A door that rubs, drags on the carpet or will not latch is one of the most common small jobs we do. The temptation is to plane a bit off where it rubs. Sometimes that is right. Often it hides the real cause, and the door sticks again somewhere else.
Check the hinges first
Open the door halfway and lift the handle end. If the door moves up and down, the hinge screws are loose or the screw holes are worn. That lets the door drop and rub at the top on the handle side or on the floor. Tightening the screws, or filling the holes and refixing with longer screws, often cures it without touching the door itself.
Damp and the seasons
Timber takes in moisture. Doors that stick in winter and are fine in summer are swelling with the damp, which is common in older Devon houses and on external doors. If the door has never been painted on its top and bottom edges, the wood takes in water there. Easing the door slightly and sealing all the edges usually stops it coming back.
When the house has moved
In older cottages and terraces round Bradninch and Tiverton, frames are often out of square because the building has settled over the years. The door was fine once, and the frame has moved round it. Here the fix is to rehang the door to suit the frame as it is now, sometimes with packing behind the hinges, rather than planing a wedge off one corner.
When to replace
- The door is split, or the joints have opened up.
- It has been planed so many times the gaps are uneven all round.
- It is a hollow internal door with hinge screws pulling out of the thin edge.
- It needs to be a fire door, for example on a loft conversion or a rental property.
A new door can often go into the existing frame, which keeps the cost down. Where the frame is the problem, new linings are fitted first.
Small jobs are welcome. We ease, rehang and replace doors around Cullompton, Bradninch and Tiverton. See carpentry and joinery or read our guide to fire doors in rental properties.
Common questions
- Why does my door stick in winter but not summer?
- The timber swells as it takes in moisture. Easing it slightly and sealing all its edges, including the top and bottom, usually stops it.
- Can you fit a new door in my old frame?
- Usually, yes. The new door is cut and hung to suit the existing frame. If the frame is damaged or badly out of square, new linings are fitted first.
- Will you come out for one door?
- Yes. Single doors and other small carpentry jobs are welcome.