If you really want to keep your construction project on-time, on-budget and get a top quality result, it’s important to order door frames early.

When it comes to installing door frames on your job, it is important to consider when you are going to install the door frames. If care is not taken, it can cost a lot of extra time and money to get your door frames installed properly.

The benefits of early frame installation:

There are 3 main types of frames when it comes to installation:

1. Tube Fixed: These type of frames are fixed in place by bolts fixed through the reveal of the frame into the wall. These frame types can be installed before or after a wall is built. If they are installed before it is possible to build the wall into the back of the frame. This maximises the clear opening of the frame.
2. Stud Clips: These frame types fix into plasterboard and stud timber walls (Sometimes hybrid wall types too). By inserting the frame into the wall as it is built it allows the plasterboard to be easily inserted into the frame, giving a clean finish around the frame.
3. Wire Ties: These fix the door frames into brick and block work. These frames must be installed as the wall is being built. The wire ties coming out of the back of the frame sit in between the bricks/blocks as the wall is built, fastening the frame securely in the wall. This fixing method doesn’t work on pre-built or existing walls.

Why retrofitting frames is inefficient and costly:

Retrofitting a frame into a finished wall is a disadvantage for several important and expensive reasons:

Wall Modifications: Often, to install a frame into an existing wall, the wall must be modified in some way. This takes time and labour to get the wall to a place that allows for the frame to be installed. The wall then needs to be finished suitably once the frame is in.

Floor finishes: Door frames need to sit well into the wall and floor. Installing a door frame once the floor has been completely finished can cause issues for the room.  Floor finishes can be damaged when trying to retrofit the door frame into finished floors requiring expensive repairs and rework.