For DIY enthusiasts: reusing wooden doors

I do what I do and end up back at recovered wood. I think it is a raw material with great potential, and those who work with it have my respect. I have seen that both warehouses for this type of wood and companies that use it have sprung up in our country, which I think is a very good sign of maturity, both in the production field and among customers. I will also talk about recovery in this article, but this time I will talk about the reuse of wooden doors and what can be made out of them with imagination and ... a little more work. 🙂

I have heard many times from people who are renovating their apartments or houses that they find it very difficult to get rid of old doors after exchanging them for new ones. Hard to find people willing to take them, especially in warmer periods when even the prospect of setting them on fire is not there. But what if, instead of being thrown away, they were kept and later turned into useful objects? Let me give you some examples.

Old wooden doors can be used to make tables. Coffee tables can be made,

work desk,

or normal family meals.

They can be used to build a coat hook to put in the entrance hall,

or to make book covers, decorative objects or... garden tools.

I found the corner one, made from a door cut in half lengthwise, to be a more special one. With a more elaborate door, you can even make an elegant polish.

3-4 old, lighter doors can be used to make a screen to enclose an area of the house.

Keeping the same purpose as a door, it can be used to make a discreet storage area for small items in the kitchen.

I found the idea below, from a restaurant, very interesting. The doors are used both to decorate the walls, but also as a way of displaying the wine.

On the face of it, it all sounds very simple, but reusing doors is a bit of work. First they have to be thoroughly cleaned. There are also cases where they are used as they are, even if the paint has come off. The result is antique-looking objects that many people appreciate. If you're not one of these people, then it's a good idea to clean the doors first. It is a difficult operation and can be done by stripping with special paint strippers (which you can find in any DIY store), followed by wiping the soaked paint and sanding. Cleaning off the old coat of paint can also be done by flame burning, or by mechanical sanding (by hand is much too hard). And sandblasting is one way to get rid of old paint, but not for a DIY project (special equipment and protective gear needed).

After removing the old layer, the wood is polishes white, then color and finish according to your wishes. I recommend using materials that are easy to apply and give you as little hassle as possible.

Finally I have a example of reusing doors is the perfect "here's what two deft hands can do" idea. John Doucet, a clever American, decided to reuse the leftover cushions from his old sofa to a new one made from doors salvaged from some neighbors in the neighborhood. He needed three doors: one for the back, one for the side and one for the seat.

It started with doors that looked like this,

which he cut to the dimensions of the new sofa. He then stripped the resulting pieces, cleaned them, and assembled them using salvaged screws to keep the old look. After assembling, he sanded the wood well, stained it a mahogany shade and applied 2 coats of polyurethane varnish with sanding in between, resulting in the sofa below.

John says he worked 42 hours on this project, 30 of which were just cleaning the doors, and the cost of the materials used (bath, varnish, glue, putty) amounted to... 55 $. Good price for a sofa.

Another thing I liked when I read about this project - this kind of furniture, made from reclaimed wood, is called... frankenfurniture. 🙂