This is the transcript for the video of the same name.
Hello and welcome to cheapsheds.com.
This video will show you how to make double doors for your shed. These doors can be built for any of my 4 shed styles, on either an end wall or a side wall, and in any width up to 8 ft wide.
There are 6 steps to building these double doors.
1. Step 1 is Planning
2. Step 2 is to build the Outer foor frame
3. Step 3 is to build the Inner door frame
4. Step 4 is to Mark cut lines
5. Step 5 is to Sheet the wall
6. And step 6 is to Install the trim
The final step will be to cut the doors out and install the hinges and latch. But those are covered in step 7 of my shed plans because they will be done after the walls are raised and nailed together. This is to prevent the doors from shifting and because it is easier to install the hinges and latches when the walls are vertical and you have access to both sides of the door wall.
1) Step 1: Planning
There are 5 variable you have to decide on before you start building the doors.
1. You have to decide on the Width you want,
2. The Height
3. The Header size
4. The Width of each door
5. And Which door will open first.
The Width for double doors can be from 5 feet to 8 feet.
Maximum height will depend on if you are building on an end wall or a side wall. End walls are not load bearing so you can eliminate the header and build right up to the bottom of the top plates and use them as your header.
Header size: For side walls, because they are load bearing, you will need a 2×4 header for openings up to 48 inches and a 2×6 header for openings over 48 inches.
Size of each door does not have to be the same. One side can be larger or smaller than the other.
Which door opens first. This is the active door and the other one is locked shut until you want it open.
2) Step 2: Build the outer door frame
This is what a wall with an outer door frame will look like when you are finished with this step. This is a 10 foot wide shed with the doors on a non-load bearing end wall so we are only using a 2×4 header. We don’t want the door to go all the way up to the top plates for aesthetic purposes. This door will have an opening width of 72 inches and an opening height of 79 inches.
The length of the header will be the desired opening width plus 3 inches so that it can sit on the jack studs on either side. In this case a 72 inch opening width plus 3 inches for the jack studs equals 75 inches total header length.
The jack stud length will be the desired opening height less 1 1/2 inches because they sit on the bottom plate which will be cut out after the door is opened. In this case the desired opening height is 79 inches, less the bottom plate of 1 1/2 inches makes the jack studs 77 1/2 inches long.
To build the sandwiched door header, cut two 2×4’s to length, then cut a piece of 1/2 or 7/16 osb or plywood that is 3 1/2 inches wide and the same length. Put the osb between the 2×4’s, line them up and nail them together with 16d or 3 inch nails. Make sure to leave a 1 inch nail free strip at the bottom of the header that is free of nails because this is where you will run the router to cut the door out.
To make the outer door frame nail the jack studs to the king studs with 16d nails.
Now you can mark the top and bottom plates so you know where to nail the door frame and wall studs. Then assemble the wall with outer door frame.
Nail cripple studs between the header and the top plate, at 16 inches on center. On a weight bearing sidewall these short studs will transfer the strength of the header to the top plate. But on a non load bearing end wall like this one they will just serve as backing to nail the siding into.
3 ) Step 3: Build the inner door frame
Cut 1/2 inch osb or 7/16 inch siding spacers about 3 inches square to place between the inner and outer door frames.
Measure and cut the 4 horizontal cross pieces for the inner door frame and lay them in the top and bottom of the outer door frame with spacers at each end and one between. You will also need spacers between the top pieces and the header but not at the bottom plate because it will be cut out when the doors are opened. Cut the cross pieces to fit with about 1/8 inch tolerance.
Measure and cut the 4 uprights and lay them in place against the spacers.
Layout for the internal uprights at 16 inch on center and lay them in place.
Now that everything is cut and fit you can remove the pieces and assemble them. Normally you would do this on an open part of the floor but in this case I wanted to do on camera. I prefer to drill pilot holes and use screws for this assembly because it makes the doors stronger and minimizes wood splitting. Place the assembled doors back in place with their spacers and check that everything fits.
Mark the door in its vertical center and fit and install the cross pieces which will serve as backing to nail the center trim to. Again, this is best done on an open part of the floor but I wanted to do it on camera. Now place the assembled doors back in place with their spacers and check that everything fits, then install the upper top plate.
4) Step 4: Mark the cut lines
Mark the cut lines and transfer them to the siding as you are installing the siding. There are 3 vertical cut lines, 1 horizontal cut line at the top of the doors and 2 horizontal nail lines to identify the underlying 2×4’s for the center and bottom trim cross pieces.
3 vertical cut lines.
There will be a vertical cut line at the outside of each door and one in the center. The outside cut lines go different places depending on which type of hinge you are using.
If you are using 3 individual strap hinges the cut line will go ½ inch in on the outer door frame. This cut line needs to be offset otherwise the door will not overlap the outer door frame and you will have a gap here.
If you are using a single piano hinge then the cut line can go in the middle of the space between the inner and outer door frame. There will be a gap here but the hinge will cover it. Plus the hinge is not wide enough to make the span if you offset this cut line. It needs to be centered so the bolts can go into the 2×4’s on either side.
The center cut line will go ½ inch inside the edge of the passive door.
Mark these 3 points on the bottom plate and on the header. Then transfer them to the top and bottom of the plates so they will be visible when the siding is installed.
You will need to add another vertical upright to the passive door for backing to nail the trim to.
Horizontal cut lines + Step 4
Now you can start installing the siding. When the siding overlaps the inner door frame you can see where to mark the horizontal cut lines.
There will be a horizontal nail line in the center of the middle cross pieces and one in the center of the bottom cross piece.
Mark the horizontal cut line ½ inch above the header opening. This will be the top of the door. You will notice the mark at 1 inch which is the nail free strip I mentioned when you are building the header.
The horizontal lines are easy because they are visible on the siding. You just need to transfer the measurement to another point on the wall and snap a chalk line.
The vertical lines are harder because the lower mark is buried under the lip on the bottom of the siding and you will need to transfer it to the top of the siding using your square.
Once the siding is installed locate yoru marks and snap a chalk line for all 6 lines.
When you are finished you will have 3 horizontal chalk lines and 3 vertical chalk lines. These lines will be your guide for installing the trim in the next step.
5) Step 5: Install the trim
The first piece of trim you will install is the top of the active door. Cut a piece to go between the outer cut line and the center cut line and nail it on the bottom side of the top cut line.
Measure the 2 vertical trim pieces and cut them even or within ¼ inch of the bottom of the siding. Cut and nail them in place right on their respective cut lines.
Put a siding spacer between the top door pieces and cut the top trim piece for the passive door and nail it in place.
Then measure, cut and install the 2 vertical trim pieces. Make sure there is a spacer between the 2 center door trim pieces. These gaps made by the spacers is where the router will run and cut the door open after you have raised the walls and nailed them together.
Put spacers at the top of the door trim and lay a full length piece of trim across the top.
The outside vertical pieces will touch the bottom of the top piece of trim with the spacer in place. Measure and cut them, then nail them in place with a spacer between them and the other vertical trim piece. Do this for both sides.
Measure and cut the top trim piece then nail in place. Remember the spacer.
Now measure, cut and install the middle and lower horizontal cross pieces. You will place the center of these pieces on the chalk line below and nail them in place.
Making the “X” on the doors is just a matter of cutting and fitting. This is where a miter saw is necessary because it is simply a matter of trial and error to get the angles and lengths.
I will just let the video run so you can see this cut and fit process.
Thanks for watching this video on how to make double doors for your shed. For more information on my shed plans or to see the rest of my shed building videos please visit my website at Cheapsheds.com,
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