Need handyman help- doors not closing?
Question:A couple of doors in my house don't stay shut- the lock mechanism never stays in the hole in the jamb. How to fix. Does the stopper create this problem- that thing at the top hinge with a bumper on it?
Answers:
The stopper is not causing the problem. The house has settled and the door is no longer "plumb".
With the door closed, look at the space around the door. It will be wider at the top or the bottom. Open the door and remove the screws from the hinge where the space is widest-- if there is more space at the top, remove the top hinge. Get a piece of thin cardboard/posterboard (like you might find in the wrapping of a new shirt). Use the hinge as a template to cut pieces of cardboard matching the left and right sides of the hinge. Put 2 of the pieces under each half of the hinge and re-attach the hinge to the door and door jam. Now do the same with the middle hinge, using 1 piece of cardboard under each half of the hinge. Re-attach the middle hinge. Now when you close the door you will see that the space around the door is more even than it was, and the latch will have moved slightly up or down, depending on whether you adjusted the top or bottom hinge. Make additional adjustments as needed.
If the space around the door is even and the latch still doesn't line up, remove the strike plate. Fill the screw holes with wood filler (and allow time to harden). Also fill part of the hole for the latch -- the bottom part if you need the strike plate moved higher, the top part if you are going to move the strike plate down.
Hold the strike plate over the door where it needs to be and trace around it with a pencil. Use a chisel to enlarge the place where the strike plate is to be seated-- up or down as needed. Also enlarge the hole where you want the latch to go (above or below where you added wood filler).
Now holding the latch in the new position, drill new screw holes. Reattach the strike plate.
This happened to me before. As strange as is sounds, all I had to do was water the foundation around the house, and the door would stay closed. Whether this works for you or not, it wouldn't hurt to try.
HI,no the hinge mounted stop has nothing to do with it. Sounds to me, that whoever installed them , didn't get the lock sets with the adjustable back-sets. They go (the back-set) from 23/8" to 2 3/4" . That is determined by how far back the actual Handel is from the edge of the door. Or, they installed the back-sets ,facing the wrong way. That is the only things it could be.If it is the wrong size back-set, they sell those by their selves,so you won't have to get a whole new door lock. Bye By the way, I'm not a handy-man,just a girl who is a Hardware, Tools Department Manager. Bye
Does this problem just happen seasonally? Sometimes wooden doors swell in the humid months and then can stick or not close properly. It sounds as though the door latch is not fully engaging in the jam. Typically there is a small metal bracket that surrounds a hole in the door jam. It should be held in by 2 screws. Often just by moving the bracket out a little you can get the latch to better engage. Sometimes there is adjustment just by loosening the screws and sliding the bracket, or you may have to remove the screws and use new holes. Here's a tip; if you need to make new screw holes, they will be very close to the old ones and your screws will want to go in the old holes. You can fill the old holes with a broken off wooden tooth pick and a dab of glue to allow you to make the new holes more easily. Good Luck.
Wood swells with increases in humidity, this may be contributing to your problem. The stopper shouldn't be the problem, just keeps the door knob from damaging the wall.
Did you paint the doors recently? This can also be a factor. The easiest way to get the handle set to latch is to slightly adjust or move the strike plate - on the door jamb. Without seeing the doors, can't give you a perfect answer.
The stopper would make a difference, if it keeping the door from closing all the way. Sounds like it might be three things, and none of them involve the backset. Go to the hardware store, buy some silicone lubricant (not WD-40), and a flat bastard metal file.
1. remove the lock from the door, and lubricate the latch (plunger) and any moving parts you can see on the lock. Put lock back on door, did this fix it?
2. Get eye to eye with the strike (on the door frame, where the latch hits). See if you can see where the latch rubs, and use the file to make the strike fit the latch. If this is more then 1/16ths of an inch, then look at the hinges, your screws might simply be loose.
3. Adjust the door using the instructions given Richard G, he did a good job of explaining that.
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