White internal doors

[Cherryblossom200]

Hello everyone,

I'm doing some redecorating and need new doors upstairs for the bedrooms and bathroom. I don't want to pay a small fortune but also want fairly good quality doors. I've seen some moulded white doors on the Wickes website and they are an amazing price.

Just wondering if these are any good? Or if anyone can recommend some good quality 4 panel white doors which don't cost an arm and a leg but still have a heavy feel and look cheap?

Many thanks

Cherry

Try Todds doors. Very good quality. Remember with moulded doors you have very little margin for adjustment if your doorway is not a standard size.

I recently bought some b&q cheapish doors that were moulded and primed.

They were about £30 each plus £40 each to be hung (we had a joiner in doing other work and couldn't be fecked doing them ourselves.)

They look amazing.

the thin cheap doors at Wickes (and anywhere else) that you can lift up with ease, are made of air, with a thin decorative coating of hardboard.

They are rubbish.

Hollow doors don't block noise, so IMO are unsuitable for bathrooms or bedrooms.

How much can you spend?

How many floors has your house? How old is it?

Thanks guys, the house isn't old so tbh I don't mind not putting in super old beautiful doors. But I still want them to be fairly good quality.

I have a budget of approximately £200 for 3 doors..

How many floors has your house?

What are the dimensions and thickness of your current doors?

How old is the house?

I have two floors. House built in 80's - new build type/ going for a contemporary white, solid wood floor look if that helps. Door size is 726m wide and 2040mm high (metric) hope this makes sense!
Thanks Piglet x

Sorry to for slight tangent but I have a related question on doors and thought I would piggyback on this thread. I'm looking for doors that feel weighty and solid, and are in Victorian four panel style, but won't warp and crack like our current old Victorian pine doors. Does such a thing exist? Don't mind spending a fair bit if the result is good.

Mini
Look at 4-panel FD30 fire doors. Avoid the ones with fake embossed woodgrain. They are very substantial and block noise. Post separately and I will tell you about locks and knobs. They are 44mm thick and need to be professionally fitted. You will not be able to lift them. I used to have a larger Edwardian house and the original doors were 44mm (it is 2inch timber that has been subsequently planed). This is also the thickness of front doors.

Cherry
There is also a heavyweight 35mm door that would suit, the Premdor version is called "safe n sound"
However they seem to retail at the same price as FD30's, about £90 each, which I thought a bit high. I have not seen them stocked.

Look for a local door retailer (there will be one), see what they stock or can order. Their bread and butter will be cheap internal doors and Far East hardwood front doors.

In either case, you may need new doorframes (linings) which are not very expensive. Ask around for a recommended carpenter or joiner and ask his advice on local suppliers.

Thanks so much Piglet - you are a star!! X

I really wish I had got fire doors fitted. I had new door frames built as well as the old ones were in a terrible state. Gah! Oh well, my doors look nice but don't do much for shutting out noise.

Thanks Piglet - I have had a look and they certainly look solid! Yes they would be professionally installed. I will check the thickness of my existing Victorian doors which is what I want to replicate (but without all the warping..), I have a feeling upstairs are 35mm but ground floor may be thicker. I need flat panels rather than raised/bevelled style panels and so far can only find this in oak veneer like this but will keep looking for a pine version as we will be painting them anyway.

If we got something like this which is 35 mm and not a fire door, but is engineered - would it be likely to warp/crack?

if you're going to paint them, they don't need to be veneered.

Exactly - but the only fire doors I can find in the style I want (flat panels not raised) are veneered... So I was wondering if I could go with the 35mm non-fire doors instead these ones, or would they warp?

engineered core usually means thin strips of timber glued together, somewhat like a plywood. It may not stand up to weather or rain, but should resist warping. The edges should have a think strip of real wood so they can be planed a bit without exposing the core. The instructions will say how much you can take off.

The paint grade fire doors are much cheaper than veneer, the core is usually a sort of chipboard, the faces feel like pressed MDF, I don't know if that's the real composition. It is smooth (though some are made with a horrible fake woodgrain texture).

This is the Woburn which I like and the Stirling 4-panel one They are actually made by Premdor so you can get them at numerous suppliers in a vast range of sizes. Wickes do not keep the whole range. There are other makers which I imagine are just as good.

Thanks PigletJohn. (I would love to know how you know so much!)

The one I like (this one) says it's pine but with "engineered construction for greater strength and stability" - I have no idea what that means in real terms! But the faces aren't pressed or MDF as it's real pine, on the outside at least.

I've also found this one which is a fire door, and is smooth (I agree with you completely about the fake woodgrain) but on the other hand it's MDF rather than proper wood.

These are the only ones I can find in the particular style I'm looking for (I am fussy and want the match the existing Victorian doors!) - 4 panel and the panels must be recessed and flat (shaker style iyswim), with beading round the edge.

Any further comments welcome though I appreciate you may be bored to death of doors by now

fire doors I see are generally made of chipboard or possibly MDF (I have seen old ones made of plasterboard covered in ply. Ply tends to crack).

You occasionally see solid wood ones, they are very expensive. I was once in an office block where the doors were solid maple, I got into conversation with the joiner fitting one. He commented on the enormous weight.

Have a look at the Premdor site, browse their catalogue. Magnet Joinery also do (did?) some nice ones but their site is sectret. If you go to a depot, you will find an unobtrusive door round the back to the trade counter.

Thank you. I've now measured me Victorian doors, mostly 40mm, one is 50mm (thicker than the front door!) and all solid pine. They do feel very satisfying to open and shut. Maybe I should stick with those despite being warped and cracked as seems it will be hard to find something similar in a new door...

(Premdor and magnet look great quality but slightly wrong style again)