1920’s Cedar Panel Doors

Doors are as architecturally beautiful as they are old. Given we’re renovating a 1920’s Kiwi bungalow, for this era cedar ‘panel doors’ are our joy.

Our intention was, and still is, to bring the bungalow back to its original glory. We have no desire to modernise the house beyond recognition. In the past 90 years however the ceilings had been lowered (to conserve heat) and the original panel doors modernised into 1970’s designs.

During round#2 of our renovations, neither lowered ceilings nor modernised doors were going to cut the mustard.  Time to revert it back to the original design!

Bring back cedar panel doors

This post really is about our love for cedar panel doors. Anyone going through a restoration of a 1920’s bungalow with a heartfelt yearning to keep things authentic will appreciate new doors built in the original ‘panel’ style.

Unfortunately our original ‘original’ doors were reassigned throughout the decades. One was found discarded under the house, another in the attic, one repurposed as a garage side door, and some internal doors ‘modernised’ with a flat panel plywood veneer tacked over the paneling to give it a 70’s edge.

Going back to the late 1800’s and early 1900’s in New Zealand, traditional bungalows and old villas had handmade panel doors made from the best quality cedar available. Luckily there are a number of specialist companies that can supply these wonderful products, handmade to order.

What IS a panel door?

A panel door is a basic and simple classic design that is timeless.Why? We have our own theory.

Looking at the door it has a very natural form and reflects a classic Roman column which you see through much of Victorian design. The solid base (the foot), leads solidly up through the body (legs) with a featured, solid head. The photo above is a classic 4-panel door, whereas the slimmer linen cupboard door is downsized to a 3-panel door due to the width.

Although we’ve had to replace most of the doors with new ones we were luckily enough to have examples (as mentioned earlier: in the attic, in the garage) and one original still gloriously in situ in the hallway as the linen cupboard, as below which has been stained rather than oiled.

New cedar panel doors come in two varieties: paint ready and stain ready. The paint ready are made from a lower quality cedar which will be fingered together (two pieces joined together by machining process to create one, costing just 1/3 of the stain ready doors). Stain ready doors are perfect. These are not to be hidden but to be oiled to boast their full glory.

Installation

If your doors are in storage, and not yet hung, be sure they are fully protected from the elements. If your wonderful door man has delivered your doors, and if you are lucky, installed them too, ensure that the doors do not get wet, nor have any long term UV exposure, before protecting.

Doors will however, get finger prints and marks left by tradesmen, builders and accidents. Don’t despair. DON’T try and rub them off with water. This will only leave a watermark and make matters worse. Simply use a very light 360 grit sandpaper and gently work the offending area. Fingerprints will be lifted in no time, and any other marks significantly reduced.

Oiling

Oil the doors and protect them as soon as possible. After installation and repair (ie: fingerprints) dust them down with a fine paintbrush to remove any surface dust. You will need to coat them with 2 layers of Danish Oil, the same as we’ve used on the matai floors. Two coats ensures the wood is protected and a third layer will help protect it from hot/cold water (which is advisable on the bathroom door, for example). For your very first coat, dilute Danish Oil with 10% mineral turps. This will help the first, and most important layer, soak into the wood.

Ventilation is important. Open windows when applying and don’t for a second consider sleeping in the room for 24 hours… our advice at least.

As discovered when repairing old matai floorboards, the process of oiling is my most favourite DIY project ever. It is seriously like having a magic wand and unveiling a magic piece of artwork with every stroke of the brush. The cedar wood grain is random and incredibly beautiful. Expect dramatic grain to be exposed, stunning red and dark paneling to intrigue and every piece of paneling to be unique.

Is it worth all the trouble?

In our opinion, every last cent. In such a modest structure as a 1920’s bungalow, which is by no means holds the glory of a villa of the same age, to have original cedar panel doors (albeit 90 years in the making), completes the style perfectly.

Finished with some satin brass door furniture, we think it rocks. You’ll note the positioning of the door handles? It is a compromise between the modern 1.2 metre height, which you’ll find on most doors, and the 1900’s classic ‘not within children’s reach’ which traditionally can have handles as high as the top ‘header’ panel.