Is it possible to reverse a steel exterior door so that it will open from the opposite side? What is involved?

Question

Woodwork involved? Re-drilling?

How do I fill the old hole where

the handle and deadbolt used to be?

What material to use, etc.

If it matters, it has an oval glass that ends approximately eight inches from the top

and 13 inches from the bottom.

Answer 1

The easiest way would be to flip the entire door and frame around, but of course the k**b or handle will be on the opposite side of the door from where it is now. If that won't work, you might as well buy a new door with the proper "hand". Filling the holes would be a poor option.

Flipping the door can be done yourself if you are handy. Expect to find hidden nails that you will have to sawzall through, and maybe construction adhesive...which can take some work to get loose without damaging the frame.

You start by removing the trim on both sides. Then remove the screws that hold the frame into the opening. Find all the things holding the frame in and cut or chisel loose. After you get the frame and door flipped, the trim will go back on the same side it came from. Expect to have to replace or re-work some of it as it may split during removal.

Get a brochure from Lowes Depot on installing doors, shimming is important.

I did this myself, and it turned out great considering I had never done it before....Good Luck!

Answer 2

Yes it can be done!

You will have to remove the slab and hardware(hinges and strikes)

Transfer all the mortise locations to the opposite jambs(this must be precise)

Make the new mortises and fill the old ones with "Bondo"

Most steel residential slabs are through mortised for the hinges. If this one is not, you will have to also do this so the hinges can be reversed.

If you`re extremely security conscience, you should also remove the oval insert and reverse it also. This can be a very difficult abd tedious job, are you sure you really want to do it?

Answer 3

definitely not! (i once thought this could be done) If you take frame and all out then you'll end up with your sill backwards (the water will run in instead of out) not good and like was pointed out before you'll have the screws outside instead of in (that could be reversed but the sill would be messed up either way). if you try to just reverse the hinges then you will find that your stop will be the wrong direction. plus there's a small taper on the door that allows it to slide the rest of the way into the jamb. the slab can be reused but you're going to need to replace frame and all that noise. which involves using a saws all and buying a new frame (isn't exactly cheep on it's own right around $50) and hinges you'd want non removable pin hinges unlike the interior ones. Might as well just get a new door as to deal with the headache of that noise.  

Answer 4

Wow!  Sell the door on Kijiji.com and buy a new one.  Believe me, you don't need this headache.

Answer 5

Trust me, this is not a DIY project! Redrilling and filling holes is the least of the job.

Answer 6

you cannot do this on a residential door in any means that would be practical. if you turn the entire door and frame around converting the door from an inswing to an outswing(or vice versa), the screws that hold the glass in would be on the outside. i could walk up to your door with a screwdriver, remove the glass, and either walk into your house or open the door. you cannot move the door from one side of the door stop to the other, the areas on either side of the stop are not the same width. if you move the hinges and lockset\deadbolt to the other side you will have a large scarplate over the old lock holes. just not worth it. a similar replacement correctly handed door is under $300, less if you go with less glass.

Hope that helps.