Labor-only door installation is simple in concept: you buy the door, we hang it. In practice, the day goes well or badly based on what shows up in the garage before we arrive. The wrong swing, the wrong jamb width, or a slab with no hinge mortises can turn a two-hour install into a return trip to the store.
This is the checklist we send homeowners in the Twin Cities before a labor-only door job. Follow it and you'll buy the right door the first time, whether it's from Menards, Home Depot, a lumberyard, or online.
Prehung or slab?
A prehung door comes hinged in its own jamb with the stop and (on exterior units) the sill and weatherstripping already in place. A slab is just the door panel. If you're replacing an exterior door, buy prehung — the old frame almost never seals well enough to justify keeping it, and a new sill is half the point in Minnesota.
For interior doors, prehung is still the easier install if the old casing is coming off anyway. Slabs make sense when the jamb and casing are in good shape and you want to keep them, especially in older Minneapolis and St. Paul homes with original stained millwork. A slab install means fitting the door to the opening, mortising hinges, and boring for the latch, which is more labor per door.
Measure these four things
Grab a tape and a helper. Write everything down and take photos of the door from both sides.
- 1Rough opening — pull the casing (or measure behind it) and measure the framed opening width and height. A prehung unit needs about 1/2" to 3/4" of play on each side and at the top.
- 2Existing door size — width and height of the slab itself. Standard interior doors are 24", 28", 30", 32", or 36" wide by 80" tall; most entry doors are 36" by 80".
- 3Jamb width — measure the wall thickness from drywall face to drywall face. Most 2x4 walls need a 4-9/16" jamb; 2x6 exterior walls need 6-9/16". Newer homes with thicker sheathing or foam may need custom.
- 4Swing and handing — stand on the outside of the room (or outside the house for an entry door). If the hinges are on your right and the door swings away from you, it's a right-hand door. Hinges on the left, swings away: left-hand. If it swings toward you, it's a right-hand or left-hand reverse.
Exterior door specifics: sill, brickmould, and bore
Entry and service doors have a few extra choices. The sill should be an adjustable or composite sill, not bare wood, and it needs to sit on a solid, level subfloor. Order the unit with brickmould attached if your exterior is siding and the old door had it; on stucco or brick, we may install without brickmould and trim differently.
Hardware bore is the hole pattern for the lockset. Most doors come with a 2-1/8" bore and a 2-3/8" or 2-3/4" backset; confirm the deadbolt bore is included if you want one. Handlesets with a separate deadbolt need a 5-1/2" center-to-center spacing on most units. Buy the lockset before the door so the specs match.
Who supplies what
Here's how we split the shopping list on a typical labor-only door install. Other installers may do it differently, so ask up front.
| Item | Homeowner buys | JMB supplies |
|---|---|---|
| Door (prehung or slab) | Yes | — |
| Lockset, deadbolt, hinges for slabs | Yes | — |
| Interior casing and exterior trim | Yes (we tell you the footage and profile) | — |
| Shims, fasteners, low-expansion foam | — | Yes |
| Sill pan and flashing tape (exterior) | — | Yes |
| Caulk and backer rod | — | Yes |
| Paint, stain, and finish | Yes, or your painter | — |
| Haul-away of the old door | Ask | Ask — often included |
Before install day
Have the door in the house, out of the box, at least a day before so it acclimates. Clear a path and move furniture near the opening. If the door is stain-grade, finish all six sides before we hang it — a bare door swells in a Minnesota summer and shrinks in January.
JMB Builders does labor-only interior and entry door installation across the Twin Cities metro. Buy the door where you like; we'll hang it plumb, seal it right, and case it clean. Licensed Minnesota contractor BC809005, free written estimates: 763-204-2099.
Frequently asked questions
Can you install a door I bought online?
Yes, as long as it arrives undamaged and matches the opening. Send us the product page before you order and we'll check the jamb width, handing, and bore.
What does labor-only door installation cost?
For a straightforward prehung interior door, most Twin Cities installs land in a few hundred dollars per door including casing; entry doors run higher because of sill prep, flashing, and exterior trim. A free written estimate pins it down for your opening.
Do I need to remove the old door first?
No. We remove the old door and casing as part of the install. If you'd like to save money by doing it yourself, ask first — pulling casing without damaging the drywall takes a little care.
