Planing a door usually costs around $250, depending on the labor expenses and whether you need to repaint the door or purchase new hardware.
Few things are more annoying for a homeowner than a door that sticks. If you're tired of pushing through (literally), the answer is to do what is known as "planing," which means to shave off a small portion of the bottom of the door to stop the sticking. This type of job is best done by a handyperson or professional carpenter. Expect it to cost an average of $250 for a pro to plane your door, with some costs going up to $550 depending on what you need. With most hourly rates exceeding $100, you may have to take on this small project yourself.
This is a straightforward project with only one major cost factor: labor. Depending on your area, you can hire either a handyperson or carpenter to complete the project for you. Other cost factors depend on any additional upgrades or changes you’d like to make at the same time.
This is a simple job that any handyperson can do. The cost to hire a handyperson is $55 to $75 per hour, and it will take no more than an hour to do this job. A carpenter could also take on this project if your door has additional details that you don’t want to risk removing. A carpenter’s hourly rate can be $100 or more.
Depending on how much of the door is removed, you may want to repaint the door to give it a fresh and updated look. Your handyperson can do this at the same time if you supply the paint or you can do a quick spot job yourself after the job is done. Just ask the handyperson to not re-hang the door back on its hinges for easy painting.
Similar to new paint, you may also want to upgrade any doorknobs or hinges. Most doorknobs and hinges average around $10 each. Be sure to purchase the materials beforehand to have ready for your handyperson, as extra trips to the hardware store will increase costs.
Depending on how long the sticking issue persisted, the floor underneath your door could have permanent scratches or damage. This is mainly with hardwood floors or other more sensitive materials. The cost to repair a floor averages around $400, but this is largely dependent on the severity of the damage.
Unless you’re a skilled carpenter with the right tools on hand, it may be easier to replace a sticking door. If you plane too much of the door off, you risk having too wide of a gap between the door and the door frame. If it’s a front door, this could greatly reduce your energy efficiency and let in pests and bugs.
The average cost to replace a door is around $1,100 if you hire a professional door installer. If your door is already near the end of its lifespan, it may be worth higher replacement costs.
Additionally, if you try to plane a door and find months later it starts to stick again, you may have larger issues with your door frame. You can attempt to shim the door yourself or call in a pro to inspect the issue.
If you decide to plane your door yourself, you'll spend between $70 and $280 if you use a manual hand plane, although the cost could be much lower than that if you already have paint as well as basic tools like a hammer and pliers. In that case, all you'd need to buy is the manual hand plane. Below is a summary of some of the materials you may need:
| Material | Average Cost |
|---|---|
| Manual hand plane | $15–$50 |
| Electric hand plane (optional) | $40–$250 |
| Painter's tape | $15–$50 |
| Paint | $15–$40 |
| Stain | $20–$120 |
| Sandpaper | $5–$20 |
| Pliers | $5–$20 |
| Hammer | $5–$15 |
You could also go the electric hand plane route, which will make the job even easier, though at a higher price. In this case, your cost range is $95 to $480. But again, that is only if you also have to purchase a whole gallon of paint and stain too. (Obviously, you won't need the whole gallon to repaint the bottom of the door, but you generally can't buy paint by the ounce.)
While this is a project you could do yourself, we recommend having a local handyperson or general contractor near you do it instead. You don’t want to risk damaging your door by winging it on your own!
This is already an inexpensive project, but there are a few ways to cut costs even more. For one thing, you can use a manual hand planer instead of an electric hand planer. An electric hand planer will save you a lot of work, but this is the most straightforward way to save money.
Another way to save is to use paint or stain you already have rather than buy a new gallon.
Finally, if you’ve already got a construction project going on, you could have the contractor take care of the door in the meantime. That might negate the need to get a planer at all!
The job is relatively simple, but it does require some skill. When planing a door, you run the risk of splintering it if you don't do it correctly.
You should generally cut between 1/8-inch and 1 inch when planing a door. If you cut off more than that, you risk damaging the door.
You can open up more space between the door and the floor by sanding the bottom of the door, but it will take longer compared to using a hand planer. However, you could use a belt sander, which some believe is even better than a hand planer for planing a door. Also, it could leave a smoother finish on the bottom of the door.
