Planning door delivery to the job site

What a pickup run costs

The real cost of a pickup is the people, not the gas. Use a fully burdened rate: wages plus payroll costs, WSIB and benefits. Here is a worked example for one project at $50 an hour per person. Swap in your own numbers.

That figure leaves out the truck and the production lost while two carpenters are off site. It also costs more when the lead hand or superintendent makes the run.

Time delivery to trim-out, not framing

Doors and trim are wood products, and they move with moisture. Door makers give the same storage rules:

• Flat, level and indoors. Don’t lean doors against a wall or leave them outside, even under a tarp.
• Dry and ventilated. Keep them out of direct sun. TruStile, for example, specifies 25% to 55% relative humidity in the storage area.
• After the wet trades. Drywall mud, paint and concrete all put moisture into the air. Install once the building is closed in and the HVAC is running.
• Acclimatize before hanging. Allow at least 72 hours in the rooms where the doors will go.

The best delivery date is therefore three or more days before your carpenters start hanging, not the day framing finishes. On a custom home those two dates can be weeks apart, and that gap is when doors get damaged. Our doors and trim come primed. Seal all six edges after installation.

Work back from the date you need doors

We make doors and trim to order, so the order date comes well before the delivery date. Count back from trim-out:

The step that slips most often is the first one. A room-by-room takeoff, done before you ask for a price, avoids a rush reorder for a missed opening. See how many doors a rental building needs and door jamb width explained.

Ways to split a delivery

Tell us how you want it delivered when you request a quote. We’ll confirm the plan and the dates on the quote.

What to put on each label

When doors are bundled by unit, each label should let the carpenter check the product against the opening without a phone call:

• Unit, floor and opening number from your door schedule.
• Size and core. For example, 30″ × 80″, 1-3/8″, hollow core or solid core.
• Prehung or slab, and handing. Left-hand or right-hand. See prehung vs slab doors.
• Jamb width. 4-9/16″ for a 2×4 wall, 6-9/16″ for a 2×6.
• Casing and baseboard profile, if trim ships in the same bundle.

Suite entry doors in multi-unit buildings are usually fire-rated. We don’t supply fire-rated assemblies, so order those separately and leave them off our schedule.

On delivery day

• Have someone there to receive it, and make sure a truck can reach the drop point.
• Check every pallet before signing. Note any visible damage on the delivery receipt.
• Report damage, shortages or defects within 2 business days, with photos. See our terms.
• Move the product indoors the same day. Ownership and risk pass to you on delivery.