Advice on stable door replacement needed

[Gbobo]

Hi all,

The workshop I rent is on a farm and the owner asked me if I could fix the stable doors.
Not the kind of thing I do everyday but would like to do it.
I thought to do the following:

• Use Meranti or other appropriate for outdoor real lumber
• Cut the bottom c.300mm off the old rotten door
• Add back the new bit, joining it with biscuits on the edge, further fortified with butterfly joints crossing the joint.
• Sand, add grooves and paint.

Do you think this should work? Anything I missed or should do different?

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[Jameshow]

Why not larch or oak sourced locally?

Wants to be tough as horses can be strong!

 

[rogxwhit]

Looks like you need to scarf on a new bottom section of hinge stile along with a new section of bottom rail - these would be mortice & tenoned together. For heavens sake forget about biscuits - this is external joinery!

I would scarf at an angle along with a chunky spline, and (waterproof) glue & screw.

Then repair the boarding.

I haven't seen meranti for years, but the paler stuff was like a digestive biscuit & strictly non-durable. The dark stuff was ok.

Pretty simple work, but it needs to be (1) structural) and (2) weather-resistant. Give it half a day.

 

[Doug71]

Depends how far you want to go with the repair? Is the bottom rail still solid or is the tenon at the end of it rotten?

Repairs and splicing often look untidy, especially after a couple of years. It would almost be as easy to replace the full stile as splicing a piece on the bottom. Regardless of what you do with the stile I would replace any of the rotten T&G boarding with full length new pieces rather than trying to join it.

As said Meranti is not great, Sapele would be better.

 

[Gbobo]

Why not larch or oak sourced locally?

Wants to be tough as horses can be strong!

Comes down to cost really. The door will be repainted so you wouldn't see what type of wood it is and as far as strength it concerned, the door is lined with a thick metal plate on the inside.

 

[Gbobo]

Looks like you need to scarf on a new bottom section of hinge stile along with a new section of bottom rail - these would be mortice & tenoned together. For heavens sake forget about biscuits - this is external joinery!

I would scarf at an angle along with a chunky spline, and (waterproof) glue & screw.

Then repair the boarding.

I haven't seen meranti for years, but the paler stuff was like a digestive biscuit & strictly non-durable. The dark stuff was ok.

Pretty simple work, but it needs to be (1) structural) and (2) weather-resistant. Give it half a day.

Thanks @rogxwhit. Point taken on the Meranti, glad I asked the question. Definitely sorted out the rest of my evening for watching scarf joint videos!

 

[Gbobo]

Depends how far you want to go with the repair? Is the bottom rail still solid or is the tenon at the end of it rotten?

Repairs and splicing often look untidy, especially after a couple of years. It would almost be as easy to replace the full stile as splicing a piece on the bottom. Regardless of what you do with the stile I would replace any of the rotten T&G boarding with full length new pieces rather than trying to join it.

As said Meranti is not great, Sapele would be better.

Thanks @Doug71, I dont think it even has a bottom rail. If you look at the closeup of the hinge you'll see it is simply the T&G boards coming down all the way so not ideal. If replacing all the T&G boards, I'll effectively be making a new bottom door which it might come to.
The stile itself is definitely gone and you are right; probably better to replace the whole thing (only half a door).

 

[Doug71]

Thanks @Doug71, I dont think it even has a bottom rail. If you look at the closeup of the hinge you'll see it is simply the T&G boards coming down all the way so not ideal. If replacing all the T&G boards, I'll effectively be making a new bottom door which it might come to.
The stile itself is definitely gone and you are right; probably better to replace the whole thing (only half a door).

There will be a bottom rail behind the boards, probably something like a piece of 27mmx145mm which the boards will be nailed to. The boards run over the front of the bottom rail on doors like this so there is no water trap.

 

[Gbobo]

There will be a bottom rail behind the boards, probably something like a piece of 27mmx145mm which the boards will be nailed to. The boards run over the front of the bottom rail on doors like this so there is no water trap.

Thanks @Doug71. Understand what you mean. The inside is lined with a full metal sheet but looking at the picture, it is rotten through.

 

[Jameshow]

I think its more rotten than you first think?

Better to replace as it will take as long to mend as to replace?

And would you put your name to a repair?

 

[Gbobo]

@Jameshow it looks like it could come to that. The labour in fixing something that becomes complicated is almost always more than buying material and starting from scratch.

 

[johnnyb]

that looks " off the peg" buy a new one. if not just replace in redwood.