Anything is possible if one has right tools and knowledge on useing them. The question is wherther door falls apart and must be reassembled when you make cutouts in it. I would build doors from scratch instead. If you can settle for mouldings applied to faces of doors,a good miter saw,small finish nails,hammer,nail set and glue is about all it takes. I can't overcome fear of hitting a matalic object while routing desighn into doors or I would say that was an option.

'Solid' wood interior doors are very often made by covering a solid softwood core with a hardwood veneer. That veneer can be 1/16" thick. There are several reasons for that kind of construction. Cost is one. Solid oak/maple/walnut/etc. doors would be very expensive. Also, solid wood doors would have to be made with several boards and matching the grain would be very difficult. Especially because to be more structurally sound, the grain direction of each board has to be reversed to minimize warping or waning(torsional twist).

So, the doors you have are very probably solid core with veneer. That means cutting holes for panels will hurt the structural integrity as well as expose the veneer edges.

Building new doors would not be much cheaper in your case---unless you have a well appointed woodworking shop. Minimum tools would be a table saw(3hp cabinet model), jointer, planer, either a 3+hp router/table or a shaper, clamps long enough to do the necessary clamping(pipe clamps as well as bar clamps), and sanders.Then there are setting the hinges and lock sets.

Buying used tools like those would still be between $3,000 and $5,000. Then there is the price of the wood. Bought at a saw mill(reason for all those tools), the cost can be a thousand dollars and more.

Might look for architectural salvage stores, they might have doors.

I just had a thought. Might be possible to cut the necessary holes, insert a thinner piece of wood of the same type as the veneer/wood(cut to need a bit of forse to insert) and add molding around the insides of the holes. That would look very similar to raised panel construction and would support the entire door integrity.

To do that could be done with a really good circular saw and a plywood finish cut blade, a really good sabre saw(jigsaw), a miter box(power or hand) and finish nails and nail set. You would need a straight edge and a lot of practice or patience. Or find a woodworker who would do that---might still cost $200-$300 a door.

"a lot of practice or patience."

Both actually,plus time. I think recycling old doors would actually take more time than new construction. And if one doesn't own that list of tools,cost can play a role. Without an equipped shop,Handy's observation on just buying doors is looking better as I mull it over.

You can make simulated panels by applying frames of mitered panel molding to the door's surface. You will need a decent chopsaw and a 18 ga. finish nailer, or 21 ga. headless pinner, and some wood glue.

It will still look exactly like what it is, a flush door w/applied moldings.

Here is a how-to article it took 0.015 seconds to find: http://www.ronhazelton.com/projects/how_to_make_a_flat_door_into_a_panel_door

Casey

I actually liked the finished look in that how-to video. A big improvement if the budget isn't there for replacement.

Casey -

I like the way Hazelton tests the layout with tape.

And making the stop block after cutting the first horizontal piece to make them all identical.

Thanks for these suggestions. (Sorry the emails were going to my spam.) Yeah, I've talked to some pros and they say if you don't want the applied molding look, which I don't, I should start with new doors.

One did say though that he could put tiny groves running vertically from top to bottom, 5 or 6 per door, to make it look like the door was boards put together, with potentially a cleat on the back. He would not go all the way through the veneer. This seemed like a potential option. It wouldn't be paneled but it would make them look less cheap.

"He would not go all the way through the veneer. "

Not that it wouldn't be ok but I don't believe it's possible to cut grooves without going through veneer. Get it in writing before you let him have at it.

The veneer is 1/8 inch. It would be possible to do a groove without cutting all the way through, no? I should mention that these doors are painted and contrary to my original post they are hollow core.

One guy I talked to today who fits doors said I should just get a router and give it a go myself on the inside of one of the closet doors. I haven't used a router before and don't know whether this is a job a beginner could accomplish. Then again, if I completely shred a closet door only my family will know. And anyway, the doors are flush hollow-core doors anyone so how much is lost even if they are original?

A groove less than 1/8" thick will not be very obvious. If you decide to get a router and try it yourself, spend time getting to know the router before touching the door. Practice on scrap and make sure you're familiar with safe routing practices and how to route straight grooves.

Personally I would start looking for new doors.

The plywood veneer skins on contemporary hollow-core doors are like 1/8" thick (3mm). In the 40's or whenever hollow doors made their appearance sometimes they were 1/4" plywood skins.

Verify what you have before you mess it up. IMO 1/8 skin doors are not really thick enough to adhere the applied moldings on to unless the finish is 100% removed so it will rely on the glue completely to hold them down; Glue may or may not adhere to a finish. There is no nail-holding power in 1/8" skins.

Casey

I'll need to verify if they were 1/8 or 1/4". I have one unpainted door way back in the garage.

Yeah I'm beginning to think more seriously about the new door option. There's a lot to do to my original doors: refitting them in the jambs, which has proven problematic, plus adding an inch back on the bottoms (cut off at some point for carpet), plus the grooves, learning to use the router, etc. It's starting to seem like a lot of work to get something that's not even paneled. Just put up another post on pine versus poplar for new doors...