Wide throw door hinges are used on openings where the door must swing up to 180 degrees without binding on protruding trim installed on the face of the frame or wall. Decorative trim around the opening can be very thick depending on the design. Standard hinge sizes may not be sufficient to swing the door wide enough to clear the decorative trim or wall.

In order to determine the hinge size needed for the opening, gather these necessary dimensions:

Door width, door thickness, hinge backset, and the clearance beyond the face of the frame.

Hinge Height

The recommended hinge height should be determined on a job by job basis and in coordination with the manufacturer of the hinges and the doors. Below is an example of hinge height recommendations (DHI).

Note: Heavy weight hinges should be specified for heavy doors and for doors with high-frequency usage

1-3/8″ Thick Door

Width of Door: Up to 32″
Height of Hinge: 3-1/2″

Width of Door: 32″ to 37″
Height of Hinge: 4″

1-3/4″ Thick Door

Width of Door: Up to 36″
Height of Hinge: 4-1/2″

Width of Door: 36″ to 48″
Height of Hinge: 5″

Width of Door: Over 48″
Height of Hinge: 6″

2″, 2-1/4″, 2-1/2″ Thick Door

Width of Door: To 42″
Height of Hinge: 5″ Heavy Weight Hinge

Width of Door: Over 42″
Height of Hinge: 6″ Heavy Weight Hinge

Hinge Width

First determine the door thickness. For our example we will consider a 1-3/4″ thick door.

Exterior Exit Device Door

Second, determine the hinge backset. The standard conventional hinge backset is 1/4″. (Be sure to check with your door and frame manufacturer for the appropriate hinge prep dimension)

Third, determine the clearance requirement by measuring the projection of the trim on the face of the frame or wall. For our example, we will say our clearance dimension is 3″.

Then use the following formula to figure the minimum hinge width needed.

(Door Thickness – Hinge Backset) x multiplied by 2 + Clearance = Minimum Hinge Width Needed (Use the next closest STANDARD hinge size)

For our example:

(1-3/4″ – 1/4″) x 2 + 3″ =

(1-1/2″) x 2 + 3″ =

3″ + 3″ = 6″

Based on this example, the minimum hinge width needed will be 6″. (Image below from DHI)