Thread: Pulling Apart Louvered Doors

I'd suspect they are all glued; bandsaw off one of the stiles, cut to correct width (allowing for morticing), rout all new mortices for the individual louvers, re-do the rails using floating tenons, reglue and you should be done.

There's a nifty louver morticing jig plan here: Making Louvered Doors | THISisCarpentry

My experience with louvered doors/windows is tha they are usually just mortised into the sides of the frames.

Never struck any that were not simply glued. Depending on the quality they may not even be well glued.

Don't take to them with a hammer only. Use a length of 3x2 pine and lay it along the inside of the frame so
you are not smacking the frame directly.Put the pine against the corner and work from the corner to the other
end of the pine. Use sharp but not brutal blows. You might gradually loosen the the frame away from slats.
If the gluing is good you may not shift anything, You might even tear the frame timber.

If things don't budge then the other method is to cut alongside the inside edge of the frame through all the slats
and go from there as per Master Splinters suggestion.

Louvered door slats are never glued, this is to allow natural timber movement.
Unless they were custom made initially, you will probably find that the rails and stiles are doweled.
Since you are not sure whether tjhey are doweled or mortice and tenon I suggest that you mark the required width of the door top and bottom, then mark the width of the stile LESS approximately 8mm to 10mm to allow for the louvers to reseat in the relocated stile (if the stile has a small bead molded on the louvered edge ten use that measurement) and then cut the bottom, top and lock rail if applicable and the louvers to this line.
Now get a sharp chisel and cut a small (5mm max) chamfer on the new cut end of the louvers to allow easy re assembly.
Now you can determin from the small piece of rail left on the stile whether it is doweled or tenoned. If dowel, re drill new holes in rails and stile, fit dowels and reassemble. If tenons, much easier to redo joint with dowels and dont forget to use a good quality glue.

If you only need to take 20mm off the overall width, maybe easier to simply plan 10mm off each stile if only a single door or if a pair of doors 5mm off each stile.

Originally Posted by kpphotos

Hi

I have some louver doors that are too wide, what would be the best way of pulling them apart. There are no screws in the frame so I'm thinking that they are either doweled or mortised and tender joint.

I thought I'd ask before I got the hammer on them and caused too much damage.

Cheers

Good Morning kpphotos

I have pulled apart a few el cheapo Indonesian louvre doors - made from meranti or lauan. Custom made ones may have better glue!

My technique was to use Vice Grip Clamps. Just knock the stopper split tube out of the end of the Quick Grip bar, hold the trigger and slid the clamp off the bar, rotate 180º and replace on bar. Now, as you squeeze the trigger the clamp will force outwards rather than clamping. Use two, three or more clamps to force all joints apart.

With consistent even pressure the louvre doors dismantle quite easilly.

I used to routinely replace those stopper tubes but now I never bother. Just got to be careful not to slide the clamp mechanism off the bar.




Fair Winds

Greame

Thanks for the advise, will be giving this ago

Cheers