# How to case windows and doors after using 5/8 sheetrock



## HABSFAN2006 (Feb 25, 2009)

What if you install the doors shy 1/8" from the mouldings, which are flat, coming off the drwall, there will be a 1/8" gap. this could be filled in with a small 1/4 round of 1/2 x 1/2" dim. buting up against the large edge of the moulding? this would work good with mdf. not sure how this would look, what kind of moulding your using, what thickness they are etc.


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## hayewe farm (Mar 15, 2009)

Why don't you just cut some 1x and extend the jamb?


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## moondriver (Apr 30, 2009)

Here's the situation: These are pre-finished Merbau doors. They are $800 apiece and the jambs are prefinished. If I add strips to the jambs it's going to look tacky. I wish I could have gotten wider jambs. I could have bought some Merbau, milled it, sanded it, finished it, but it would never have matched the rest.


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## jaros bros. (Jan 16, 2009)

There's no reason why you can't match the Merbau with a couple of small extensions and then have the stain and finish match. The magic is being able to look ahead and deal with issues like this so that you don't end up constantly fixing mistakes. 
I don't know what you are using for casing on either side. But if you really don't want to and it does look inappropriate and visually unappealing to have any other wood species you will have to use the Merbau. Make several samples until you get the finish perfect before you stain the real extensions.
You could also try to center the door in the opening and reef the drywall back a little. The casing should also be backcut with a table saw. However, this will pitch the casing on both sides at a slight angle. In the end, you will have to determine which route you would like to go.


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## Paragon (Jun 14, 2009)

MOONDRIVER STOP!!!

Here is the fix. I just finished a job where the "contractor" framed the walls so out of plumb that here is what I had to do. This job is EXACTLY like the job. You need to basically forget the drywall exists and get that door in there so that it is plumb and not swinging on its own then address the drywall. I know it goes against what one naturally wants to do but trust me this works I did it 9 times with doors and 3 more times with windows so I know this works! I just hope I explain it well enough for someone to understand. If you need further explanation I will get it to you so that you don't ruin those beautiful doors, or you could pay me gas money and I will come finish it for you, LOL. Here is the link to the project that is what you will be doing 

http://paragonrenovations.net/basementtrim.aspx

Okay here we go...

To eliminate the annoying door swing:

1)You will have to plumb the hinge side both toward the door AND toward the room or in other words the face that has the hinges and the face that the trim attaches to or the 5/8" edge (just stay with me as we will address the drywall aspect after this) and then secure it with shims and nails (you kow that part I am sure)

2) Now you need to leave the latch side loose and secure the top by pinning it with one or two nails and now close the door so that it touches the door stop at the top. Now you close the door (as the door will be plumb because you plumbed it.. ahh both east and west and North and South if that makes sense in other words it is plumb between the jamb legs the other way too) and just get that leg so that it contacts the door all the way down. Then set it this way and the door then is set plumb and the door does not swing anymore on its own.

3) Now what the heck do we do about the sheetock that may be severely out of whack right? Well fear not here is the solution!

This is based upon using casing that is at least 2 1/4" wide and you will have at least a 3/ 16" reveal on the doors. I am guessing you will not be using any casing narrower than that.

Okay here is what you do. Scribe a line out 2" from the inside of the jambs on the sheetrock. I used a tri square and set it at 2" and slid it down the inside of the jamb while drawing the line on the drywall. You could just pull a tape 2" out from the jamb insides or the edge where the door abuts to.

I then cut the sheetrock with a carpenters knife on that line and chipped it out. You only have an 1/8 of an inch to compensate for so you won;t have to remove the sheetrock too deep but I would remove at least 1/2 of the thickness of the rock or like 5/16th of an inch. Then install your trim and voila you will never know the rock was proud of the jambs because the trim will gradually make the transition.

here is the link to the project and there is a breif explaination as to the process I used there as well check it out and if you are confused about any part let me know. Creating an extension jamb will be a nightmare for you and will make the doors look goofy although you could do a sharp double reveal but I think you will find this method a viable option and the final decision is up to you.

Good luck and be safe, if you have any other questions post it here or email me!


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## moondriver (Apr 30, 2009)

Repost- I think I lost everything to cyberspace and am trying to remember what I wrote. (We had a recent death in the family and everything ground to a halt while we grieved and took care of issues, and I was telling you all that I was sorry for my rudeness in not answering promptly. And I certainly appreciate the help everyone gave me..

While the answers all have merit and I would have used either the trim or extension if it had not been finished material, I believe Paragon has the correct answer. In fact I had done two of the doors that way, but it was so time consuming I decided to ask on the forum. I thought maybe there was a magic tool or something that would make it go faster. But he's right, you take the casing and put it on the wall, in place, the scribe a line along the outer edge of the casing, then with a straight edge and sharp knife make a cut as deep as possible in the drywall (several passes). Then (I use a Fein Supercut) from the edge of the jamb I cut into the drywall perpendicular to the paper face until I reach the knife cut. It's slow, horribly dusty, messy, aggravating, and a complete pain in the ass. But the casing then fits into the "rabetted" drywall and the edge along the drywall can be filled with mud or caulk, then wiped and the drywall repainted and it looks nice and no one notices the variation in casing depth. (See photo)

Thanks for all the help.

Moon


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## Paragon (Jun 14, 2009)

First of all Moondriver I offer my condolences for your loss.

Congrats on figuring the puzzle out on your own!

The only variation on the solution I offered was that I would have kept the trim on top of the finished surface. You would possibly have a Little twist to it but the finished product would have been just fine. 

This process is a PIA and I know all too well how slow it is. I have another person to blame and can't kick myself while making the corrections, LOL just giving you a hard time!

So take care and again I offer my condolences for your loss.

Take care and enjoy the new finished project!


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## Paragon (Jun 14, 2009)

Ohh btw Moondriver did you figure out how to elimate the annoying automatic door swing effect?


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## moondriver (Apr 30, 2009)

Yeah, I plumb the jamb. This of course results in an uneven amount of drywall rabbeting, since of course the numb-nuts who framed this house didn't use a level.:furious:

But the average person won't notice the difference in thickness of the casing that winds up showing.:thumbup:


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## Paragon (Jun 14, 2009)

You got it! 

BTW did you look at the project I linked you to? Could have killed that "contractor" that didn't know the first thing about framing. I told the client the best thing for his new to the business "carpenter" to have to do is trim out his own work. That way the "hack" that he hired would understand the importance of framing door openings (especially!) plumb. If the field of the wall is a little out it isn't that big of a deal but at the door openings a half or quarter bubble spells disaster for the trim carpenter. (notice the continual downgrade of his job title? yes that was intentional)

Also, I wish these clients would not reward these "hacks" with more work because they are simply giving positive reinforcement to their poor work and then the contractor never changes his ways while the good ones that "cost too much" starve. This client gave out this "hacks" name to three other people that hired him even after he saw the shotty work that he did so basically three more victims experienced the pain of poor workmanship at a bargain price.

Anyways, I am going to get down off my soap box now and simply congratulate you on figuring out that puzzle on your own. Some may have simply left it and said it couldn't be done but you got er figured out and I applaud your ingenuity. Amazing the domino effect of poor workmanship. I always say I hate the term "rough carpentry" because none of it really is rough because if the guy who lays the job out is sloppy it just carries over from component to component to component and the finished product is where the errors show up.

Take care and btw the doors are beautiful and you did a great job!


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## moondriver (Apr 30, 2009)

Thanks. I'll post some photos of the bathrooms I have done since you are also in the bathroom business. Give me a day or two.


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