- 1). Remove the door from the frame by driving out the hinge pins with a hammer and a center punch. Lay the door across a couple of padded sawhorses so you can work on it more easily. Remove the center hinge and fill in the screw holes with wood filler. Allow it to dry and then sand that area of the door until it is smooth.
- 2). Measure your door along its length to find the centerline and mark it with a pencil. Draw a line an eighth of an inch up from this centerline across the entire width of the door.
- 3). Decide whether your door will have a shelf or not. If you plan to have a shelf, measure down from the centerline by an eighth of an inch plus the thickness of your shelf and draw a line across the door at this spot. If you will not use a shelf, simply measure down an eight of an inch and draw a line here instead.
- 4). Install a new hinge in both the top and bottom halves of the door. The hinges should be placed six inches from the centerline of the door. You may need to use a chisel to route out the edge of the door so it will accept these hinges, depending on the type of units you've chosen. When you're finished, the door will have a total of four hinges.
- 5). Rehang the door to make sure the new hinges are operational. Depending on the type of hinge you've chosen, you may need to use a chisel to route out a pocket for the hinges along the door frame. Screw all four hinges into place and open and close the door to ensure the hinges work properly.
- 6). Remove the door and place it back on the sawhorse. Use a circular saw to cut the door along the two lines you've drawn above and below the centerline of the door. Once you've made these cuts, the door should be divided into two separate sections.
- 7). Sand the edges of the door where you made the cuts. Install a hardboard shelf on the bottom leaf if desired. Use screws to fasten the shelf into the top of the door leaf. Make sure that you use the correct shelf thickness based on the measurements you used in Step 3.
- 8). Paint or stain the shelf and the cut edge of the door. Allow them to dry overnight before proceeding.
- 9). Install felt or foam weather stripping along the bottom edge of the top door leaf. Use a stick-on strip, or a more permanent screw-on version. This will help keep the opening airtight.
- 10
Rehang the door and check its operation. The bottom edge of the door will be secured using your existing lock. Add a flush bolt or surface-mounted deadbolt to the top half of the door to secure it to the frame. You may also wish to add a mortised bolt between the top and bottom leaves so they can be opened and closed as a single unit.
SHARE
