Rising Door Hinges: What, Why and How?

If you’ve just had new carpets fitted, it can be frustrating to discover that your internal doors don’t close quite so easily due to the thickness of the new carpet and underlay. Trimming the door or planing might appear to be the only option.

However, there is another way to get around this common door problem without shortening the length of the door. Fitting a rising butt hinge instead of a standard hinge to your door allows the door to rise slightly when opened, preventing that annoying dragging sound when opening the door. Not only is it irritating, but such dragging and catching will wear down your carpet very quickly. A cheap and easy solution to this is to fit a rising butt hinge.

Photo by Charles Deluvio 🇵🇭🇨🇦 on Unsplash

What Is a Rising Butt Hinge?

OK, so it has a rather funny name, but simply put a Rising Butt Hinge has a spiral groove which rotates around the central barrel (knuckle). It operates to lift the door gradually upwards to clear the carpet when opened.

Rising Butt Hinges can be either left-handed or right-handed, depending on which way the door opens and to which side the hinge is to be attached.

When to Use Rising Butt Hinges

As stated, when a new thicker carpet is fitted, installing a rising butt hinge will prevent the scuffing and dragging as it acts to lift the door as it is opened. Lowering it again when closed so that it still fits into the frame, as before.

Anyone who has ever battled with a sofa or dining table when trying to manoeuvre it through a door will appreciate just how difficult it can be. Fitting a Rising Butt Hinge in such openings, especially where there is a tight corner or fitted units can drastically improve the accessibility when relocating large items.

The Rising Butt Hinge operates as a pin for the door to hang off (similar to the hinge on a wrought iron gate) meaning that the door can easily be lifted off and re-fitted without the need for a screwdriver or an extra pair of hands giving you extra space required to get your bulky items in and out.

Current building regulations do not allow for a rising butt hinge to be fitted on a fire door or escape route door.

How to Fit Rising Butt Hinges to Your Internal Doors

• Remove your door (if applicable)

• Remove the old hinges

• mark out the position of the new hinges -the rising butt hinge should be laid flat against the rear edge of the door and the recess.

• After measuring the width and depth of the hinges in the appropriate position, clear out the area with a sharp wood chisel and mallet.

• Where possible, get help or place the door on a small block to support the door as you offer it up to the doorway.

Take care in marking your measurements precisely. When done, the recessing should be equal on both the edge of the door and the frame.

Be sure to use a sharp chisel. Rising butt hinges should be placed approximately 150mm from the top and bottom of the door. Allow at least 2mm clearance around the door to prevent sticking. You may need to allow more clearance if the floor is particularly uneven.

If fitting a new door, remove the old door and all associated door furniture first so that you easily access the timber frame. If your new door is the same thickness as the old, you can leave the doorstop in its current location. If not, you will need to adjust its position accordingly.

Rising Butt Hinges are more than a funny name, they are a convenient way of dealing with deep pile carpet, varying floor surfaces and awkward access points. Available from all good hardware shops, rising butt hinges will make access simple and convenient.