A door that binds in the monsoon and has a visible gap in summer is not a faulty door. It is a door made without an allowance for movement, in a climate that has a great deal of movement to allow for.
What is happening
Timber exchanges moisture with the air around it until the two are in balance. As it takes on moisture it expands, and it expands far more across the grain than along it. A door that is 900 mm wide can change measurably in width between a humid week and a dry one, while its height barely changes at all.
This is why sticking almost always happens on the closing edge rather than at the top.
What a maker can do about it
Season the timber to something close to the moisture content it will live at, rather than working it green. Set the gaps with the season in mind — a door hung in the driest part of the year needs a more generous gap than one hung in the wettest. Build panels so they float rather than sit glued into their frames. And seal every face, including the top and bottom edges, because an unsealed edge is where moisture gets in fastest.
What an owner can do about it
Very little, which is the point. Once the piece is made, the decisions that matter have been taken. Keeping a room ventilated helps at the margins, and refinishing an exposed edge helps more than most people expect.
If you are commissioning work in a coastal or high-humidity house, say so at the start. It changes the timber selection, the seasoning, the joint choices and the gaps — all of which are cheap to get right at the beginning and expensive to correct afterwards.
Ask us about your own piece.
If you are weighing this decision for something specific, describe it and we will give you a straight answer.