Repairing Split in Wood Door?

diyintexas

Hi Guys,

What is the best way to repair a split in a wood door? Our front door has a split from the bottom of the door all the way up to the bottom of the window(about 12 inches from the bottom). The split goes completely through the door where you can see light coming through the door.

I thought about just putting very strong wood glue in the split and clamping it down but I worry that would eventually resplit. Is there a better way to do this?

Ron6519

That sounds like the way to go, glue and clamp.
Check to see that both the top and bottom of the door has been sealed against moisture. I would repaint the whole door again to insure it is sealed.
Ron

sdsester

Gluing and clamping would be the best alternative if it will hold. You might try these epoxy wood restoration products. They are a bit pricey but I like working with them. This assumes the door is to be painted.

http://www.abatron.com/cms/buildinga...intenance.html

rredogg

texas,
I've had success using a shop vacuum to suck the glue all the way through the split. Lay your bead of glue on one side of the door and use the vacuum to suck it out on the other side. Then clamp and hope for the best.

Best of luck with the project, rredogg

Thurman

Depends on how far the split is from either door edge. IMO--putting glue into the crack/split and clamping it until it dries is just buying time until it splits again. Your first problem is to determine why the door split: either the wood has dried out or has been wetter than it should have been over some period of time. I like to use screws to pull these doors back together, along with a good exterior wood glue in the split. The chances of a door splitting after installation of screws is nill. IF the split is near the middle of the door there is a way to use an extended drill bit to get into the door that far, from one edge, to put wood screws in. Good Luck, David