Project88
Established Member
Could you give me your thoughts on this one.
I have to replace the entrance to my garage, full story below if you are interested. Actually a garage is the one thing the space is not used as!
The gap to be filled is approximately 85 inches wide and 80 inches high. There are solid brick pillars on either side, with a steel Catnik beam (which is perforated on its bottom face) across the top, the floor is tarmac. I have removed a standard white metal up and over door.
The garage is used several times a day as it contains an additional fridge freezer, so easy entry is needed, but it also contains my tools so it needs to be secure.
I would like to make as much as possible myself so, based on my tools and skills, something predominately wood (or close to wood) is what I am looking for. The job also needs to completed fairly quickly, or at least be able to make the entrance secure overnight, and to a budget, as yet unspecified but think small and then half it.
I am really interested in your input on any aspect of the task, materials, finish, construction, hinges, latches, bolts, locks, door opening sizes. Have you done a similar job? What went well? What would you do differently?
Please let me know.
For those who are not bored already, here’s the story.
Went to the garage (wine cellar) on Saturday night about 10:00pm, and as I closed the door, there was a bang and a nasty clunk – too late to look at that I thought; everything was out of focus anyway. Got up Sunday morning and found that the spring and mechanism had broken on one side and formed a mechanical lock i.e. I could not get the thing open, the door had also dropped and the bottom left corner was resting in the tarmac. Much force later got the thing open to see that it was well beyond repair. Had to do something because we use the garage (kitchen extension) every day. So I took action (mad fool) and removed the door and its frame. Stood back with pride to survey the defeated door, in pieces on the floor, hah that told you! Then looked at the gaping hole in my garage (workshop). Hmmmmm what am I going to do about that? Time to get a cup of tea and the Screwfix book.
By 12:00 I was leaving with a shopping list, there is a Screwfix shop in Bristol which is open on Sunday. Back home by 1:30pm with a fun bag of Screwfix bits, 12 off 2.4m lengths of 36x63 studding and 3 off 8’x4’ sheets of chipboard roughly to size, all in the back of my Toyota Corolla.
I then made three 700mm wide ladder frames (top rail, bottom rail and three horizontal rails) from the studding. Not liking to screw into end grain I used two pocket screws at each joint. I fixed two of the frames in position adjacent to the brick pillars using brackets top and bottom. The third frame was made slightly shorter to form a central door, hinging against the right hand fixed frame. I then scribed to size the three chipboard sheets and nailed them one to each frame. One bolt and padlock later, there was my new temporary garage (technical library) entrance. Finished just in time for late tea and to watch 24.
It ain’t pretty but it works, nevertheless it needs sorting out properly and soon.
All input, poking fun, laughing, tuting sighing shaking head with arms folded greatfullygratefully
Cheers,
John.
I have to replace the entrance to my garage, full story below if you are interested. Actually a garage is the one thing the space is not used as!
The gap to be filled is approximately 85 inches wide and 80 inches high. There are solid brick pillars on either side, with a steel Catnik beam (which is perforated on its bottom face) across the top, the floor is tarmac. I have removed a standard white metal up and over door.
The garage is used several times a day as it contains an additional fridge freezer, so easy entry is needed, but it also contains my tools so it needs to be secure.
I would like to make as much as possible myself so, based on my tools and skills, something predominately wood (or close to wood) is what I am looking for. The job also needs to completed fairly quickly, or at least be able to make the entrance secure overnight, and to a budget, as yet unspecified but think small and then half it.
I am really interested in your input on any aspect of the task, materials, finish, construction, hinges, latches, bolts, locks, door opening sizes. Have you done a similar job? What went well? What would you do differently?
Please let me know.
For those who are not bored already, here’s the story.
Went to the garage (wine cellar) on Saturday night about 10:00pm, and as I closed the door, there was a bang and a nasty clunk – too late to look at that I thought; everything was out of focus anyway. Got up Sunday morning and found that the spring and mechanism had broken on one side and formed a mechanical lock i.e. I could not get the thing open, the door had also dropped and the bottom left corner was resting in the tarmac. Much force later got the thing open to see that it was well beyond repair. Had to do something because we use the garage (kitchen extension) every day. So I took action (mad fool) and removed the door and its frame. Stood back with pride to survey the defeated door, in pieces on the floor, hah that told you! Then looked at the gaping hole in my garage (workshop). Hmmmmm what am I going to do about that? Time to get a cup of tea and the Screwfix book.
By 12:00 I was leaving with a shopping list, there is a Screwfix shop in Bristol which is open on Sunday. Back home by 1:30pm with a fun bag of Screwfix bits, 12 off 2.4m lengths of 36x63 studding and 3 off 8’x4’ sheets of chipboard roughly to size, all in the back of my Toyota Corolla.
I then made three 700mm wide ladder frames (top rail, bottom rail and three horizontal rails) from the studding. Not liking to screw into end grain I used two pocket screws at each joint. I fixed two of the frames in position adjacent to the brick pillars using brackets top and bottom. The third frame was made slightly shorter to form a central door, hinging against the right hand fixed frame. I then scribed to size the three chipboard sheets and nailed them one to each frame. One bolt and padlock later, there was my new temporary garage (technical library) entrance. Finished just in time for late tea and to watch 24.
It ain’t pretty but it works, nevertheless it needs sorting out properly and soon.
All input, poking fun, laughing, tuting sighing shaking head with arms folded greatfullygratefully
Cheers,
John.
