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Repairing A Split In A Door

  
  
  

door bar clampA damaged door leads homeowners to ask if it needs to be replaced or if it can be repaired. My answer is that it depends. If the door is an interior door and you can glue the split back together, I would say it is worth repairing. However, if it is an exterior door with a split, I would replace it. You don’t want to compromise safety.

Repairing a split in an interior door requires some adhesive and clamps. Most interior doors are hollow core doors with a wood perimeter. Realize that the perimeter may not be solid wood, but rather a fiberboard product like MDF (medium density fiberboard).

You want to get the wood glue down into the split so that the repair holds. A split in a door usually occurs along the edge. It may be necessary to slightly open the split with a putty knife or standard screwdriver and squirt some glue into the crevice. Apply more glue than you think you need so that the split is full. You can squeeze the damaged area with your hand to work the glue down into the area.

Use clamps to clamp the damaged area closed. I like mini bar clamps because you can operate them with one hand and they have great holding power. They also have cushioned jaws so that they will not damage the surface. You can also use “C” clamps, but be careful not to squeeze them too hard or you will damage the door. If you are going to use C-clamps, you can use wood strips along the edge and clamp the strips to the door edge. This will distribute the clamping pressure uniformly along the entire length of the edge. Let the glue dry for at least 24 hours before removing the clamps.

Install A Door Chain Lock

  
  
  

door chain lockInstalling an additional door lock can give you a more secure feeling, depending upon which type of lock you install. A door chain lock is not the type of lock I would say gives me a feeling of security. I do, however, think they are good for keeping two-year-olds inside the house instead of opening any door they can find to roam outside. Door chains are popular for many reasons.

There are two pieces of a chain lock. The chain, which mounts on the door frame, and the stationary piece that mounts on the door. The kit will come with all hardware, but the screws that hold the chain to the door jamb are usually too small. If someone impacts the door, the weakest part will give first. This may be the chain or either one of the mounted parts.

Choose the height that works for you and mark a level line. Install the chain piece to the jamb using long screws that will hopefully reach solid lumber behind the molding. This usually takes 2 screws. Line up the stationary piece and mount it level with the chain so that the larger open hole side is furthest away from the chain piece. This usually takes 4 screws.

These chain locks can be easily defeated using only a rubber band from outside the door. Manufacturers have made sets that prevent this, so depending on your use for this chain lock, you can go cheap or more costly.

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Adjust A Patio Door Handle

  
  
  

patio door handleIf you have a patio door that sometimes locks and sometimes doesn’t, you are not alone. Fortunately, getting the door to cooperate takes a small amount of effort.

The patio door slides against the jamb and the door handle has a mechanism that latches into the jamb. The jamb holds the receiving end of the latch which can be adjusted up or down.

The adjustments usually become necessary as the door becomes more difficult to move. You can adjust the wheels on the bottom of the door to raise or lower them. However, this will make it so that the latch doesn’t line up with the receiving mechanism as it had. So an adjustment is necessary.

You will need a screwdriver to loosen the screws that hold the mechanism in place. Adjust the mechanism until the door will easily lock. You may need to make very small adjustments until the lock engages just right. After you have tested it a few times, go ahead and fully tighten the screws to lock the mechanism into place.

If you’ve got some time, you might consider cleaning the track that the patio door rolls upon. You can start by vacuuming the debris out of it and then using a cleaner to remove any dirt buildup.

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Replace Door Weatherstrip At Bottom

  
  
  

door sweepIf you can see daylight coming in from under your front door, you need to replace the strip of weatherstripping at the bottom of the door. It is probably a good idea to remove the strip and take it with you to get the right style. There are strips that slide into grooves in the underside of the door, some get stapled to the underside of the door, and some slide onto the bottom of the door and get attached with screws. The latter is the easiest style as they are a universal fit. The only problem is that they look very universal.

This style looks like a "U" shaped channel with some rubber fins on the bottom. The idea here is to slide the U-channel along the bottom of the door and adjust it for height. Trim the channel with a utility knife so that it doesn't hit either jamb as the door opens or closes. With the channel fitted for length, use a drill driver and insert the screws partially into the bottom of the door (these screws will be visible along the bottom inside of the door). The screws will be inserted into oblong slots. These slots will allow you to move the channel up and down to get a good fit. You want the fins on the bottom of the channel to lightly rub against the threshold to seal the opening. Once you have a slight rubbing sound, tighten the screws until firm.

Replacing Door Hinges May Require A Chisel

  
  
  

door wood chiselIf you have a door hinge that is giving you problems, or maybe you just want to replace them, you might need a chisel. Not that replacing door hinges is all that common. It really isn’t, but there are times when you want to. For example, some people cheat when it comes to painting, and instead of taping the hinges to protect them from the paint, they will paint over them.

Replacing a hinge is nothing more that removing the screws from the old hinge and installing them in the new hinge. Just make sure you buy the right size of hinge. Most commonly you will find them in 3 ½ inches and 4 inches tall.

The chisel comes into play when your old hinge has rounded corners and your new hinge has 90-degree corners. If you try to place the new hinge in the place of the old rounded-corner hinge, it won’t fit. So the easiest way is to chisel out the corner areas so the new hinge will fit.

Place the new hinge in the correct position and use a pencil to make a light outline for the new hinge. Then place the tip of the chisel on the line (with the beveled edge facing toward the interior of the hinge area) and cut the outline for the corners of the new hinge. Once you have cut the outline, drop the angle of the chisel and tap out the corners up to the line you just cut. You can clean up the corner pieces with some light taps of the chisel and then place the new hinge to make sure you have a good fit.

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Repair A Sticking Door

  
  
  

sticking doorIf you have a door that sticks, it is probably an adjustment of some type. The first step is to diagnose where the door is actually sticking. You will usually find it sticking at the latch side of the door or at the top jamb where it intersects with the strike jamb.

If the door sticks at the latch itself, maybe the strike plate needs to be mortised into the jamb. This is as easy as removing the plate and chiseling out an indention equal to the thickness of the strike plate. You want to make the strike plate even with the surrounding jamb.

If the door sticks somewhere along the strike jamb (look for rub marks or missing paint), figure out where. In many cases, it is near the top of the jamb since the weight of the door will pull it toward the floor. Grab the door by the handle and move it up and down. You are looking for some play in the door. If the door moves up and down, go to the hinges. Most likely the top hinge has become loose. Try tightening these screws while placing the door in the correct position.

You can also adjust the knuckles on the door. Remove the hinge pin and move each hinge knuckle the same distance toward the handle. Do this on the door side of the hinge and it will give you some distance between the edge of the door and the jamb.

As a last resort, you can always use a hand plane and slightly remove some material from the edge of the door. You will need to touch up the paint when you are done.

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Loose Shower Door Handle

  
  
  

shower doorWhether you have a swinging shower door or a sliding shower door, eventually the door handle will become loose. Repairing it takes just a screwdriver.

The shower handle is usually secured to the door on the inside of the shower. A swinging door handle will have two screws that hold it in place located near the top and bottom of the handle. A sliding shower door will have the fasteners at either end of the long bar. Each of the sliding shower doors will have a bar on the door, and they are interchangeable. The bar on the inside door is used as a handle while the bar on the outside door is used to hang towels on (although it can also be used as a handle as well).

The repair is simply tightening the screws until snug, but do not over tighten. Some handles use a cover over the screw heads that you will need to pop off to gain access to the screw. Once you tighten the screw you can snap the cover back on. High-end swinging glass doors will have a cover that doubles as the fastener. It will have opposing holes in it to tighten.

It seems the heaver the door or the more you effort you have to exert to open and close it, the more often you will need to secure the handle.

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How To Remove A Door Knob

  
  
  

door knobWe aren’t talking about rocket science here, removing a door knob is easy and should take you under five minutes.

A door knob is held in place with screws on the interior. If you are lucky, the screws will be in plain view around the handle. Some door knobs have a decorative cover over the screws that you will need to pop off. You will probably see a small opening in the cover and you can pop it off with a small screwdriver.

Once the cover is removed you will see the two screws. Remove the screws and both sides of the knob will pull away from the door. All that will be left will be the latch mechanism. It takes two screws to remove this as well.

Look at the edge of the door where the latch juts out from the door. There will be screws here that hold the latch to the door. Unscrew these screws and the latch mechanism will pull out of the door.

If you are going to install a new door knob, the process is simply reversed. Install the latch mechanism first and then the two door knob halves. Check the backset of the latch to make sure it will fit the door. Many latches have adjustable backsets to accommodate different distances.

Shave Door With A Block Plane

  
  
  

door planeOccasionally you will notice that your door will bind at a particular area. You could make adjustments to hinges or knuckles and try to figure out why this is happening, or you could grab a block plane.

Sometimes a door will bind due to weather. If it is humid for a certain period of time, you may find that the door sticks. This condition will often disappear once the humidity goes away, but if it bothers you, you can plane the door.

Block planes come in many sizes, but more importantly is how well the plane is tuned. A well tuned block plane can shave wood thin enough so that you can read your morning newspaper through it. So wherever your door is binding, you can take thin successive passes and get the door to open and close without removing very much material. Of course, you will have to touch up the paint when you are done.

It’s easier if you remove the door from the hinges and plane the edge as it is held on the floor. However, if I can plane a door while it remains on the hinges, that is just one less step I have to do. Always use two hands when you plane, even if the plane fits in the palm of your hand. You will have more control over the cuts this way. I generally don’t plane past the edge of the door as this will tear out the end grain on the door. If you need to plane at the corner, start at the corner and plane inward. Also, turn the plane so that the blade is at an angle. It will take smaller shavings of wood this way and make it easier to push through the wood. It is better to take many small shavings than one big one that you may regret later.

Bi-Fold Door Parts Break Easily

  
  
  

bifold doorA bi-fold door is a door that will need regular adjustments. In some cases you may need to replace some parts as they are plastic and break under the stress of the door. These folding doors are held in place at both the top and bottom of the hinge side. The top of the door rides in a rail and has a small wheel at the top end for this purpose. This wheel guide will often break and will need replaced.

Reach up into the guide rail and press down on the guide. This will enable you to swing the top of the door out to replace the guide. The old one just pops out of the hole, and as they are spring-loaded, just press it down and swing it back into the rail.

The bottom of the hinge side is somewhat prone to splitting. This pivot is metal and the doors are usually hollow and the wood will split before the metal does. Before you replace the door, remove it by lifting it out of the bracket and removing the metal pivot. You can try gluing the split back together if it is small, and it usually is. Squeeze plenty of glue into the crack and clamp it shut for at least 24 hours. When the glue has dried, reinstall the metal pivot and reinstall the door.

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