How We Built a 9-Foot Custom Barn Door for Under $400

Hi everyone and welcome back to Ultimate Tech Hub. I'm Michael, and on today’s episode I’ll show you how to build a 9-foot custom barn door for under $400. This includes the header board, rail, hangers, stops, handles, and the wood itself.

After moving into our new home, we realized the master bathroom needed a door. The height of the doorway is 9 feet, and the width is 41 inches. Most barn doors are sold in standard heights and custom orders were around $1,500 without hardware. So we built it ourselves.

We used nine 10-foot 2x6 redwood planks, cut to 9 feet at the store. We saved the 1-foot scrap pieces to use later. Tools included a router, clamps, saw horses, mallet, hand sander, and a tongue-and-groove bit set.

We first cut a groove into one side of each plank except the end piece. Then we cut tongues into the opposite side using a router. Practice cuts were key to success. Once the tongue-and-groove fit perfectly, we moved forward. We glued and tapped each piece together using a rubber mallet and clamped them tight for 48 hours to dry.

To ensure it stayed flat, we added weights and wiped away excess glue. We also checked corner-to-corner for squareness throughout the glue-up. After 48 hours, we removed the clamps and started sanding with 80, 150, and 220 grit sandpaper. The side facing the bedroom was sanded smooth, while the bathroom side retained a rustic look.

We sealed the door using oil-based polyurethane, applying three coats. After drying for 48 hours, we began hardware installation. We used a SmartStandard kit that included a rail in two 4-foot sections, hangers, and stops.

Since there were no studs directly above the door, we installed a header board made of the same redwood. It was secured to 5 wall studs using ten 3.5" wood screws. After attaching the rail to the header board, we mounted the door using washers to adjust for slightly long bolts. The door was heavy, so hanging it was a two-person job.

We drilled and mounted a handle at 42" from the base and installed stops on the rail. The end result is a custom barn door that looks great and cost less than a third of a prebuilt option.

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