Why we keep a door schedule on the wall

The Door Connection started in a Johannesburg workshop where the same problem kept coming back: a homeowner orders a door, the frame arrives in a different profile, the hinges are the wrong weight, and the tiler is already booked. We built the business around closing that gap. One supplier for the leaf, the frame, the architrave and the hardware, checked against the actual opening before anything leaves the yard.

Measure twice, cut once

Standard 813mm and 914mm openings cover most of what we sell, but brickwork moves. We ask for the rough opening, the finished floor level and the wall thickness before we cut a frame, because a 5mm error at this stage costs a week later.

Materials that suit the climate

Meranti and oak veneer hold up well inland. On the coast, aluminium pivot units save homeowners the annual sanding and re-sealing that timber exteriors demand. We say so plainly, even when it means a smaller order.

One schedule, one point of contact

Contractors send a door schedule for a townhouse block, and we return a written quote with frame profiles, hardware finishes and lead times matched line by line. No split orders, no mismatched handles across twelve units.

What clients should expect from us

A quote that reflects the real opening, not a catalogue size. Fitting notes for DIY customers who want to hang the door themselves. Care instructions for timber that will be near a bathroom or a kitchen. Honest lead times, especially in December when the factories slow down. And a showroom where you can put your hand on the grain, the hinge and the handle finish before you commit.

Who we work with, and why the relationship holds

Most of our work comes through people who have already stood on a site with us. Architects send door schedules, contractors come back for the next townhouse block, and homeowners pass our name to a neighbour mid-renovation. Here is the shape of those partnerships.

Architectural practices

Gauteng and Cape Town studios

We hold frame profiles and finish samples for practices that specify the same door across multiple units. Revisions to a schedule are tracked per project so the second phase matches the first.

Building contractors

Small residential teams

Bulk orders for townhouse developments are packed per unit and labelled by stand number, which keeps the hanging crew moving instead of sorting leaves on site. Delivery slots are booked around tiling and painting.

Hardware and finish suppliers

Locksets, hinges and seals

Our lockset, cylinder and hinge lines come from suppliers who publish backset and weight ratings. That means we can confirm a handle will fit a 100mm stile before the order leaves the yard.

Timber and aluminium mills

Meranti, oak veneer and extrusion

Meranti and oak veneer arrive from mills we have bought from for years, and aluminium extrusions are powder-coated locally. Moisture content on timber batches is checked before machining.

Installation crews

Fitters we send to site

The same fitters handle pivot units, sliding tracks and standard hinge work. They carry a laser level and shim stock, because a door that swings on its own usually means the frame was set out of plumb.

DIY customers

Weekend installers

If you are hanging your own door, we include fitting notes, a hinge template and care instructions for the finish. Bring your opening measurements and we will confirm the leaf size before you commit.

If you would like to be listed here as a trade partner, or you are checking whether we already work with your practice, send a note through the contact page and we will confirm directly.

Who we are, and why doors get our full attention

The Door Connection started in a Johannesburg workshop with a simple frustration: homeowners were buying doors and frames from separate suppliers, then discovering on site that the profiles did not match. We supply and install solid timber, engineered and aluminium doors, and we keep the frames, architraves and hardware in the same conversation so the opening actually closes properly.

Who we work with

Homeowners renovating a single entrance, architects specifying a full door schedule, and small contractors fitting out townhouse clusters across Gauteng and the Western Cape. Each group gets different paperwork: a fitting note for a DIY customer, a bulk quote for a developer.

How we talk

Plain measurements, not sales language. If a 60mm backset will not fit your stile, we say so before you order. If meranti needs sealing on all six faces before hanging, that goes in the note. You should be able to read our guidance and hand it to your installer.

What we refuse to cut

Frame profiles that match the leaf, hinges rated for the actual door weight, and weather seals that run the full perimeter on exterior units. These are the details that decide whether a door still swings true after five Highveld winters or a coastal rainy season.

The short history

We began by supplying meranti interior doors to builders in the south of Johannesburg. Aluminium pivot and sliding units came later, mostly because coastal clients kept asking for entrance doors that would not swell, warp or need re-sealing every year. Today the catalogue runs from standard 813mm and 914mm interior sets through to custom pivot openings, with locksets, handles and weather seals grouped so finishes stay consistent across a whole house.

What that means for you

You get sizing guidance for standard and custom openings, notes on planning installation around tiling and painting schedules, and care instructions that match the material you chose. Trade clients can send a door schedule for a written bulk quote; DIY customers get fitting notes and delivery lead times. Either way, the same rule applies: measure the opening, check the stile width, and confirm the frame profile before anything is ordered.

Work that shaped how we build doors

A few jobs from the last years, chosen because each one taught us something about frames, finishes or site timing. The notes under each photo are the same ones we pass to the workshop.

Door Connection values — Parkhurst renovation, 14 doors

Solid meranti leaves with 94mm frames, sealed on all six faces before hanging. The client tiled after we set the thresholds, so we left a 12mm allowance at the bottom rail.

More write-ups sit under case studies, and the fitting notes we hand to clients are collected on the assistance page.