My house is transformed. To know where it started and to see it today is unbelievable. That is why it may sound strange when I state hanging a salvage door to close off the
I found the door at Building Value, my favorite stop for reclaimed material. It was just the door, no knob or jamb. I paid someone to build the jamb out of extra jambs I had. He had to reverse the swing and rip the width of the jamb to just 3″. He finished it much faster than I needed, so the back entrance became a priority because I didn’t want to add to my pile of projects already in the basement.
Before I could hang the door I needed to put the tile down on the landing. Timing was perfect as I had just finished the master shower and knocking this out now meant I could retire my wet saw for a long time. I like laying tile, but my two bathrooms wore me out. I had a few pieces left from the tub area in the master bath and I thought it would be great in that area, but I didn’t have enough to cover the entire surface. I most certainly was not going to order more, so I got the idea to border the sides and use the tile in the center. I found the perfect match at the Tile Shop, Workshop Desert Wood Look Porcelain 4 x 47. I only needed four pieces.
Before I could lay the tile I had to level out the surface. No pics to show, but I used Mapei Novoplan Easy Plus self-leveling underlayment from Floor and Decor. Mixed and poured in the low areas on top of the cement board I had installed. Amazing how well it worked. I also decided that a pretty landing would pale next to the worn out steps, so I decided to cover them with RetroTreads I found at Lowe’s. I did the prep work for those as I knew it would generate a lot of saw dust. I had to cut the overhang off each step. I knew the tile would create a need for a reducer going do into the basement. I bought one before I knew the width I needed to cover and it was way too narrow, so I bought a Stairparts 11.5×48 Stair Tread, which I was able to rip down to the right width. It was the perfect height, butting up perfectly to the tile.
With a close enough level surface I started with the border tile. I wanted it to meet on the corners with 45 degree angles and 3 of the 4 angles would be impacted by the door or steps. This tile project would have been 100% perfection if I had not forgotten to account for the new riser I was putting on the steps. The most complex corner ended up being off by 1/2″, so I ended with a much thicker grout line in that corner.
I used my triangle square to make show the box was aligned correctly and then I did a dry run with the center tile. If all went well I would have two pieces to spare. Key was finding the center as it would allow me to get two spaces from one tile once I got to the perimeter pieces. I didn’t miss a cut until the last piece of tile, so I ended the project with one piece to spare.
Next day was grouting, followed by cutting the treads to the right width. With the dry fit of the steps down, I stained them with the Early American stain I had to match the kitchen door and added two coats of Bona Floor sealing.
I’ve never hung a door by myself. The entrance to the basement wasn’t close to being square. I knew the door was not as wide as the original, but it was the right height and style. I’ve been looking for that door (and office) for two years. I needed to close up the opening, so I got a 2×4 and ran it down the hinge side of door. I knew it was import to make that side level. To do so I had to shim out the top while the bottom was flush to the wall.
I also needed to cut off some of the top of the entrance. I used my 4′ level to strike a line. To make it level I cut almost 2″ from the left side and only an 1″ from right. No pics (down fall of working alone) I did a plunge cut with my circular saw and my job max tool to get the corners the circular saw could not reach. I went old school and used 10d, 3″ finishing nails to set the door. I drilled a hole for the door knob to catch, but need to find a strike plate to finish it off. I amazed myself by how well that went in. The door was in really good shape. Dusty, like my other trim and doors, so I went back to my Howard’s Restor-A-Finish stand by. One day when I’m bored because EVERYTHING else is finished I may paint the other side to match the walls. For now the pale yellow will be just fine.
With the door hung, tonight I turned my sights on the steps, which was a piece of cake to install. I kept the top step riser original as the nose of the top step feeds into the kitchen flooring. I put new risers on the bottom two steps (bottom step I actually installed before the tile) and used denatured alcohol to clean up the stair strings. I was out of the correct tint of Restor-A-Finish for the strings, so I rubbed them with the Early American stain. I put down Liquid Nail first and then used the 10d nails for added measure. Just beautiful.