How to Frame Doorways in the Basement

Door Placement

• 1

  Mark the desired location of a door on the basement wall with a pencil. Wall studs are usually spaced 12 inches apart, leaving a workable opening of 36 inches for a door.

• 2

  Select a prehung door unit. Choose a 32-inch door for general room use and a 36-inch door for utility and storage use. Standard-sized washing machines can fit through a 36-inch door. Measure the width of the entire door unit, and mark this measurement evenly between the designated studs that will flank the door opening. Keep in mind that a wider 36-inch door will require a larger finished frame opening of 38 1/4 inches.

• 3

  Cut the door opening. Measure 84 inches from the floor, and mark a horizontal line with a pencil and a level above where the door will be. From the center of this line, mark the position of the existing wall studs on both sides. Cut the door opening out with a reciprocating saw – 84 inches by 36 inches for a for a 32-inch door.

• 4

  Complete the installation of the door header. The header is the short section of wall between the top of the door opening and the ceiling. Measure the horizontal distance between the two vertical wall studs, and cut a piece of two-by-four to fit. Install it at the top of the door opening by leveling it and screwing or nailing it into the cripple and into the two vertical studs at each of its ends. The cripple consists of short vertical studs in the door header between the base of the header and the top plate. The top plate is the horizontal stud connected to the ceiling that forms the top of wall. Use the 3 1/2-inch screws and a drill or a pneumatic nailer and 3 1/2-inch nails.

• 5

  Cut two more pieces of two-by-fours using the length measurement of the cripple, and install them vertically and parallel to the cripple, above the header, on both sides of the cripple to complete the header construction.

• 6

  Install the vertical studs to frame the door. Measure the height between the header and the floor, and cut two two-by-fours to this measurement, using a compound miter saw. Align the vertical studs to each of the sides of the door opening with a level and flush with the existing wall studs, just under the header. Nail or screw them into both the vertical studs and into the header.

• 7

  Install the prehung door. For unfinished walls, install the sheetrock first before installing the door. For finished walls receiving this door addition, repair any wall damage before installing the door. With the framing of the doorway complete, it should measure about 34 1/4 inches wide. This width is just right for a prehung 32-inch door frame.

• 8

  Position the prehung door in the doorway, level it, and nail it into the doorway frame with a pneumatic nailer and finishing nails.