I mentioned at the beginning of the year that I wanted to get back to the “gritty” house DIY tutorials and I think today’s tutorial for “How to Fill Hinge Holes” definitely fits!
We are moving right along with Greyson’s closet redo. Yay! We thought we might have the lighting finished this weekend (which would finish everything off), but we didn’t quite make it. But, we did finish off some of the finish work and thought we would share this little tutorial.
How To Fill Hinge Holes
After taking off the doors to the closet, we were left with these bare spots where the hinges were.
Pretty unattractive, right? In our bathroom, we took the shortcut and just painted in the holes. It doesn’t look pretty, but what do you expect when you take the shortcut, right? For this closet redo (and for our projects going forward) we are trying not to take the shortcuts; or at least not to when it matters. This project is visible and it’s so dang cute that you have to do it the right way.
So after measuring the hinge and playing around with scrap wood for the sizing, Luke realized that the hole was almost EXACTLY the same size as the end of a 2×4.
He used the hinge as a template for depth and then traced across the 2×4. Using the miter saw, he made the cut on the line.
Once cut, we made sure that they fit. Some were slightly off, so we trimmed with a box knife and then sanded them a little bit.
We used a little bit of wood glue and then used the brad gun to tack them in place.
After all of them were in place, I went back with the orbital sander on the sides and top to make sure we were as flat and smooth as can be. After that, I gave the whole door two coats of Kilz primer. There was a slight gap between some of the 2×4 pieces and the door frame, so Luke came in with some finishing caulk and filled it. Then I painted, two white top coats.
They look pretty good! In person, they aren’t noticeable at all. If you are looking for them then you can find them, but I don’t think most people will be looking for our hinge holes. LOL.
I might have a kitchen update for you on Wednesday. Yay! More progress!
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Julia@Cuckoo4Design says
February 9, 2015 at 7:31 amIt’s awesome! You can’t even tell.
Ashley Mayes says
February 10, 2015 at 6:44 amThanks! It is a pretty simple but yet effective fix!
Christine says
February 9, 2015 at 9:19 amWow! Looks great! You can’t even tell the hinge was there!
I always worry about that when I think about removing doors.
Ashley Mayes says
February 10, 2015 at 6:46 amThanks Christine! If you look very closely then you can tell that they were there, but it looks great! You should go for it!
Corinna - For My Love Of says
February 9, 2015 at 1:13 pmThis is one of those things I wouldn’t have ever thought about needing to do, but yet I see so many people just nonchalantly pull doors off of closets and now I’m wondering if they just ignored the hinge holes or what?
Ashley Mayes says
February 10, 2015 at 6:47 amHa! I know! I think most people use wood filler (which we tried a few years ago), but the results are just not the same.
Brynne@TheGatheredHome says
February 9, 2015 at 1:49 pmHa! You caught me red handed… I’m in the middle of a project like this and I just painted over everything! I wasn’t sure if we will want to put the door back up when we sell though, so I guess it’s a good compromise. You’re right though – it would look soooo much more polished if I filled them in! Great idea!
P.S. I’m really loving the capital letters font you used for your pin graphic… Do you mind telling me what font it is?
Ashley Mayes says
February 10, 2015 at 6:48 amLOL! Seriously, we did that as well and it was fine. But, for this project, we don’t have plans to put the doors on…ever. Cracks me up though!
It’s Mouse Deco. =)
Kyla @HouseOfHipsters says
February 9, 2015 at 3:27 pmSo this is a pretty amazing tutorial! I would have guessed you’d putty them in! Thanks momma!
Ashley Mayes says
February 10, 2015 at 6:48 amPutty just doesn’t look the same… trust me I know from past experiences. Lol.
Jennifer @ Brave New Home says
February 9, 2015 at 11:42 pmI’m about ready to get started on a similar project and was just planning on using a bunch of wood filler…I guess I know better now! It seriously looks flawless!
Ashley Mayes says
February 10, 2015 at 6:49 amYou can use wood filler, but it the results are quite the same. We used it on a previous spot and filled, sanded, filled and sanded. It works, but doesn’t look as seamless as the 2×4 with caulk. Thanks!
laura says
February 16, 2015 at 8:04 amWe just removed some of our shutters and have similar holes. I’m going to measure the hinges. Either way, this should work on these hinges! laura
Ashley Mayes says
February 16, 2015 at 6:52 pmAwesome! Let me know how it works!
Kirsten says
February 16, 2015 at 8:37 amGenius! Thank you so much! I’m taking the closet door off in my daughter’s room soon and this is exactly what I need to cover those holes! Pinning!
Ashley Mayes says
February 16, 2015 at 6:52 pmYay! Glad to have helped!
Bob says
January 13, 2019 at 3:52 pmThinking about using an angle grinder to cut off hinge to make the edge flush with the door jam, then paint over after reinstallation.
Ashley Mayes says
January 14, 2019 at 9:04 amThat’s a way to do it!