I have a couple of solid wood door slabs and wanted to install them into a casing that is weatherstrip friendly. Split door jamb casings don't seem to be compatible with this design, so I figured I'd make my own casings. Based on the measurements of my existing exterior doors, it looks like it has a 1×5 for frame and 1×3 for the jamb. Has anyone done this themselves and is it as straightforward to construct as I'm imagining (plus the latch hole and mortising the hinge of course)?
Wood – DIY exterior door casing
door-framedoorswoodworking
Related Solutions
Your plan to fix the gap in the center of the door sounds fine. I might suggest using some shingle shims instead of flat stock however. If you want to just remove the interior trim only, that is fine also. Using the shingle shims, place the thickest end in first and by trial and error, adjust the opposing shim to a size that will snug in nicely and then by gently tapping it in next to the first shim, remove the excess gap. Put a small finish nail through the jamb and shims to prevent them from moving. Drilling a pilot hole will assure not splitting the shims with the nail in inserted. Now just trim off the excess and reinstall your trim. Job done! Good Luck
The basic procedure for removing a door is: remove casing, remove screws from jamb/brick mold, and push the door out of the hole, brick mold still attached. Unfortunately your situation calls for some more devious tactics. Because the outer molding appears to be part of the transom casing (assuming you're leaving that part alone) you're probably better off not disturbing it. So you have to remove the interior trim, remove any screws that connect the jamb to the substructure, then very carefully prize the jamb away from the outer molding with a bar such as this:
to keep from marring the backside of your brick mold.
Once the door is out, the problem then becomes finding a new door/jamb that fits the opening not just properly but perfectly in order to get the reveals right, which may be a challenge considering how old and...unique your existing door is. If you over come that hurdle, just caulk the backside of the brick mold with sealant (sealant not caulk) and follow the manufacturers instructions for sealing the threshold and all should be well. Cheers!
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Best Answer
The parts you are looking to cobble together, are already cut to the proper profile for an exterior door jamb on the shelves of the big box stores. The aluminum/wood sills are there too. The jamb is cut and ready to receive the typical weatherstripping used these days. here is a link to the product at one store