Interior Doors: Sizes and Other Selection Criteria Anyone engaged in home renovations primarily aims to make their living space more comfortable. An essential element in creating coziness is the installation of interior doors.
Not so long ago, the choice of interior doors was relatively limited. With each passing year, the demand for interior doors is increasing, and manufacturers offer a vast array of various models. This is why the modern buyer does not face difficulties in choosing an interior door.
Before embarking on the purchase of an interior door, it is important to pay attention to:
- the material of manufacture
- the type of construction
- the door opening mechanism
- the appearance
- the dimensions of the interior door (often the sizes are standard: height + width)
Standard Types of Constructions
Wooden interior doors are mainly crafted in four standard types:
- Paneled Doors: These doors have a frame made of timber and several additional components. Gaps between the frames are filled with panels made of MDF, glass, or wood.
- Flush Doors: These doors resemble a frame, and their openings are covered with MDF. The inner part is filled with cardboard cells or wooden inserts. What distinguishes these doors from paneled ones is that they are lighter and more budget-friendly.
- Assembled (Frame) Doors: These doors consist of separate elements and are assembled like a construction set. They are put together using screws or flush-mounted fixtures on the side. The first option allows for inconspicuous fastening, and visible attachment points are concealed with caps.
- Molded Doors: The construction of these models includes a vertical insert made of impact-resistant glass with two supports on the sides.
Standard Materials for Manufacturing Interior Doors
- Solid Wood Doors: Often constructed from solid wooden components, these doors provide durability and a lengthy lifespan. When installing such doors, it’s essential to consider the quality of the hardware due to the substantial weight of the construction.
- Veneered Doors: These doors are more affordable and fall into the category of doors made from natural materials. The core of the construction consists of a beam made of coniferous wood. The covering is a layer of natural veneer.
- Laminated Doors: Their distinct feature lies in the use of inexpensive artificial coatings on a paper basis, typically eco-veneer and PVC.
- Glass Doors: Enjoying high demand, these doors utilize impact-resistant material like Triplex. Such doors come in two construction variants: frameless or on a metal frame (aluminum).
Interior Doors: Standard Sizes
The first thing to consider before choosing an interior door is its size. Standard parameters for interior doors imply the width, depth, and length of the door panel.
The standard sizes of interior doors are usually 200 cm in height and around 80 cm in width. In other words, 80*200 cm is the “golden standard” for interior doors.
However, the market offers numerous other non-standard sizes, many of which are introduced by door manufacturing companies. Among non-standard doors, there are models up to 2300 mm in height.
There are also certain standards approved in the country where the doors are manufactured. It’s worth noting that standard European doors significantly differ in size from American doors.
Therefore, when purchasing a door panel from, for example, an Italian brand, be prepared for the new door simply not fitting into the existing door frame.
The adjustment of non-standard door openings should be done well before choosing the door panel – ideally during the planning stage of housing or major renovations.
The primary criterion that determines the sizes of interior doors is the purpose of the room in which they will be used. For example, the width of doors for a living room according to domestic standards is 80 cm, for a kitchen – 70 cm (10 cm less), and for a bathroom – only 60 cm.
Moreover, the installation of double doors with leaves ranging from 40 to 60 cm is acceptable for rooms. Accordingly, the standard width of a door opening for a room can be up to 120 cm.
The standard depth of a door opening for a bathroom usually does not exceed 7 cm, while in a room, it can reach 20 cm – depending on the thickness of the walls and design considerations.
Door sets presented by major manufacturers typically precisely match the existing standards for panel size. Additionally, ready-made interior doors of standard sizes cost 30-50% less than custom-made ones.
Standard sizes are universal and suitable for all typical apartments, so manufacturers produce a wide range of models for such doors. Besides ensuring that a ready-made set for installation eliminates discrepancies in sizes, it also guarantees easy installation.
Therefore, it is recommended to purchase ready-made sets. However, before making a final decision to buy a particular ready-made model, it is important to ensure that the costs of preparing the opening will be fully justified.
Note that restructuring the opening will not be necessary for sliding doors or folding accordion doors. Both types of doors can be installed without a door frame.
Most often, a “standard” door frame has a thickness of 30-35 mm (for non-standard models – 15-40 mm). This measurement is usually equal to the thickness of the walls.
If the chosen door and its frame are narrow, builders use additional elements to adjust the size of the opening to fit the selected door.