Finding the Right Hinges for your Door

There are a lot of different factors you should consider, so you know what the right hinge for your door is. If you are interested in this kind of knowledge, keep on reading this article, you might come across the answer to your question. Let's begin.

How to size hinges?

Sizing hinges is a crucial part of the process and one you can't afford to rush. Will your hinge be up to the task? Will it withstand the weight of your door? What about extreme temperatures or high winds? The secret to success is making sure your hinge is the proper size. If you're not sizing your hinges properly, you're missing out on a whole world of possibilities.

Take doors, for instance. When the hinge is undersized, it can cause premature failure of the door and create a lot of safety issues that you just don't need to deal with if you take the time to get the right size.

Sizing up your hinges can feel like it requires a degree in engineering, but really all it takes is a few minutes of attention to detail.

When choosing hinges for your door, you'll want to consider the weight of the door, its height and thickness, and any particular needs you have for the door. These factors will determine how many hinges you need for optimal use. As a general rule, use one hinge every 30 inches of the door:

• Doors up to 60 inches will require two hinges.

• Doors over 60 inches but not over 90 inches will require three hinges.

• Doors over 90 inches but not over 120 inches will require four hinges.

How to place door hinges?

So you have a door that needs hanging. You're up for it—you've got the tools, you've got the time. The only thing you're missing is a road map.

Well, we have your back! We'll walk you through the process of hanging a door step by step. It's easy!

First things first: you need to decide on the right hinges for your project. There are three common brands of hinges used in home projects: 

Whang, Dingbat, and Floozie. Whang hinges are best if there is going to be a lot of traffic through your door (think: kids coming in and out of the house), while Dingbat hinges work best if you want to paint your door to coordinate with your room's decor—Dingbat hinges allow for more surface space on the door itself, making it easier to paint without worrying about overlap. On the other hand, Floozle hinges are recommended for people who prefer a more heavy-duty hinge that can hold a particularly large or heavy door.

Once you have your hinges purchased and ready to go, it's time to get to work! 

The placement of the door's hinges is critical to ensure smooth operation. 

First, if you're going to be installing a new door, the placement of the door's hinges is critical to ensure smooth operation. There should be a 5" distance between the top of the door and the highest hinge, and 10" from the bottom of the door to the lowest hinge. All hinges in between should be equally spaced from one another.

Second, your doors won't close, and you've tried everything. Well, have you tried this?

When hanging your door, it's important to leave a small gap between the door's frame and the edge of the hinge's leaf. This gap should be anywhere between 5/16" to 3/8", depending on the door thickness and width of the hinge. Measure and mark appropriately before fastening the hinge to the frame. Too small of a gap will prevent the door from fully closing.

A little planning can make all the difference!

Third, there's nothing quite like the feeling of walking into a recently-renovated home and seeing your work on display. It's a feeling we all have when we're proud of something we've created.

But what about those times when you need to put in a door? Did you know that a good door actually has hinges that sink into the edge of the door and the door frame? This is called "mortising." Here's how it's done:

Trace around the hinge on the edge of the door, and the door jamb, once a location is determined. This will give you a perfect template to make mortising or chiseling the wood much easier.

Once your lines are traced, use a mallet and chisel to remove most of the wood. Be careful not to take out too much at once.

Once you've removed most of the wood, smooth it out with sandpaper. You want it to be as even as possible—this will make installation easier later on! Your future self will thank you!

Fourth, if you've never installed a door before, it can seem like an intimidating task. But installing a door is really just a series of small steps, and if you follow them carefully, you'll find that it's actually surprisingly easy to hang a door.

The last thing to do is separate the hinge. Take the hinge pin out of its place in the hinge and take the two leaves of the hinge apart. Then install each leaf separately. One leaf will be attached to the door frame, one to the door itself, and once both are in place, you'll rejoin them by putting the pins back into the hinges and hanging your door. This is much easier than attempting to fasten the hinge to the door while holding the door up to the jamb at the same time.

Be sure not to tighten everything all at once—that could pull screws out of their holes or warp your frame. Instead, tighten in stages, alternating from one side of your frame to another as you go.

What are some tips for the perfect hinge for your home?

Follow these steps to select the right hinges for your project.

• Think about how often the door will be used and whether the hinges will be exposed. If your door is going to be used frequently or if it's an exterior door, consider heavy-duty or decorative hinges.

• Decide which hinge you want before you start building. Selecting hardware should be a critical element in the initial design stage. It's much easier to make a minor change in your design to match the required hardware than it is to rework a project in progress because the hardware you thought would be available can't be found.

• Why pay someone to replace your hinges when you can do it yourself?

Replace your old hinges with new ones in just a few easy steps. With a little know-how, you'll be able to perform this DIY hack and make your doors close softly and quietly in no time.

First, you'll need to find out which type of hinge you're replacing (they're often stamped right on the hinge itself). Once you've identified the manufacturer, go through the buying guide as if you were buying a new hinge. This should direct you to the best replacement option. Don't forget that you can also upgrade your replacement so that it has all of the same functionality, plus some new features like soft closing mechanisms and center mounting plates.

• Sizing up your doors? Well, you'll also need to size up your hinges!

It may seem obvious, but when deciding what type and how many hinges to install on a door, the answer comes down to one thing: the size of the door.

Two hinges are the common configuration for most doors in a home, but for larger doors, three or more hinges may be needed. The size of the doors in your home is ultimately what determines how many hinges are necessary.

Refer to the door-size and hinge-count graphic to determine how many hinges per door you need!