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I have installed a new pre-hung door that needs to blend in with the surrounding wall. The door is a flat slab and will be painted the same as the wall. I don't want to use door trim as I need a flat look. How do I conceal the gap between the frame and the door jamb? I could use plaster but I think it will crack over time.

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Can you double up on the drywall sheet? If the wall around the door is 1 sheet of drywall and you need another 1/2", could you just put on another sheet on top of the existing? – Jon Raynor Jan 26 '12 at 16:25
I beleive it will crack also (over time) because the wall and the door are not one fixed piece. Maybe fill it in with plaster and put a very thin piece of veneer and glue it around the door? It will not be totally flat but close. – Jon Raynor Jan 27 '12 at 22:09
I'm afraid I can't add another sheet of drywall in this location... Besides I feel this would not solve the problem as I would still end up with some kind of gap to fill up, however small. – md1337 Feb 1 '12 at 21:27
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I think the pre-hung door is the sticking point here, generally "hidden" doors use custom hinges and a wider jamb (or something like ezy jamb). – Steve Jackson Feb 1 '12 at 22:33
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also, note that it likely will never 'blend in' perfectly. I find that 'close but not quite' is actually more disconcerting than if you just go with trim to begin with. Granted, I don't know your ultimate goal, but just a heads up. – DA01 Feb 3 '12 at 21:51
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3 Answers

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I'm going to take a stab at this one, though I've never tried this for something large like a door frame.

Go get some self-adhesive fiberglass drywall tape and cover the area to be blended. Mud the seam, sand and repeat until smooth and the surface is blended with the wall. Prime and paint to match.

Alternatively, you could try peeling the paper off some scrap drywall and gluing it to the wall, and then doing the same as above with drywall compound.

I think these will help prevent it from cracking. You'll want to make sure the door frame is well secured to minimize any "give" that would crack it.

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I wonder how he'd feather the mud along the wood of the door frame, though. – oscilatingcretin Feb 2 '12 at 13:11
That is why I mentioned the use of fiberglass tape, stick it to the frame, then mud on top. Do you think that'd help hold it? – Steven Feb 2 '12 at 13:50
I've done something like this and it worked fine. 2 years and no cracking yet. – Ruz Feb 3 '12 at 21:10
Currently this is the answer that I think makes the most sense... I would pack the gap with plaster and then apply the tape and then mud as usual. – md1337 Feb 6 '12 at 21:13
Let's just hope it doesn't crack over time. – md1337 Feb 6 '12 at 21:19
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Maybe there is no room for a second layer of drywall, but what about wallpaper? There are some plain wall papers available that could be painted over.

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But then the area of wallpaper directly over the gap will be soft to the touch since there will be nothing to support it. Unless you pack the gap with plaster but then I would rather use tape as Steven said. – md1337 Feb 6 '12 at 21:15
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Just for the sake of completeness, here is what I was thinking of doing until Steven came up with a better/easier solution (at least on paper):

I was planning on packing the gap with plaster (or more likely setting-type joint compound), and then scoring a stress relief gap around the perimeter of the door. Then filling up the gap with caulk. Sort of like on parking lots when you see caulk between concrete slabs. If done right I believe this to be quite acceptable visually.

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