6 panel doors

[asianflava]

Really a bit off topic but I have a coupla questions. I'm replacing the sliding doors on a closet with bi-fold 6 panel doors. I don't have any 6 panel doors on my house to use as a reference so here's my questions.

Do the smaller raised panels go on top or the bottom of the door?

Also the doors are really tight in the opening, can I just run the door edges down a jointer to make more clearance? Is there a better (easier) way?

To top it off, the door spring on my garage door broke the other day so I have to call somebody to fix it. It's gonna be tricky getting the jointer out (or anything else) while the trailer is in the garage.

[Spadinator]

I believe the smaller panels go on the top. As for being tight....you can trim them but be careful they are thin. Also check you hinge pins, some have adjustments for tight doors.

[bledsoe3]

Rocky, Do you have a center spring over the door or the spring with the cables on the sides? The latter are easy to change yourself. The other is best left to some one who knows what they are doing.

[cam5e]

Off Topic, is the title of this forum. So, no shame in bieng "Off Topic". I'd try to plane the doors down first. But. I would look for fasteners you may have to pull them out, plane and then re-fasten. How much "too tight" are they?

[apratt]

Usually the hc bifold doors, the stiles are about 1 1/4" thick so you don't have a lot to work with. Stiles are the wood frame that goes up and down. You can look at the bottom or the top to see how thick the stiles are, they do vary in size even from side to side.

[asianflava]

Rocky, Do you have a center spring over the door or the spring with the cables on the sides? The latter are easy to change yourself. The other is best left to some one who knows what they are doing.

It has the torsion spring in the middle. You can't buy those at a DIY place. The same thing happened to my parent's garage years ago and I couldn't find them. I called a garage repair place and they told me that they can't sell them because they are afraid that somebody will kill themselves or something.

I gotta call the guy dow the street from me, he is a garage door installer, maybe I can get a hookup. I don't know him but the guy across the street from me's kid plays with his kid.

I kinda installed the bi-fold doors tonight. I say kinda because I didn't cut enough off the doors. I ended up ripping the door on the table saw. I was able to clear out just enough junk so that I could use the saw. One good thing about the garage door being busted, I don't have to put the saw back to clear the path to the door. I'll remove the doors and re cut them this weekend, nothing gets done during the days I work.

[Tear Fan]

asianflava -

When you reinstall the doors, first make sure the hinge side(s) are even with the jambs. You can adjust the stationary piece that holds the hinge side at the top by loosening and tightening the screw that holds it in place. Make sure that the gap between the door and the jamb is even from top to bottom. Then you can adjust the other vertical edge of the door by trimming or planing so that it fits in the door frame with an even gap from top to bottom. Clear?

Marvin

[cracker39]

I've planed down the edges of bi-fold doors to fit a tight opening. First, using a jointer would work or a portable planer/jointer (I also have used a table saw to shave off an edge). Second, don't shave off too much...check the hole at the top for the guide and leave plenty of material so it won't weaken and tear out. If necessary (and I've done this), separate the doors by removing the hinges between a pair, plane off some from each edge, and replace the hinges. This distributes the amount of material removed from three edges, not just one.