Interior door width? Help!

11 years ago

Hi guys, so we approved our plans are ready to submit for permitting.

We are building a 3400 sq ft single story home.

We barely realized what numbers like 2880 on the doors mean. How wide should an interior door be? We have two bathroom doors that are 2480 which sounds tiny. Also the pantry is 2480. What would you guys recommend?

Thanks,

Slim

Featured Answer

millworkman

11 years ago

Actually 2480 may also mean 2'-4" x 8'-0", which would be 28" x 96" so that would need to be checked. So a 2880 may very well be 32" x 96" and I have seen the call outs for doors written both ways so this would be a question to be asked sooner than later.

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Comments (6)

flgargoyle
11 years ago
The first two digits are the width; the second two are the height. So a 2480 is 24" wide by 80" high.

Personally, I wouldn't go less than 30" on anything but a small closet. We are going 36" on most doors, other than a powder room, the basement stairs, and small closets. Having known several people who wound up in a wheelchair (luckily it was only temporary) we decided to incorporate universal design as much as possible. Our 'mansion' is only going to be 1400 square feet, but we plan to retire and live out our years in this home.
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allison0704
11 years ago
That was one of the first things DH insisted on changing during the plan design. We do not have any doors less than 36". Neither of us need the width, but it sure is nice. Nothing like being able to carry groceries or a laundry basket without bumping into a door frame.
palimpsest
11 years ago
24" for powder rooms and baths, 28" for bedrooms, and 30" for other rooms will still get approval in some areas.

I would try to go for at least 30-32" on everything and have at least one fully accessible bath with a 36" wide door, as well as room that could be used as a bedroom with one. 32" is door width and with stops and such it gets down to 31" +/- which could be tight for a wheelchair.

The reason that 24" is approved for baths and powder rooms is because of doorswing into the room. If you are going to widen the doorway make sure that you have the clearance inside the bathroom to open the door all the way. That sounds self-evident, but I have been in houses where the door hit the sink or something, and a door that doesn't fully open may be worse than a narrow door that does.

For the pantry I would want wider if it was a walk-in, even if you had to do a pair of narrow doors to accomodate door clearances.
agentslim
Original Author
11 years ago
So i checked with my designer and 2480 is indeed 2 ft 4 inches. So 28" wide is the smallest doors I have. I am meeting with him today to up it to minimum 30" for all the doors. I am also afraid of it being too narrow. Will 30" be fine for a bathroom and pantry? Or should I just shoot for 32"+?
popeda
11 years ago
If you had seen the banged up doorframes after my step-mom had to get in a wheel chair, you would try to get as many doors as possible 36" wide.

We also looked at how well one could maneuver in the kitchen and bath, had no steps to one entry at least, etc. Even if you never need any universal design, the next owner of your home (never say never) might purchase with that as a key factor.