# fitting a smaller storm door to a larger frame?



## saintbrandon (Oct 14, 2011)

my DIY abilities are lacking, I have just purchased my first home two years ago and I am learning as I go. My house is about 90 years old, a nice three storey brick house, but the doors are odd sizes. My lovely boxer Rocksteady destroyed my storm door going into the back yard. I took measurments and went to every local hardware store and the answer is all the same "due to the unusual size it will be $500.00-$600.00" The door is 34"w X 82"h. I have a screen door in my garage that is 30"w X 80"h, is there an easy way i can build my frame down to make the smaller door fit?

thank you in advance


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

Welcome to the forum.

More than likely. Posting a picture of the door standing back so we can see the exterior trim would help. http://www.diychatroom.com/f19/how-attach-photo-post-12559/


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## saintbrandon (Oct 14, 2011)

thank you for the welcome 
and good idea about the picture, though i doubt i will be able to do it until next week as we are supposed to have rain non stop for the next four days


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## Ron6519 (Mar 28, 2007)

If you have brick molding, or any trim for that matter. Just install the same width board at the top of the door, lowering the height to what's needed for the storm door.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

saintbrandon, you will have to special order. The factory would have it ready in about one to two weeks. Follow the directions at http://www.larsondoors.com/storm_doors/how_to_install_measuring/ and post back. 34" is a standard door size.


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## saintbrandon (Oct 14, 2011)

ok thanks guys, next weekend I will attempt to at a board on top to fill the gab and see how that goes.
thanks again!


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

Why not do it correctly and special order a door to fit. A whole lot better than doing some hack job.


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## Ron6519 (Mar 28, 2007)

gregzoll said:


> Why not do it correctly and special order a door to fit. A whole lot better than doing some hack job.


It's the choice of a $6.00 board or a custom door for more money. This is the essence of DIY, to save money.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

No Ron, the essence of a DIY is to do it correctly, and not to cut corners.


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## Ron6519 (Mar 28, 2007)

gregzoll said:


> No Ron, the essence of a DIY is to do it correctly, and not to cut corners.


Most of them do it to save money. A small percent do it for pride* and *to save money. The number of people who only do it, to do it correctly, are minute.
While there is nothing wrong with saving money, many projects are short shifted due to either a lack of understanding or a lack of finances.
On a daily basis, people come here with misguided scenarios and even after it's been explained to them, the folly of this path, will go down that path. Some have already almost gotten to the destination when they arrive, but are not about to turn around and start removing what it's taken them so long to put up.
While it would be nice to think it's done for the "correct" reason, that path also leads to folly.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

Ron, I saved money yesterday by having my roofer take out two windows in our attic that were rotting around the panes for the mullions and the sills. The key was that I was having a roof vent installed & a chimney cap, which we did not have done when the roof was done in 2007, but decided to do it now.

Do not have any metrics to set the price that he is charging, but him and his dad did the two windows and the roof vent quicker in two hours, than I could have done it in eight.


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## Ron6519 (Mar 28, 2007)

gregzoll said:


> Ron, I saved money yesterday by having my roofer take out two windows in our attic that were rotting around the panes for the mullions and the sills. The key was that I was having a roof vent installed & a chimney cap, which we did not have done when the roof was done in 2007, but decided to do it now.
> 
> Do not have any metrics to set the price that he is charging, but him and his dad did the two windows and the roof vent quicker in two hours, than I could have done it in eight.


And how does this reinforce your point that DIYer's do jobs because they want it done correctly when you hired someone else to do the job?
What you did was save time. And while this decision might have gotten the job done correctly, it was not done by a DIY'er.
People do work in their own houses to save money. This decision isn't always the wisest one, but that's why they do it.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

I hired my guy, because the work I was having done was beyond the fact that he knows how to do the roof work, so that it does not leak. The same reason that when you have a door like the OP, you use the proper materials to complete the job. That means if you have to order a door from the manufacturer to fit the opening, you do it. What you do not do, is place a board at the top of the doorway to make up for an odd size opening.

Only if you know what you are doing, you can make it work, but nine times out of ten, you can notice when someone does a job like this incorrectly. If it was me, I would be ordering a custom sized storm door, not frame out the opening smaller.


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

Ron6519 said:


> If you have brick molding, or any trim for that matter. Just install the same width board at the top of the door, lowering the height to what's needed for the storm door.


I’m not really fallowing you on this one. If what you mean is to install over sized trim over the existing trim on three sides to create the needed opening then yes you can obviously modify the opening but the steps to get you there varies. My first choice would be to “replace” the existing trim with new wider trim to maintain the existing flashing details. Trim over trim is certainly easier and OP I looking for the easy way to do it and if the existing trim has a flush face and is wide enough to support the extra 2" then it’s pretty straight forward but in the case of brick mould or other narrow trim there would be more to it than just nailing trim over the face of trim (which is why I requested a pic). 



gregzoll said:


> Why not do it correctly and special order a door to fit. A whole lot better than doing some hack job.





> No Ron, the essence of a DIY is to do it correctly, and not to cut corners.


The guys dog trashed the storm to the back yard, he already has a door stored in the garage. How is it wrong to help him make it work? We’re not talking about anything that would be violating any codes or be deemed unsafe and in all likelihood this door will succumb to the dog too at some point.


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## Ron6519 (Mar 28, 2007)

kwikfishron said:


> I’m not really fallowing you on this one.


The door opening is too high for a standard door(82"). The width can also be reduced or the trim redone to reflect the opening needed. Whatever is easier. I suggested to the OP that he put a filler piece, about 1 1/2"-2"x34" at the top of the opening so it would fit a standard storm door. The filler piece would be as thick as the trim already there. If it were brick mold, then about 1 1/8" thick.


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## Ron6519 (Mar 28, 2007)

gregzoll said:


> I hired my guy, because the work I was having done was beyond the fact that he knows how to do the roof work, so that it does not leak. The same reason that when you have a door like the OP, you use the proper materials to complete the job. That means if you have to order a door from the manufacturer to fit the opening, you do it. What you do not do, is place a board at the top of the doorway to make up for an odd size opening.
> 
> Only if you know what you are doing, you can make it work, but nine times out of ten, you can notice when someone does a job like this incorrectly. If it was me, I would be ordering a custom sized storm door, not frame out the opening smaller.


The guy has a door alrerady. He's not getting a custom sized door because you think that's the way it should be done.
He asked how he could use it and I told him.
Will it look odd? Maybe, but that's his call. He spends some time putting it in and then he looks at it. If he's happy with the money saving solution, end of story.
Like I said in the beginning, DIY'er's are in it to save money on the job. Sometimes looks are compromised. Not my call. It's when function and/or safety is compromised, I advise other solutions. 
Bottom line, it's their house, they can do what they want.


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