How to Cut the Bottom of a Hollow Interior Door Without Damaging It

If you’ve installed new flooring, such as ceramic tile, which can raise the level of your floor by about 3/4 inches, your existing doors may not open and close anymore. When the doors are solid wood, it’s a simple task to saw off the bottom of the door to accommodate the new floor height, but hollow core doors may splinter if you attempt to cut them off in the same manner. Cutting this type of door is a little more complicated, but it’s not difficult.

Measuring tape
Straight edge
Pencil
Masking tape
Utility knife
Circular saw
Wood glue
Scrap wood
Two C-clamps
Sawhorses
Old rug or blanket

Instructions

- 1
  Remove the door from its hinges and place it on two sawhorses, with the bottom end extending. Cover the sawhorses with an old blanket or rug to keep them from scratching your door.
- 2
  Measure the distance from the bottom of the door that you want to cut off, and make a pencil mark on one side of the flat surface of the door. Do the same thing on the other side of the door.
- 3
  Hold a straight edge between the two pencil marks and draw a pencil line. This is the cutline.
- 4
  Score the door along the cutline with a utility knife, fitted with a fresh blade. If it helps, you can hold the straight edge in place and score along its edge; just be careful that the straight edge does not slip during the scoring process.
- 5
  Score along the line a second time, this time using more pressure so the utility knife scores deeply, creating a cut at least 1/16 inch deep.
- 6
  Apply masking tape carefully along the scored cutline so it sticks to the upper portion of the door. No masking tape is necessary on the portion of the door to be removed.
- 7
  Fit a circular saw with a new blade and cut very carefully along the bottom edge of the scored groove. Do not cut directly in the groove. If the blade nicks the masking tape edge, it could splinter the door. As you cut, the blade will also cut through the other side of the door. A circular saw blade cuts from the bottom upward, so the other side of the door will not splinter.
- 8
  Remove the masking tape from the bottom of the door once you’ve cut the bottom piece off and look inside the cut-off piece. You’ll find a small section of wood wedged into the bottom. Pry this piece of wood loose.
- 9
  Run a bead of wood glue on the inside of the hollow portion of the door and insert the wood piece that came from the cut-off section.
- 10
  Put small blocks of wood on the top and bottom edges of the door to protect it and put a C-clamp on each end, over the wood blocks. Tighten the C-clamps to hold the bottom of the door firmly until the wood glue sets.
- 11
  Remove the clamps and lightly sand off any rough edges along the bottom of the door. Rehang your door.

How to Apply Urethane to a Wood Door

How to Remove a Fixed Panel Pella Door

Doors