Interior doors are an important part of every room. They are found anywhere: in private apartments, offices, shops, government agencies. There is a huge selection of different variations of interior doors on the market. But for a long time, due to their affordability and variety of appearance, paneled doors have remained the most popular.
Panel door features
The leaf of a paneled door consists of a frame and inserts – panels, thanks to which the doors got their name and resemblance to a chocolate bar.
The variety of panel doors is quite large. They differ in colors, number of panels, shapes and patterns.
Door construction
The door frame – strapping frame – is usually made of solid wood or glued beams. The side and transverse parts of the frame are connected with wooden spikes. Panels that perform a decorative function are attached to the door in two ways:
- inserted into grooves pre-cut in frame parts;
- fixed to the frame with wooden glazing beads.
The second mounting option allows you to replace the panels in the future if they have received any damage.
Materials for the manufacture of panels can be varied:
- wood;
- MDF or chipboard;
- glass (frosted, transparent, colored);
- plastic;
- sandwich panels.
- There are options for doors that combine panels from different materials. For example, at the top – glass, at the bottom – from MDF.
- Pressed panel doors can be found on the market. They only imitate the external outlines of a paneled door, but have nothing to do with them.
- A real paneled door is easy to recognize: the frame of the product and individual inserts are clearly visible in it. Read about : shaggy rugs uk
Types of panels
Panels can have a variety of shapes:
- Floating fillet. It is made from blanks of the same thickness as the strapping frame.
- Flat or smooth panel. It has the same thickness over the entire area.
- Figery panel. It has a convex middle part and tapered edges.
Types of panel doors
Panel doors according to the place of use:
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- As a rule, such doors are wider than interior ones. Both the frame and the panels are made only from solid wood, which affects the cost of the door. However, the high price is justified by a respectable appearance and a long service life, which often exceeds the life of a human.
bespoke bedside table. They can be single or double sided. Made from solid wood and less durable wood materials.
According to the material from which the doors are made, there are:
- Solid wood doors. Most often, the material for the manufacture is the wood of spruce, pine, cherry. More durable and expensive options are made from oak, beech and walnut. Elite-class doors are made of mahogany and ebony.
- Combined type. Here, glued laminated timber is used to make the frame, and MDF, plywood, and chipboard are most often used for inserts. Combination doors can be covered with veneer, laminate or PVC.
The variety of paneled doors is so high that everyone will definitely find a door that meets their style and functional preferences.
Advantages and disadvantages
Benefits of panel doors:
- aesthetic appearance;
- lightness of construction due to lightweight inserts;
- the possibility of restoration, and, if necessary, even replacement of structural parts;
- relative cheapness;
- durability and strength;
- wide selection;
- good sound insulation;
- ease of care.
There were no obvious disadvantages in the use of arch doors. If manufacturers use high-quality material and the correct production scheme, then the door is able to serve and delight its owner for a long time.
Preparing for production
First you need to make accurate measurements of the doorway. Even small errors in measurements can be fatal and lead to the fact that the manufactured door cannot be installed and used.
Attentive, painstaking and precise work is the key to a good result.
We make measurements and prepare a drawing
Before the measurement process, remove the old door leaf, frame and trim, clean the opening from debris and dust. Then measure:
- The height of the opening from the floor to the ceiling.
- The width of the opening from wall to wall.
- The depth of the opening (wall thickness).
Transfer your measurements to a blank sheet of paper. Depending on the obtained dimensions, design the appearance of the door. You can use ready-made templates that are available on the Internet.
Door installation
Installing the door in the opening is the last step. If you have ever installed doors, then this process will not take you much time and effort. Otherwise, to make the task easier, follow the instructions below:
- We install the finished door frame in the opening.
- We fix the structure with special wedges.
As you can see, the manufacture and installation of a paneled door is a fairly simple task, the main thing is to draw up a competent drawing, not to get confused with measurements and follow the sequence of steps.
Operation and maintenance of panel doors
Any door requires careful and proper attitude. Paneled doors are no exception. In order for the door to retain a presentable appearance and functionality for a long time, it needs proper care.
Panel doors should be installed in rooms with a temperature regime of 18–24 °C. Air humidity is also an important factor affecting the safety of the door. For panel doors, a relative humidity of 55% is considered optimal.
To avoid delamination of the door leaf, in rooms with high humidity and temperature (bathroom, kitchen), the door should be kept open. Of course, while taking a shower, it can be closed, but after water procedures it is worth ensuring air flow into the room.
To clean the panel door of dirt, use an alcohol solution consisting of 90% water and 10% alcohol. Do not use cleaning products and abrasive powders – they scratch the door leaf and thereby spoil the appearance of the door.
Use a soft, damp cloth to remove dust from the surface of the doors, and then wipe dry.
Paneled doors are very susceptible to chemicals. Therefore, when you are planning repairs, it is better to remove the doors and put them in a safe place, but if this is not possible, you can cover them with plastic wrap.
Do not place even very thin objects under the doors – this can cause the structure to skew.
In order for the door to serve for a long time, it should be periodically varnished or painted. Before this, the surface of the door must be sanded with fine sandpaper and a thin layer of plaster or water-based paint should be applied. After the bottom layer has dried, the top layer is applied.
Repair and restoration of paneled doors
Even the most durable and reliable door may sooner or later require repair or restoration. Each owner can face wear of the hinges, skew of the canvas, loosening or cracking of the panels.
Loose panels can be fixed with glazing beads or glue, and the presence of small cracks and cracks can be hidden using putty and paint. Just fill the crack, sand and varnish or paint to match the door.
If the damage to the panels is serious, they cannot be replaced without replacement. The complexity of this process depends on how the panels are fixed in your door.
Table: the process of replacing panels depending on their fastening in the door
| Mount type | Replacement process |
| Fastening with spikes and grooves | 1. Take the door off the hinges.
2. We carefully disassemble the door into parts, excluding breakage of spikes and grooves. 3. We replace the damaged part with a new one. 4. Assemble the door back using glue. |
| Fastening with glazing beads | 1. We remove the glazing beads from one side of the door.
2. We take out the damaged panel. 3. We install a new one. 4. Glue or nail the glazing beads back. |
As you can see, if the panels are attached with glazing beads, then the replacement process is the least time-consuming and fast. In this case, there will be no need to remove the door from the hinges.
If you change all the panels in the door, they may differ in color and shape from the previous ones. Thus, you will not only restore the door, but also update its bored appearance.
Paneled doors, due to their attractive appearance and numerous advantages, rightfully occupy one of the leading positions among the variety of doors. Buyers are provided with a huge selection of designs, different in color, type and shape. But if you want to make a paneled door with your own hands, then it will not be difficult. A door made independently, like a factory door, will serve its owner for a long time and with high quality, if it receives proper care and timely restoration.
