How to Install a Prehung Door

By: Charles Wardell, This Old House magazine

A door is a precision instrument. It should consistently snap into its latch, clear its jamb, and swing effortlessly on its hinges. The fine tolerances needed to achieve this kind of performance help explain why hanging a door is considered a true measure of carpentry skill.

"I started out using little more than a hammer, a chisel, and a screwdriver," says This Old House general contractor Tom Silva. In those days, he'd assemble the jamb, hand-cut the hinge mortises, and hang the door separately. "It took a good long time and lots of patience," he says. A prehung door does simplify and speed up installation, but the term "prehung" is really a misnomer. These doors and jambs must still be carefully adjusted to account for shortcomings in the wall frame. "It requires accuracy to put in one of these," Tom says. "If it's not installed right, it won't hang well."