Hollow metal doors and frames are rugged and long-lasting. They resist heat and humidity, which may adversely affect other door and frame products by causing problems such as warping and delaminating.

Contractor-to-Contractor: In this installment of Rob Thimmes’ series on framing walls with light gauge metal studs, he reviews the basics of hollow metal doorframe installation.

During your framing process, the question of when you should set welded hollow metal doorframes must be addressed. Many contractors prefer to install doorframes before the walls are built. This facilitates the ease of fastening the "feet" down to the floor. After the frames are fastened down, braces are required to keep wind or inadvertent contact from toppling the freestanding frames. Then, as the framers come to a pre-installed doorframe, they simply remove the braces and frame to, over, and around the assembly. Another method is to install the frames at the time the walls are built. Roughly, this method follows the same progression as the first method without the need to temporarily brace off the frame. The framers build walls until they come to a door opening; then they get down off their scaffold and set the doorframe, after which they resume framing walls. The doorframe need not be braced off when employing this method, since the doorframe is permanently attached to the studs. The drawback to this method is "switching gears": I have found that keeping crews productive and on task is easier when they don’t have to carry equipment for two separate operations and mentally bounce back and forth between them. However, the ease or advantage of either of these two methods is usually negated by late-arriving door frame deliveries (a very common problem). The last method involves setting doorframes after the walls are built. In my experience, I have found this to be the most common occurrence. It is with this last method that we will concern ourselves today.