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Doors are the portals to you home. They are one of the first things guests see when they visit and the last thing that they see when they leave. It is important to have a nice door. As someone who is eco-savvy, you may want to reclaim a door instead of having a new one manufactured. Here's how.
Removing a door is a cinch. Get a buddy to hold the door or place a wedge underneath to push the door's weight upwards. Knock out the pins with a hammer and chisel, then use a screwdriver to remove the hinges. If throughout the years the pins have been repeatedly painted over, just remove the door by unscrewing all the hinges. Once the hinges and pins are away from the door, chisel away at the paint. You now have a salvaged door. Disclaimer: Read following.
It's not that easy. Doors made prior to 1978 have a good chance of having lead paint on them. You can't go chiseling away at lead paint without the possibility of contamination. You could breath in the dust. The Consumer Product Safety Commission suggests that lead-removal be done by the experts. You may have to get an expert to remove the paint for you. Don't even chisel a little lead paint. You should even wear a mask if you are turning screws with paint dust in their divots. There are classes out there that teach people how to deal with lead and other hazardous material. If you are a serious salvager or DIYer, it might be in your best interest to take those classes and get certified in hazardous waste removal.
Get a lead test to make certain there is no lead in the paint, you will want to remove the paint. The most eco-friendly way to do this is with sandpaper. A heat gun is another alternative. Repaint with non-toxic low/no voc paints.
The hard part is getting the reclaimed door back into your home. You'll find good instructions for that at Doityourself.com. The other problem you may face is that your door is smaller than the frame. You should have measured beforehand, but if you really want to put a tiny door into a large frame, there are some tricks.
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