• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Crystel Montenegro at Home

  • Home
  • Project Categories
    • DIY Projects
    • Furniture
    • Home Decor
    • Lifestyle
    • Organization
    • Woodworking
  • About Me
  • Printables Library
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest

How to Remove an Exterior Door

July 11, 2020 by crystelmont Leave a Comment

Before and After of wall with door and painted wall without

There were a lot of quirky things about this 95 year old home when we moved in, and slowly we have been working to correct some of them. One of those things was that the bedroom downstairs didn’t used to be a bedroom, and had the only doorway to the backyard. We removed a window in the kitchen and replaced it with a door that went to the backyard. (You can read all about that HERE!) Now it’s time to remedy the weird door in the master bedroom!

I wanted to close up the door for a couple of reasons. First off, I didn’t want direct access from my bedroom to the back yard. Secondly it’s a small bedroom and I wanted the wall space. The 3 other walls in this room all had windows or doors and I wanted one big unobstructed wall. Here is the door before I started!

Before

Before photo of wall with door
Photo of wall with door and built in bookcase that was partially removed

On this other wall adjacent to the door there was a built-in bookcase that was oddly placed and very shallow which was not functional. I decided that while I was closing up the door I might as well close that up too.

Photo of built in bookcase that was partially removed

I cut back the sides of the bookshelf that was sticking out beyond the wall and removed the shelves.

Framing It In and Insulation

Image of pre-built 2x4 frame ready to be installed inside door

Before we took off the door, we measured and built the frame that would go inside out of 2×4’s.

Door framed in, plywood being installed on the outside
Plywood installed on exterior of door with siding waiting for installation

Once we nailed the frame in, we covered over the outside with plywood, and then again with siding that you would use for a shed. We don’t have the bricks or the budget right now to put bricks in so we are settling for letting it look like a closed up door!

Interior view of door framed in with plywood behind it

This is what it looked like from the inside. Before we added the insulation, we sprayed around all the gaps with this gap filler to keep any drafts out.

Insulation installed in between studs in door

Insulation was simple. Just shove it in!

When we nailed in the framing, we made sure to set it 1/2″ back to leave room for the sheetrock. That made it easy to cover the seams with the joint compound.

Adding Drywall and Foam

sheetrock covering insulation installed on both the door and the bookcase, foam around exterior door inside gaps

I insulated and screwed sheetrock into both sides, and then used the gap filler to fill up any other gaps I found in the exterior wall. The gap filler will expand quite a bit as it dries, so a little goes a long way. Don’t overdo it!

foam shaved off with bread knife to make it flat

Once the gap filler was completely dried, I shaved down the excess with a serrated knife.

Mud, Tape and Texture

Me beginning to mud the sheetrock

Finally it was time to add the first layer of joint compound! Ideally on the first layer you want to add your mesh seam tape to keep the joint compound from cracking, but I forgot to add it on the first layer so I just added it to the second layer and it did the job. To add my joint compound I just used a long spackle knife and feathered it out as I went making it as smooth as possible.

First layer of mud on both the door and bookcase

I also covered up my drywall screws with the joint compound while I was at it. You have to let this kind of joint compound dry for a full 24 hours in between coats, but there are certain kinds that will dry more quickly. You can see that this was a very rough coat and that my seams are still very visible, but as you keep adding layers of joint compound the seams will disappear.

2nd layer of mud on both door and bookcase

The next day I sanded down the dry layer of joint compound with a sanding block. I then added a second layer, feathering out each additional layer further as I went to help it blend in better. After each layer I gave it a thorough sanding. I also sped up my dry time by adding a fan and a heat lamp in my room. That allowed me to do a coat in the morning and another coat in the evening. This is the part that takes the most time because of the dry time, but if your joints line up when you install your drywall, you may not need to do as many coats as I did.

Beginning to add the layer of texture on both door and bookcase

After the 4th coat, I was finally ready to add the final texture layer! I used a spatula to spread the joint compound and then go over it lightly again to knock down some of the ridges, which I didn’t get a close up picture of. But what you do will all depend on your existing texture that you’re trying to match. I highly recommend looking up methods on YouTube!

Final coat of texture has dried and is ready for paint

This was my wall before I painted. In real life there was a much more visible difference between the wall color and the joint compound. I gave it one more good sanding and then swept the wall down with a broom to remove the dust.

Paint and Baseboard

Completed painted wall

Aaaand… paint! The lighting is terrible in this image because I took this at 4 am… I needed it DONE. I painted first with a primer specifically meant for drywall. You don’t want to skip this step unless you’re okay with your nice expensive paint absorbing into the joint compound/drywall and needing to do many multiple layers of paint to get good coverage. I then painted it with Benjamin Moore Boothbay Gray.

I waited until after the paint was dry to add my baseboard back on. Doesn’t it look good?? The outside stayed the color that it was but don’t worry… we painted over that when we painted over the house. I’ll show you that in a later post!

Thank you for following along and if you would, be sure to pin the image below for easy reference!

Before and After door removal with text overlay

XOXO,

Crystel Montenegro Signature Stamp

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)

Related Posts

Filed Under: DIY Projects Tagged With: Exterior Door, Insulation, Wall Paint, Wall Texture

Previous Post: « How to DIY a Storage Bench Mudroom
Next Post: How to DIY Picture Frame Molding »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Welcome!

Hey there! Welcome to my blog! I'm so happy to have you here, and I hope you'll find something that inspires you. Crystel Montenegro Home is a website that I started in an effort to show you that creating a beautiful, comfortable and functional home does not have to be an expensive or difficult ordeal, and that YOU. CAN. DO IT! Read More...

Categories

  • DIY Projects
  • Furniture
  • Home Decor
  • Lifestyle
  • Organization
  • Woodworking

Check out My Instagram!

PSA: Mother’s Day will be here before you know i PSA: Mother’s Day will be here before you know it and I know the perfect gift to get all of the mothers in your life! #ad
I made this sweet little book from @mixbook for my mom for her Mother’s Day gift and she is going to love it! My sweet Dad passed away not quite 3 years ago and I rounded up some pictures of him from my siblings that she may not have seen before.  I also made one for my mother-in-law with letters from each of her children in it along with pictures! I can’t wait to give these to them!  Don’t wait to make your mothers a book! They will cherish it forever ❤️❤️ Be sure to use my code CRYSTELM50 for 50% off your first #mixbook !  #mixbookpartner
It’s done!! Well, mostly. 😄 But can we all j It’s done!! Well, mostly. 😄  But can we all just appreciate that there is no more rock on the wall and no more weird window going into the shower?  I learned a lot with this project, and there’s a lot more to do still like put on baseboard and trim out the windows and build an entertainment center on the wall behind us.  But it will be nice to be able to use this room again!  If you were following along in stories you might remember that when we removed the wall we found a bunch of rot and mold that we had to remedy, and this room was freezing cold in the winter time because there was the wrong insulation and nothing was sealed properly.  What originally was going to be a simple removal of rock turned into an entire stripping of everything in this room down to the studs, re-wiring the electrical, sealing all the gaps, adding the proper insulation, adding fancy new lighting (and getting rid of the boob light😃), installing new sheetrock, tape and texture, and then finally paint!  It took some serious work, but thankfully I had Grandpa, @s_montenegro and @ammon.montenegro to help out!  So happy it’s finally finished! I’m wiped out, time to take the day off to celebrate my little Evelyn’s birthday!
Jumping for joy that this mudding is almost done! Jumping for joy that this mudding is almost done! Let’s take a look at where we started, shall we? (Swipe)  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again... mudding is a perfectionist’s nightmare! Lucky for me I’m no perfectionist 😂 are you??  I’ve never done tape and texture to this scale before and I have been learning A LOT.  My learning process goes kind of like this. I get an idea in my head and watch some YouTube videos on how to do it.  I jump in with both feet and usually very soon after starting find myself thinking “ohhh.... so THAT’S why they say to do that”. And then I shrug my shoulders and think “well, next time I’ll know!” And then the next time I do.  Everything in DIY can be undone and re-done. Sometimes it’s worth a re-do, and sometimes it’s not. Yes, you sacrifice time and convenience, but in the end if you keep your shoulder to the wheel you’ll not only get things exactly how you want it, but you’ll come away with more knowledge, a deeper appreciation for those that do this for a living, a serious sense of accomplishment, and all the many benefits that come from just plain old hard work.  Keep pushing, friends. Don’t give up. There is much more to gain than just the end result of your labor.
Happy Easter! He is Risen! I hope you all had a wo Happy Easter! He is Risen! I hope you all had a wonderful day. We had our egg hunt and dyed some eggs and the girls loved it!  Speaking of eggs... we have a chicken coop!! It turned out so cute, and Stuart came up with the design all by his little old self! Watch out for my stories for a complete tour!  We used mostly scrap wood that was from when we re-did the ceiling in our living room, and we even used the leftover plywood cut down to make some “cedar” shake!  I painted it before we shingled the roof with my @gracohomeownersprayers and it was the easiest paint job I’ve ever done!  All the details for this build can be found in my highlights.  Also... just you wait until I get this yard cleaned up. It’s going to be the cutest little yard with the cutest little coop you ever did see!  The only thing I’m bummed about is that we couldn’t make room for any windows for me to put window boxes on. I guess I’ll just have to settle for a cute wreath our the arched door!  #chickencoop #diyprojects #diy #backyardchickensofinstagram #backyardchickens
TABLE REVEAL! Isn’t it amazing how this table br TABLE REVEAL! Isn’t it amazing how this table brings this space to life?? I love walking by here and knowing that I built that. All of it. By myself.  And it’s so fun seeing my vision for this space become a reality!  I am so glad I decided to start over on the stain. Even though it added several hours to an already unpleasant process, I don’t regret that I did because I got it just how I want it. I would have regretted it if I didn’t!  Tell me what you think!  All the details for this build including stain color can be found in my highlights under “kitchen table”!  #girlswhobuild #buildlikeagirl #kitchentable #woodworkher #diningroom #diningroomdecor
How about this bay window, eh?? I am so happy to f How about this bay window, eh?? I am so happy to finally have it finished, especially with the indecision I faced with trimming out the windows. Swipe all the way to see the before!  I am loving how the picture frame molding dressed it up, but I will have you know that this rug from @wellwovenrugs was my inspiration from the very beginning. #ad  My husband is a practical kind of guy and has always been anti-rug under the dining table, especially with kids. But this one convinced him! Not only is the design beautiful and hides a lot of mess, but it is a truly machine washable rug!  I have purchased machine washable rugs before that are so stiff they’re almost not really machine washable, but this rug is so high quality and so pliable that it goes right in so easily!  These rugs are also super affordable, ethically made and Well Woven even provides free shipping! So go get ya one, and tell ‘em I sent ya! You can use the code CRYSTEL15 for 15% off orders over $75 until March 31st so hurry hurry hurry!  I have the Ripon Machine Washable Vintage Medallion Botanical Border Blue Red Flat-Weave distressed rug in a 5 x 7.  All the details for this bay window project can be found in my highlights!  #livewellwoven

Search this Site

Connect with Me!

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Favorite Posts

HOW TO MAKE A RUSTIC MIRROR FRAME

Easiest IKEA Hack ever: Turn a Boring Dresser into a Classy Bedside Table!

ikea nightstand ikea ideas ikea bedroom ikea dresser ikea hacker ikea room ikea ikea furniture ikea inspirations nightstand ikea bedroom ikea hacker ikea nightstand upcycle nightstand upcycle nightstand nightstand ideas nightstand diy nightstand repurpose refurbished nightstand painted nightstand nightstand decor ideas nightstand styling nightstand decoration nightstand redo creative nightstand ideas nightstand refurbished nightstand redo ideas nightstand vignette nightstand bedroom nightstand painting ideas nightstand ideas diy nightstand diy ideas painted nightstand ideas diy nightstand decorate nightstand ideas decor for nightstand refinished nightstand makeover nightstand ikea hack

HOW I RESIZED MY KITCHEN TABLE

Footer

Pages

  • About Me
  • Copyright, Disclosure, Privacy, and Comment Policies
  • Got a Question? Comment?
  • Home
  • Latest Projects
  • Printables Library
  • Subscribe here to access my library of free printables!

Never Miss A Post!

Copyright © 2021 Crystel Montenegro at Home on the Foodie Pro Theme

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.