Heavenly Door Designs for Church to Home Conversion
April 2025
Restoring history with sustainability at its heart, Thor’s Hammer recently crafted and installed custom doors for a stunning church to home renovation in Taralga.
Using recycled Australian hardwoods, we designed and built archway doors that blend heritage charm with modern durability.
Arched doors - installation in progress, just waiting on the handles to complete.
A Church with a Rich Past
Originally built in 1863, the former St Ignatius Catholic Church in Taralga served its congregation for decades before being replaced by the Christ the King Catholic Church in 1934. The old St Ignatius building was later converted into a home in the late 1990s and changed ownership again in 2023.
The new owners, committed to preserving the historic character of their home while enhancing its functionality, turned to Thor’s Hammer for expertly crafted, custom recycled timber doors.
Crafting Timeless Beauty with Recycled Timber
The homeowners sought not only high-quality craftsmanship but also a sustainable solution, making our extensive experience with custom door design and our dedication to recycled Australian hardwoods the perfect fit for their renovation.
For this project, we designed and built three external doors (two of which are arched) and one arched internal door. Each door was carefully crafted from solid recycled blackbutt cladding boards, with a Tricoya core. Tricoya is a high-performance, exterior-grade panel that undergoes a patented acetylation process, making it exceptionally durable, dimensionally stable, and resistant to moisture and decay.
With a lifespan exceeding 50 years, it perfectly complements the longevity of the hardwood cladding, ensuring the doors stand the test of time with proper maintenance.
The recycled timber archway doors are really coming together.
Precision, Installation & Heritage Considerations
To ensure a perfect fit, the team at Thor’s Hammer conducted site visits, to check dimensions and template the arched doorways. Given the church’s age and the natural movement of the structure over time, precise templating was crucial.
For most of our custom door projects, we also manufacture the jamb (the frame that the door is hinged in). This job was no exception, and making the curved, arched jambs was one of the more difficult parts of the build. Timbers were laminated oversize to the arched shape in a brick pattern, and then machined to an exact curve with our CNC. Final fit was done with a hand plane.
With hardwood doors being heavy, a solid jamb is essential for support, and matching the jamb to the door material creates a seamless aesthetic. Additionally, we use modern heavy-duty hinges, not only designed to maintain their strength over time, but when necessary, simple to adjust on site without removing the door.
Timeless Craftsmanship, Sustainable Design
We make our custom doors to fit your existing doorways, and for projects requiring unique or oversize doors. We manufacture to fit specific shapes and dimensions perfectly, with a high level of precision and care.
Thor’s Hammer can assist you all the way through the design, manufacture and installation of your new custom made, recycled timber doors.
Explore our extensive range of recycled timber door designs, perfect for new home builds, renovations, or door replacements.
Get in touch with our design team today to discuss your project and bring the charm of reclaimed timber into your home through the front door.
Photos by Bianca Knox