Need help with plank door construction for a shed

[RobTro]

Hi, everyone. This is my first post. I have been searching a lot but find I need to ask for your help. I hope this is not too long but thought if I laid it all out it would be easier for you to help me.

I need some help with designing some doors for my garden shed/workshop. I will be making the shed and the doors myself.<O

Background<O

I am building a shed with 2x4 (38x89)or 2x3 (38x63) SPF (pine) frame which will have 9mm or 12mm ply sheeting over the frame, and then 15x110mm T&G hardwood vertical siding (cladding?) over that for the walls. The hardwood siding is “selangan batu” similar in weight etc to jarrah, maybe a bit heavier/denser.


I want the double doors to have the same siding as the walls and be in the plane of the walls. That is, I want the doors to just be a part of the wall (no door frame visible). I don’t want exterior face hinges as I want a clean simple look with the hard wood siding as an architectural element of the garden.

So I think I need butt hinges. I am thinking these will be morticed into the door so the door gap is minimised and the hinges hidden as much as possible. I would like the doors to open 180 degrees, back against the outside wall. The hinges will probably have to be extra long (extended:confused: ) to reach out past the exterior siding (15mm)????:confused: <O

The door opening I am considering will be 1820 wide by 1900 high. This will make each door about 880 wide by 1900 high. Odd sizes, I know but they are to suit the siding width and the height restriction of the structure. (2.3m)

The door frame will be on the sides of the opening and the top of the opening and there will be no frame member at floor level as I want the concrete slab to just continue through the doorway.<O

I am not sure how to make the doors or if I can get appropriate hinges and hardware. The doors will be heavy and I want to minimise sag.
<O

The main point is that the exterior side match in with the wall and look nice with clean lines. The interior is the interior of a shed so looks are not really a factor. <O


Some ideas I had:confused: <O

Board and batten doors with the braced hardwood battens on the inside of the shed. Will this type of door sag with the weight? Also I think this will be hard to fix using butt hinges so probably out. How thick would the door structural frame elements need to be to fix butt hinges for the weight

A braced frame like above with thin ply sheet (9mm ? or less?) on the inside and outside and then the boards (siding) over the outside. ????<O

Make it like the wall. 2x3 (38x63mm) pine frame (to reduce weight) covered with ply (how thick?) both side and then have battens on the outside and hardwood siding over these. (battens to allow water to escape and air to circulate the same as the walls.????<O

Or some kind of box / torsion layout???<O

ANY OTHER ideas and comments VERY welcome.<O

Questions<O

1. Are these doors feasible or are they too heavy and will sag?

2. How can I make the doors so they will not sag and don’t need a wheel and runner support? What construction. All work will be by hand tools only.
<O
3. Can you get extended hinges? Or what kind of hinges should I use? Are there invisible hinges? What do they look like?<O

4. Can you get those pull apart hinges (not sure of the correct name) without chunks of plastic? These hinges would be better for fitting the doors I think as the doors will be VERY heavy. I could fit them to the doors and the frame and then just lift the doors on (with help of course) Can you get heavy duty ones?<O


5. What size or thickness and material should the door frame members be? To fit the hinges to. I was thinking of 30mm thick hardwood (selangan batu) fixed to double studs with long screws going through the frame and into the studs. Or would the screws only need to go into the hardwood frame?<O


6.Can I have a door frame without the floor component?</O


<OWell I hope you can help?
<O

[ozwinner]

Try here.

Al

[bsrlee]

Ditto what Ozwinner pointed to.

You will have to do a bit of metal work to bend the hinges so you can open the doors 180 degrees- fasten the short/wide bit to the frame at 90 deg. to the wall line with the knuckle out, and put a bend the long/thin hinge leaf at 90 deg. where it lines up with the back of the door so it will lie along the back side of the door - this should give you clearance to open the door fully AND get it to lie flush with the wall.

Depending on the hinge, you may have to put the screws in from the 'wrong' side - I just countersink the holes so they are 'right' way round & use bigger screws when I have to do this.

[ian]

I want the double doors to have the same siding as the walls and be in the plane of the walls. That is, I want the doors to just be a part of the wall (no door frame visible). I don’t want exterior face hinges as I want a clean simple look with the hard wood siding as an architectural element of the garden.

So I think I need butt hinges. I am thinking these will be morticed into the door so the door gap is minimised and the hinges hidden as much as possible. I would like the doors to open 180 degrees, back against the outside wall. The hinges will probably have to be extra long (extended:confused: ) to reach out past the exterior siding (15mm)????:confused: <O

The door opening I am considering will be 1820 wide by 1900 high. This will make each door about 880 wide by 1900 high. Odd sizes, I know but they are to suit the siding width and the height restriction of the structure. (2.3m)

The main point is that the exterior side match in with the wall and look nice with clean lines. The interior is the interior of a shed so looks are not really a factor. <O

3. Can you get extended hinges? Or what kind of hinges should I use? Are there invisible hinges? What do they look like?

on the hinges, what I think you want are "broad butt hinges" look at the bottom of page 2 in this catalogue http://www.hardwarestore.com.au/pdf/...yle-hinges.pdf
it recommends 3 hinges for a 100kg door
the pin on these hinges will be proud of the siding, but the door will open to 180°. you may need to do a google "french door hinges" to find a local supplier

ian

[RobTro]

Thanks for the info. To connect the hinges to the doors and for strength, what would be the minimum thickness of the boards or door structural frame member to support the hinges?
Also if I constructed the doors using the method on the suggested site, will there be a problem with sag? The wood supplier which is a wood deck and cladding/siding company, seems to think the doors would sag. But they only make wooden gates etc. What do you reckon?
Thanks for your help.