Door Trimming & Shaving Specialists

verified Professional Service
history Typical Duration 1 Hour
category Service Category Handyman
payments Starting Price From £60

Service Overview

New carpet, laminate or tiles raise the floor, and the doors that cleared the old one start to catch. We take each door off its hinges, mark the cut from the new floor, trim the bottom edge, seal the bare wood and hang it back.

We leave a gap over the floor, so air still passes under the door as well as the door swinging clear.

We charge £60 an hour for this work, with a one-hour minimum; after the first hour, time is billed in 30-minute blocks. Pick a time that suits you online: a £50 deposit secures your slot and comes off the final bill.

What we usually find

  • A door that drags across its whole width. The floor has risen under it, and the bottom edge needs trimming.
  • A door that catches at one corner only. It has usually dropped on a loose top hinge, and tightening the hinge cures it without a cut. That is a door repair.
  • A hollow door. It has a solid timber frame round a hollow core, and its maker sets how much can come off. A cut past that opens the core.
  • A fire door. Fire doors are tested at their exact size, and the government's guidance asks a flat's front door to close by itself against any friction with the floor, so a new floor can stop one doing its job.

The visit, step by step

  1. We measure from the floor with the door shut, and mark where the bottom edge has to come to.
  2. We take the door off its hinges and cut the bottom edge against a straight guide, so the cut stays clean.
  3. We seal the bare wood of the cut edge, so the door does not take up damp through it.
  4. We hang the door back and check it swings over the new floor and closes on its latch.

Before we arrive

  • Wait until the new floor is down. A door trimmed for the underlay before the carpet goes on ends up being cut twice.
  • Count the doors that catch and put the number in your booking, so we can plan the time for all of them.
  • Clear the floor on both sides of each door.

What is included

  • Measuring each door from the finished floor
  • Taking the door off and trimming the bottom edge
  • Sealing the cut edge
  • Hanging the door back and checking it closes

What is not

  • Trimming a fire door, including most flats' front doors: the gaps round it are set by its certificate
  • Trimming a door by more than its maker allows: a door cut that far needs replacing

Questions about door trimming & shaving

How much can you take off a door? expand_more
As much as its maker allows, and that differs from door to door. A solid timber door can lose more than a hollow one, whose core opens once the cut goes past its frame. If the new floor needs more than the door can give, we tell you before we cut.
Does a door need a gap underneath? expand_more
Yes, so that air can move between rooms. Approved Document F, the government's ventilation guidance for new homes, gives 10mm above the floor finish for internal doors, or 20mm above the bare floor where the finish is still to go down.

Deposits, cancelling and paying are on our FAQ page.

Worth doing in the same visit

Door Repairs from £60 Lock & Handle Replacement from £60 Flooring Installation free quote

Areas we cover

Ashtead Banstead Cheam Chessington Cobham Dorking Epsom Esher Guildford Kingston upon Thames Leatherhead Molesey New Malden Reigate Richmond Surbiton Sutton Twickenham Walton-on-Thames & Weybridge Wimbledon Worcester Park & Ewell
Zapryan - Owner & Lead Handyman
Your Local Expert

Hi, I'm Zapryan – Owner & Lead Handyman in Surrey

I've been in the construction industry since 2004, and I believe the secret to stress-free renovations is simple: turn up on time, manage the trades properly, and do the job right the first time. I personally survey every project and work alongside our teams on-site until the final checklist is complete. You'll always have a direct line to me, and my personal guarantee that the work is finished to perfection.