How to make a Dutch Split Door from an Existing Door
Have on old door waiting for something special? This is it! Come see how to transform it into an amazing Dutch Door.
No old door? See our tutorial on how to build your own a Dutch Barn Door or this one on how to build your own sliding barn door.
Upcycled Door to Dutch Door
written by Karla from It’s The Little Things
Last March I was lucky enough to spot a “Free Stuff” pile just outside of our neighborhood. And in it, was a solid wood, 8 panel door.
I thought it was perfect.
Will thought I was crazy.
But he knew if he didn’t help me load it into the car that I would do whatever it took to get it in there myself. So, reluctantly, he helped me load the door, and it became mine!
You can read all about it, along with my original plan for the door, here:“Look What I Found”. And see all the readers’ opinions on the door here: “Your Opinions On The Door”
So what did we end up doing with it?
Related Reading: 100 Ways to ReUse Old Doors
Not only did we cut out the top four panels and replace them with glass, but we turned it into a Dutch Door and I could not be happier with the end result!
The process was a bit tricky. We weren’t entirely sure how well the door would hold up to cutting out panels and sawing it in half, but luckily for us, it was in great condition.
How to Make a Dutch Door from an Old Door
DIY Dutch Door Step 1: Cut away the panels…
Since we wanted glass on top, we carefully removed the middle panels on the top half.
See also: How to Install a Glass Window in a Hollow Core Door
Dutch Door Step 2: Cut the door and new doorknob
We sawed the door in half to create the Dutch Door…
…and also added a new doorknob.
Dutch Door Step 3: Add the Ledge
We added a ledge onto the bottom half of the door. The original door was a few inches shorter than the doors in our house, so we had to fill that gap. Nothing a simple 2×4 couldn’t fix…
Dutch Door Step 5: Add Glass Panels
Originally, we thought we would use plexiglass to create the windows in the top half of the door, but the more we thought about it, we knew that we could find a piece of glass that not only suited our aesthetic, but one that would make the door that much more unique.
We headed to Tacoma and found the coolest glass shop. My only requirements for the glass were that it let every bit of possible light through and that it have texture.
We settled on a piece of glass called “Falling Rain”. You get the picture – a little streaky and bubbly. I decided to flip the glass sideways so that the streaks run from side to side, instead of top to bottom.
The glass fit perfectly and we held it in place with a bead of silicone…
Will cut strips of wood to frame in and secure the glass on the back side of the door…
Note: If you are working with a hollow core door instead of solid wood, read How to Install a Glass Window in a Hollow Core Door
Dutch Door Step 6: Finishing Touches
I was giddy when it was all said and done!
And 8 months later…I still am!
It lets light into our hallway, which was what I had always wanted. What is the point of having a window in a bright, light-filled laundry room if you never, ever see it anyway?
Now, we see the light!
And, for the record, he loves it too. 🙂
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What a great project! Find more from Remodelaholic by following us on Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube and Facebook.
And we have more door update ideas you won’t want to miss:
- Making an existing interior door into a barn door
- How to turn an old door into a sliding barn door
- Turn bypass closet doors into sliding faux barn doors
- 40 Ways To Update Flat or Bifold Doors
plus 100 Ideas for Old Doors to reuse and upcycle doors!
Originally published 12.28.2010 // Updated 04.18.2020
>That is amazing. I love the double door look. Makes me want to let the light out of my laundry room!
>BE-Utiful!!! I think Dutch doors are charming! Wonderful job!
>Wow that is so cool, I have been wondering how hard that would be to do that. I bet I know what cool glass shop you were in…was it in Lakewood? Spent quite a bit of time there while my sister was doing a leaded glass door for my entry with German Antique glass..anyway what a marvelous job!
>I love it! The glass in the door looks so beautiful.
>That is just amazing! What a lovely job you did!
>Wow..that really is a neat door. Good call on snagging it from the side of the road. I'd love to change all the doors in my house and I'd love to change a couple of them to be something unique and different like this. Thanks for the inspiration.
>Great Job Karla! You are always such an inspiration!
>Very cool! A friend of mine had a dutch door going into her kitchen from outside (in her last home). It was always fun to have it half open while we were inside. Something comforting about it!
Allison
Atticmag
>I thought the ledge between the doors was on purpose. It looks great and a perfect solution for a door that wasn't perfect for the size. I picture your children hanging on the ledge while you do laundry and say..Mom, have you seen my blue socks? lol
When I told my dad I broke a frame he told me to go to a stained glass door store. I told him it was a Dollar Tree frame so it's no biggie. 🙂
>Beautiful job, well done. It looks like an original Dutch door 🙂 I think the piece of hardware was originally used to keep the door open a little, with a hook so it would stay open a crack. No idea at the moment how to call it duh.
Happy new year from the Netherlands
>Impressive! Love the glass and the colors you chose. Really a great project.
Looks like this was posted quite a while ago. I hope you’re still reading the comments. Hubby & I are working on a similar project however we are replacing the ENTIRE center of a door with glass. If it works, we plan to do all the interior doors the same way. I love the glass you chose and I’d really like to compare notes. So far, we’ve only cut out the center panel and are working on the getting 100 years of paint off the beautiful oak door. My designer friend is skeptical and thinks we need to take it to a professional installer.
A quick question; what did you use to keep the top part shut? Hubbers and I have been talking of getting Dutch doors for the boys and our room, but if we can DIY it…. well, it would be wonderful!
One of those surface bolts. There is a hole drilled into the base of the door, and the surface bolt just gets pushed down into the hole and it is nice and solid. Here is a link to the kind of lock I am talking about ( I had to search a few times to find the proper name! https://www.homedepot.com/webapp/catalog/servlet/Search?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&keyword=surface%20bolt&Ns=None&Ntpr=1&Ntpc=1&selectedCatgry=Search+All ) Good luck!
i know you posted this a long time ago, but the hardware is part of a lock set. There was another piece that fit over it and you could put a padlock, clip, (or even a stick- ask me how I know 😉 ).I am not sure if this
Link will show it clearly: https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:-_Padlock_-.jpg
Love this! The idea to trunk the glass, perfection! It reminds me of waves are the beach or even the spin cycle doing laundry!
Custom, unique, details, this is what I want to see and read on this site.
I know this is an old post, but if you still read the comments for it I would like to know what you did about the hinges. Does the door still just swing on 3 hinges or did you add a 4th so there would be 2 on top and 2 on the bottom? How is it holding up all these years later?
Laurel, you always need to have 2 hinges on each part, so yes, 2 on top and 2 on the bottom. Good luck — I’m thinking about doing the same thing!
Loved the article and great how-to instruction!! The door I would love to transform- the upper half is glass. How do you think this will look and function?
I imagine it would look and function very similar to this one 🙂
The glasses and color you have used in Dutch door is looking very nice. I first thought it will look odd to but in the last picture it looks great. Good Job!! Thanks for sharing!!
Nice idea but you dialed to mention that a new hung will have to be added for both doors to work properly.