How to fix a sticky door

Feb 4

Duane KingArticles, Home & Garden No Comments

Youd be suprised how many houses dont have properly working doors!

You'd be surprised how many houses don't have properly working doors!

I hope everyone is having a great year so far!
I am always amazed at the number of doors I find that bind and/or do not latch while I’m performing an inspection. I am amazed because in most cases the problem can be corrected in less than ten minutes with a few screws. I’ll explain how in a few minutes. First we need to learn some terms and definitions.

In order for a door to open, close, and latch properly it must be plumb and the frame must be square. Plumb means the door is hanging vertically true. Square means the corners of the frame form perfect, or close to perfect, 90 degree angles.
I’ll address an out of plumb door that won’t latch first since it is the most common condition I find. While standing inside of the room with the door closed I look at the space between the door and frame at the hinge side of the door. If the space is wider at the top than at the bottom, the door is tilted downward and the latch bolt is too low to enter the hole in the strike plate. This can also cause the door to bind near the top. A door that is tilted downward can be corrected by installing longer screws (2-1/2″ to 3-1/2″) through the top hinge and into the stud behind the door frame. If the opposite is true the door is tilted upward (very rare) and the bolt is too high to enter the hole in the strike plate. This can cause the door to bind near the bottom too. Longer screws can be installed through the bottom hinge to correct the problem.
If the space at the hinge side of the door is uniform from top to bottom and the door binds or won’t latch then the frame is out of square and must be brought back into proper position. This requires a little more than a few screws and ten minutes. By looking at the space between the top of the door and the frame I can tell if the frame at the latch side of the door needs to be moved upward or downward to make the corners square. In order to adjust the frame I have to free up, then reposition, the top and latch side portions of it. This cannot be done until after I have removed the adjacent pieces of trim.
If you would like more information about Doors, Hinges or Locks please contact me at dkingfullserviceinspector@gmail.com