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Labor Charge to Hang Doors
Question
Forum Responses
Here is a list of what will be needed to be done. Installation of 5/4" jambs.
My charge would be in the ballpark of $250.00 per door (excluding finishing).
From contributor C: As a labor contractor in the seventies, I had a farm-home project of seven identical buildings for finish trim. One day, I sent a crew of four and they hung all the doors for one building in an eight hour shift. The next month, another building was ready but the crew was not available. I went to the jobsite myself, and hung all the doors in a building by myself in seven hours. The conclusion, I guess, is even with the best intentions; all men are not equal to a labor task. I stopped buying pre-hung doors when I found out that I was paying two and a half times more for the pre-assembled parts. Ever since, I have put those labor dollars in my own pocket. To pre-hang the doors yourself, rather than building them in the rough opening, will save you time and earn you more money. A simple shop setup is all you need to accomplish the task; whether you have a formal shop, a garage, or on the jobsite. A little research into the cost of a pre-hung door of similar quality should give you a handle on what the labor is worth by the market standard.
From contributor J: One thing to keep in mind but would be good to check out is if you are removing old doors and hanging these new doors in the same opening. If you are you could be in big trouble. Normal jambs are 5/8 to 3/4". If you go 5/4 with same door size then you will have to re-frame all of the openings. From contributor F: I think Contributor C has a great idea here. If you’re going to install doors, why not generate as many labor dollars for your own business as you can? When I started out, most shops had a commercial hinge morticing rig in the house that worked with a router and straight bit. It seems to me that these kits also had commercial jigs for the locksets etc. in them as well. From the original questioner: There is no removal of old doors and the casing is butt joint square stock. We’re charging $80 a door (there are 16) to hang and trim – there are no lock sets and no finish. From contributor B: In looking for a hinge morticing jig, I have owned a Porter Cable for about 10 years now, but have also used the Bosh jig. I like the Bosch a little better. There are no huge differences, just the adjustments and the feel is a little more to my liking. I work in New Jersey and would get about $225.00 a door. If you are doing a ton of doors, and set up a system, you can knock them out fast, charge a little less, and still make a lot of money. From contributor C: Pre-made morticing jigs, of course are a wonderful thing, and the router manufacturer is justified in providing them. They are, however, a considerable investment if you are not going to use them on a regular basis. A little pencil and paper work, a strip of plystock and a 1x2 will make you a jig for sixteen doors. I have made morticing jigs for every kind of hinge you can imagine. One anomaly I would caution you about; not all router bases, or the accessory bushings used for template work are centered on the bit. If you articulate the cut the same way each time, you can avoid minor discrepancies.
From contributor D: Assuming they are pre-machined doors I charge 1 hour to hinge and swing. It takes about ten minutes to do this but in that price I have the cost of pulling the hardware, calls to the hardware supplier, shimming the door and all those other jobsite things. It takes about an hour per door for residential, stop and casing included adds about 15 minutes if you have to bevel the door. As for hinge templates I wouldn't necessarily get Bosch or Porter cable templates. I have two PC templates that haven't been out of the case for 15 years. They take too long to set up, they're too easy to knock out of adjustment, or set up improperly adjusted and if you're machining a lift of doors you can ruin a lot of doors before you even know you are screwing up. I make my own templates and they are utterly foolproof. If you are new to machining doors and want a simple foolproof template I would suggest checking out the site below. http://www.templaco.com/html/categories.asp?category=Full+Length I have never used their hinge templates, but I have been using their strike templates for a couple of years now. They're dead accurate and I can buy them for less than I can make them.
The comments below were added after this Forum discussion was archived as a Knowledge Base article (add your comment). Comment from contributor S:
The comments below were added after this Forum discussion was archived as a Knowledge Base article (add your comment). Comment from contributor M:
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