____| <-- top wall plate
|_| |_| <-- 1-1/4" high rippers
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