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exterior door frame size and rough opening

7K views 3 replies 4 participants last post by  rjniles 
#1 ·
1. I have an original 1971 exterior door on the side of my garage I need to replace. The door width is 30" which means it's not stocked at the big box stores so I have to order custom. I decided to go with a pre-hung. When I got a quote for the order, I noticed he put "slab width: 30" but later on it says "rough opening width: 32". So I double-checked the rough opening width of the existing door and it is 31.5". I'm wondering if that RO width in the quote is exact or not? The house has foundation footing on both sides of the door frame so I've got to stay within 31.5".

2. The guy also recommended I check the frame width because standard is 4 5/8". The problem is that I'm not sure where to measure from. There's a brick mold that buts up against the frame on the exterior. I'm wondering if I include the brick mold in the measurement or not. Either way, it's not 4 5/8". The garage is not drywalled so the frame on the interior already juts out beyond the studs so I'm thinking this measurement is not critical as long as its not larger and is at least as wide as the studs.




seam where brickmold meets door frame.


inside door frame sticks out beyond studs
 
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#2 ·
1. it "might" work for you IF the framing is nice and plumb. Otherwise, you should be able to plane the outside of the jamb a little to force it to work.
2. Not including the brick mould. You are correct about the size being too big is not a big deal.
 
#3 ·
You should be ok. If not, either plane/cut as mentioned or just add a solid 2x8 across the king/jack studs, covering both sides, securely fastened then remove one jack stud, adding a 1x4. It's a garage. The extra jamb width on the inside is for drywall (4-9/16" total without the brick mould).

Be safe, Gary
 
#4 ·
If the existing frame is in good shape, I would buy a slab door for replacement. You can usually find 30" slabs in stock (or for a garage if looks is not a big factor, you could trim down a 32").
 
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