How to hang a door

Step by step door hanging instructions

Need to know how to hang a door? Everything you need is on this page, including:

Tools I use to hang doors:

How to hang a door - step by step instructions:

Step 1: Prepare the lining

First, prepare the door lining (frame). Hopefully the door lining was installed properly and it's square, level and in wind. If freshly plastered, I use an old blunt chisel to scrape any large lumps of plaster off, and if needed an orbital sander to clean it up further.

Which way round how to hang a door

Before you can hang the door you need to determine which way the door will swing, which is usually into the room (if from a hallway). The position of the light switch will help - ideally avoid hanging an internal door so the switch is behind it when opened. Otherwise check the drawing, or ask the client which way they'd prefer.

Set your combination square to the thickness of the doors edge and then use it to mark a line in from the face of the lining at each corner. Do this about three inches down from the top, and the same up from the floor - out of the way of the hinges.

Bang a nail half way in at each line that will keep the door flush with the frame and stop it falling through. I use 45mm ovals or 75mm lostheads for lightweight/ply flush doors.
If you are hanging a oak door for example or one that you don’t want to risk denting, nail an off cut of doorstop or other timber temporarily (dont bang the nail in all the way) to the line instead.

Step 2: Put the door in the lining and mark it up.

When hanging a flush / hollow core door check the writing on the top edge to find out which side the lock block is in. A lock block is a solid block of wood inside the door for the latch and handle to fix to. Once this is established, put the door in the lining with the lock block in the side where the handle will be fitted. This might sound silly but make sure you hang the door the right way up! Ive seen a few upside down DIY attempts! The easiest way to know if its not obvious is that the bottom horizontal rail will be taller than the top horizontal rail. When hanging ply flush doors, the top is normally the edge with the writing and lock block markings on.

Raise the door up using the ‘board and door lifter’ or a wooden wedgeuntil only a 2/3mm gap is left at the top. You can cut a spacer or use cardboard in between to ensure consistency when hanging more than one door.

Check there is a large enough gap underneath to allow for the floor covering and if there isn’t mark what you need to cut off now. I usually allow about 18-20mm for carpet and underlay.

Step 3: Mark the hinges.

Unless I am hanging doors to match existing ones or the schedule says otherwise, I mark a clear line with a sharp pencil on both the lining and the door - 150mm down from the top (this is the top of the top hinge) and 230mm up from the bottom (this is the bottom of the lowest hinge). I always put an x on the side of the line where I want the hinge to be so I don’t chop it in the wrong side (Again!). When hanging doors that are fire check, hardwood or in a bathroom/airing cupboard for example, you should mark a line and a cross for a third hinge in the middle of the door as well. Fire check doors will need fire rated hinges too, (I get them from Screwfix Direct) check with your local building control if you are unsure which to use.

Remove the door and place in the saddle and wedge it, hinge side up. Square all the pencil lines across. I mark sharp clear but faint lines that are easy to sand off later, and only mark where needed not a huge line across the whole width of the door!

Place the hinge to mark the length of it on the doors edge. Slide the hinge up to the line until it covers the ‘x’ and mark the other end (height) of the hinge. Set the marking gauge up as shown in the picture below and scribe the width of the hinge into the door edge, always working from the face.

Repeat for all the hinge positions and then set up another gauge if you have one to the thickness of the hinge (I always use two marking gauges to save set up time when hanging lots of doors). Scribe this into the side of the door and lining too.
When I first learnt how to hang a door I used to carefully screw the hinge to the door/frame in the exact position and mark all the way round it with a sharp Stanley knife. I use squares and gauges now though because it's much more accurate and consistent, I know the hinge will be perfectly parallel to the door edge and positioned identically in the lining as well.

Step 4: Chop the hinges out.

Always start by chiselling the top and bottom of the hinge first. Then chop in at about 10mm intervals to the depth set by the gauge, as shown in the picture. Carefully pare away the waste, keeping inside the lines. Sand any remaining pencil lines out, drill pilot holes if you need to and screw the ‘leaf ’ side of the hinges to the door (leaf side is that in the picture above, that the marking gauge is set to) with your battery drill. Make sure the screws finish flush.
If you are fitting ‘loose pin’ hinges, you may need to take the pin out and slide it back in the other end so it doesn’t fall out after you hang the door.

Step 5: Trim the bottom.

Use an electric plane or a circular saw if a lot needs to be removed. If you do use a circular saw, score the door with a straight edge and sharp stanley knife before you cut the bottom off to prevent tear out. Also, leave the line in a little so you can clean it up with the plane after. Sand any remaining pencil lines off.

How to hang a door step 6: Screw the door to the Lining.

Lift the internal door out of the clamp and screw the hinges to the lining. Don't fill the hinge up with all the screws yet in case it needs adjusting, unless you are hanging a heavy fire check door. You can use a board and door lifter to make this easier. If it fits OK, put the rest of the screws in the hinges.

What Next?

Sometimes the door doesn't always fit perfectly straight away. Click Here for tips on adjusting the door.

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