Decks

An exterior door may be more energy efficient than a window, but a door can leak just as much water and air. As the moisture content changes in soil, your home shifts. Your doors also shift, creating gaps large enough for a dump truck to pass through.

With doors, you need to regularly caulk the exterior trim even if the exterior door in question is protected by a covered porch. Remember that caulking is designed to keep out air as well as water. Caulk the doorframe to the door trim and the door trim to the siding.

If you find moisture on the entry floor, it could be a leak between the threshold and the door bottom. The threshold is the wood or metal platform at the base of the doorway. It usually tilts outward to shed water. The bottoms of most exterior doors are fitted with a metal door bottom or "shoe" that houses a rubber gasket. The door shoe is attached to the bottom of the door with screws driven through oblong slots in the shoe. The oblong slots allow the door bottom to be adjusted up and down as the house -- and consequently the door -- shift up and down. When the door is closed, the rubber gasket is supposed to rest tightly against the full length of the threshold preventing the influx of air and water.

No matter how successfully the door shoe and threshold work to prevent air and water leaks, there could be yet another problem. The threshold itself might leak. Exterior door thresholds are normally laid in a thick bed of caulk when originally installed. Occasionally, the caulk shrinks and the threshold leaks. The only way to prevent future leaks is to remove the threshold, recaulk the area, and replace the threshold. Be sure to readjust the door shoe once the threshold has been replaced.

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Stopping Air Leaks
An air leak in a doorframe is pretty common. Use the candle test described earlier to see just how severe the problem is.

Foam sealant can be added between the frame of the door and the frame of the house by removing the interior door casing. The casing is the wood trim that covers the joint between the doorframe and the wall. Use a flat pry bar to slowly remove the trim so that it won't be damaged.

Other air leaks can occur between the door and the doorframe. This is where weather stripping is handy. It doesn't make any difference whether the exterior door is painted or stained, large or small, solid wood or French style, the same type of weather stripping can be used. We like the kind of whether stripping that consists of a rubber bead attached lengthwise to a strip of metal. Standing outside the door, with the door in the closed position, gently press the rubber portion of the weather stripping against the door and frame at the same time. Attach the metal section of the weather stripping to the frame of the door with the nails or screws provided. Here, oblong holes allow the weather stripping to be adjusted later as house movement causes the door to shift.

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Adjusting a Sticking Swinging Door
When a door sticks, always check for a loose hinge first. Try tightening the screws that connect the hinges to the door and frame. Often that's all it will take to repair a sticking door.

If the hinges are loose and the screws won't tighten, chances are the screw holes are stripped. Replace them with longer ones. The screw that normally holds a hinge in place connects to the frame of the door only. A longer screw will penetrate through the door frame and into the house frame (where support is really solid). This technique works even if the existing holes are stripped.

If you aren't into buying and installing longer hinge screws, then you may want to repair the stripped holes. Use a golf tee or a few toothpicks and reuse the original screw. Dip a golf tee (or several toothpicks) into any good wood glue and drive the glue-laden material into the stripped hole. Wait several hours for the glue to dry and cut off the excess material. This repairs the stripped holes. Now you can then reuse the original screws to hold the hinge tightly in place.

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Slightly Shifty Doors
When a house shifts, you never know which way it will cause a door to move. Sometimes the gap between the door and the frame increases. Other times, the normal distance between the door and frame diminishes to the point where rubbing or sticking results. The problem always seems to manifest itself either at the side of the door opposite the hinges or at the top of the door.

Before we tell you how to adjust the hinge to fix the rubbing, we must first give you a quick rundown on hinge anatomy. A hinge comes in three parts: the two hinge sides and the hinge pin. The hinge sides are held together when the hinge pin is driven through alternating rings known as the knuckles. Bending the knuckles can widen or narrow the gap between the hinge sides. At the same time adjusting the knuckles can change the position of a door and get rid of the rub.

To begin this repair, first decide which knuckle you need to operate on (All directions are as you view the door from the side where you can see the hinges and where the hinges are located on the left side of the door. Reverse the following repair procedures when the hinges are located on the right side.):

• If the door sticks at the upper-right side: Bend the hinge knuckles on the upper hinge only away from the hinge center. After you have bent the knuckles, the hinge sides will be closer together moving the upper-right side of the door away from the upper-right side of the frame.

• If the door sticks at the lower-right side: Bend the hinge knuckles on the lower hinge only away from hinge center. After you have bent the knuckles, the hinge sides will be closer together, moving the lower-right side of the door away from the lower-right side of the frame.

• If the door edge sticks at both the top and bottom: Bend the hinge knuckles on both the upper and the lower hinges away from hinge center. After you have bent the knuckles, the hinge sides will be closer together moving the upper and lower side of the door away from the upper and lower side of the frame.

• If the door sticks at the top edge on the right side: Bend the hinge knuckles on the upper hinge slightly toward center and bend the lower hinges knuckles slightly away from hinge center. After you have bent the knuckles, the upper hinge sides will be slightly farther apart and the lower hinge sides will be slightly closer together. This tilts the door in the opening. The trick here is to tilt the door enough to miss the top but not so much as to cause it to rub on the upper-right side.

To perform the hinge bending operation, just follow these steps:

• Remove the hinge pin with a hammer and a nail punch.
• The door doesn't have to be removed from the opening.
• Replace the hinge pin.

When the hinge is repinned the door will have moved.

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Sliding Glass Doors
Did you ever reach out to open a sliding glass door, give it a tug, and feel like the door was pulling back? Patio doors need care and maintenance, too.

Unlike conventional exterior doors that swing on hinges, a sliding glass door moves on rollers. Little wheels made of neoprene or metal, that will wear out with use over time.

Since the wheels on the bottom of a sliding glass door run in a threshold often filled with dirt and sand, it's a wonder that they last more than a year or two. If you have sliding patio doors, here's how to convert loving care into lasting quality and a door that opens and closes easily.

First and foremost always keep the bottom track of the door clean and free of dirt and sand. In addition, regularly spray the track and the wheels with a waterless silicone spray. The absence of water in the spray reduces the chance for rusty wheels, and the silicone is a colorless lubricant that won't stain or attract dust.

Just like other doors in the home, a sliding patio door can be knocked out of alignment when the house shifts. Adjusting the wheels at the bottom of the door can compensate for this problem. Raising or lowering opposing wheels (located at the underside of each end of the door) can straighten a crooked door, thus allowing it to close parallel to the doorframe. Raising both wheels evenly can prevent the bottom of the door from rubbing on the track as the wheels wear out and become smaller.

For wheels that are adjustable, simply turn the adjacent screw to make it happen. Normally you will find a hole at each end of the bottom track of the sliding door through which a screwdriver can be inserted. Use a pry bar to slightly lift the door to take pressure off the wheel while you turn the adjustment screw.

If the door is lowered when you in fact wanted to raise it, simply raise the door and turn the screw in the other direction. How's that for getting the best bang for your sliding door buck.

Rollers that are completely worn out (or those that can't be adjusted) can be replaced. Open the door about half way, raise it 1 inch by forcing it into the top track, and at the same time, pull out on the bottom. With the door out of the opening, snap the old rollers out and pop in a pair of new ones.

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Double Action Swinging Doors
Double-action swinging doors give their hinges a real test. Over time and repeated use, the mounting screws loosen and the springs within the hinge weaken in spite of the fact that you may from time to time shoot them with a bit of silicone lubricant.

Many of these doors use double spring-action hinges that are self-closing and allow the doors to swing in both directions. Some have stops that allow the doors to remain open when they're swung past 90 degrees. Some of these hinges are mounted to a wood strip that you mount to the doorjamb. You may have two or three hinges on each door.

To adjust the hinge so the doors meet flush when closed, use the spring steel adjustment rod provided with the hinge. If you've lost the adjustment rod, use the long end of a snug-fitting Allen wrench. Push or pull the adjustment rod to increase the spring tension. This allows you to remove the pin that holds the spring in place. Move the pin so that the spring is one hole tighter; then check the door alignment. You may have to make adjustments to the springs on both doors.

Because there is a lot of pull on the screws that hold these hinges in place, replace the screws with 1 1/2- or 2-inch-long screws that reach into the studs behind the doorjamb.

Another type of hinge on swinging doors uses a double-acting pivot consisting of a heavy spring and a cam. Some cams have stops that hold the door open when it's opened beyond 90 degrees. These hinges are mounted either in the bottom of the door or in the floor.

Dust and dirt is the biggest problem for these bottom-mounted spring devices. Keep them as clean as you possibly can by vacuuming frequently. If the spring is jammed, unscrew the cover plates from the hinge and vacuum. If you find any rust, scrape it off and vacuum again. Then spray the spring and the pivot with a silicone lubricant. Clean and install the cover plates.

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Pocket Doors
This style of door is appropriately called a "pocket" door because, when in the open position, the door neatly slides into a void space in the wall. A pocket door glides on rollers that hang from a track mounted on the frame above the door. Old-fashioned pocket doors always seemed to fall off the track. That doesn't happen with the newer doors. But it may be necessary to adjust the height of the doors because of changes in the floor covering. The procedures for doing this vary depending on the manufacturer and model of the door, but in general, here is how to do it:

• Remove one of the split headers that hide and trim the roller track.
  Beneath the rollers, you find a hanger with an adjustment bolt and nut or screw.
• Use a thin-end wrench or a screwdriver to turn the nut or screw to raise or lower the door.

To clean the tracks, use a vacuum to remove dust. Lubricate the rollers with spray silicone lubricant.

Silicone lubricant keeps the hardware locks functioning unless they become very dirty. In that case, remove the lock or lever and clean them in mineral spirits. Spray a coating of silicone on the interior parts; then reassemble.

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Bifold Doors
Bifold doors can misbehave due to worn or broken parts, a damaged track, loose hinges, lack of lubricant, and dirt. To fix any of these problems, you must remove the door by lifting up on the panel nearest the jamb until the bottom pivot clears the jamb bracket. (You may have to unscrew the bottom pivot until it clears the bracket.)

If any of the parts are worn, remove them and take them to your home center or hardware store and purchase identical replacement parts, if possible. You may find that the pivot holes aren't the correct size and the hole has to be enlarged to fit the replacement pivot. Follow the manufacturers instructions to do this.

If the pivot hole is worn and too large for the new pivot, drill out the hole and fill it with a dowel glued in place. After the glue dries, bore a new hole of the proper size in the dowel.

If the problem is with the bottom pivot or jamb bracket, replace the worn parts. Adjust the bottom pivot so that the top of the door is about 3/8 inch from the track for best operation.

Rusty, bent, loose, or paint-encrusted hinges hamper smooth operation of bifold doors. Rather than trying to clean a painted or rusty hinge, buy new hinges. They improve operation and make your door look like new.

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Shower Doors
Here are ways to get your bathroom doors clean and keep them that way:

• Using lemon oil polish and a scouring pad, scrub the glass panels with gusto. If the door has acrylic panels, go easy on the scrubbing or you may scratch the acrylic.
• Scrub with sodium carbonate. You can find a pure form of sodium carbonate, called ph increaser, at swimming pool retailers.
• Use a sponge and dishwashing detergent to clean the shower door (and the rest of the shower stall) after every shower.
• Place a couple of small suction cups that have small hooks on the inside of a shower door. Use the pair of hangers to suspend a vinegar-soaked rag on the inside of the shower door. Reposition the hangers and rag periodically to conquer small sections at a time. This may sound funny and look terrible, but it's inside the shower and your guests won't see it unless they are really snoopy. The vinegar will soften the mineral deposits. Really dirty shower doors may require some scrubbing with a nylon scouring pad.

If the doors get out of alignment, or the rollers come off the track, you can usually reset the doors by lifting them in the frame and resetting the rollers in the channel.

When the doors drag, or they don't stay in the bottom channel, the rollers need adjusting. Lift the outer door until the rollers clear the top track; then, pull the bottom of the door out and away from the bottom channel and set it aside. Do the same with the inner door.

Clean debris from the bottom track and clean a doorframes using the mildew cleaning solution. Loosen the screws that hold the rollers to the doorframe and adjust them to raise or lower the door as needed. If the screws are rusted, replace them with zinc-coated or stainless steel screws. A light spray of a dry silicone lubricant will keep the rollers operating smoothly.

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Knobs, Locks, and Latches

Dirty knobs
Barring a damaged finish, just about the only problems you'll have with doorknobs and sliding door latches are screws that loosen and collected dirt that jambs up the mechanism. In our 21+ years as contractors, we haven't ever seen a doorknob fail -- at least not yet. We've found that cleaning and lubrication can solve most problems.

When a doorknob, key lock, or sliding door latch begins to stick intermittently, or when it isn't operating as smoothly as usual, it's probably gunked up with dirt. When this happens, most of us have the tendency to use a lubricant to solve the problem. This is not appropriate; because lubricant is used to reduce friction, not clean. If you have a sticky doorknob, we suggest spraying cutting oil into the works. Cutting oil cleans and lubricates. Better yet, take a few moments to remove the hardware and dip it into a bath of cutting oil. Follow the bath with a spray of light machine oil -- sewing machine oil is great -- and reinstall the knob. Ninety-nine percent of the time it will operate like it's brand new. This procedure has worked successfully for us on doorknobs and levers, deadbolts, throw bolts, and patio door latches -- just about any door hardware that we've ever had to maintain.

Loose screws
You reach for the doorknob, and as you grip it, you notice that it has shifted from its original position. You can see where the trim ring and the paint don't line up. You try wiggling the knob in hopes that it won't move, thinking to yourself that if it doesn't, further attention on your part won't be required. Hey, sooner or later you will have do deal with it. The nice thing is that the maintenance is unbelievably easy.

You can keep key locks lubricated with graphite powder, but it can be a bit messy and there is the chance that using too much could temporarily jamb the lock. However, there is an easy and inexpensive alternative. Rub a pencil onto your key. Then push the key into the lock. The lead, which is actually a graphite compound, will transfer to the lock and lubricate it. It really does a great job.

Strike plates and alignment adjustments
The strike plate is so named because it is what the bolt "strikes" as the door is being closed. The strike plate actually serves three purposes:

• Its curved outer edge helps to gradually depress the bolt as the door closes.
• It acts as a shield preventing wear and tear to the doorframe.
• When interlocked with the bolt it holds the door snugly to the frame. With some strike plates, this function is adjustable.

One of the major causes of door (and window) misalignment is house movement. Actually, if a house didn't move there would probably never be a need to realign its doors. However, until homes stop shifting, doors will have to be tweaked one way or another, and the process will often have to include adjusting the strike plate to realign it with the door bolt.

Closing the door just enough for the bolt to lay on the outside edge of the strike plate can give you a good idea of why the bolt isn't interlocking with the strike plate. The bolt must rest centered between the top and bottom of the plate. If the bolt is lower than center, the plate must be lowered. If the bolt is higher than center, the plate should be raised.

Most often the adjustment needed is extremely minor. Place a chisel into the hole in the strike plate. To lower the strike plate, hold the edge of the chisel against the bottom of the hole and tap downward on the chisel with a hammer. One light blow is all that it usually takes to move the strike plate enough to clear the bolt. Hold the chisel against the top of the opening and lightly tap upward with the hammer to move the plate up. Keep in mind that if the strike plate has to be moved more than 1/8 inch, the door may have to be adjusted instead -- maybe both.

A strike plate is held in place with two screws. Slam a door often enough and the screws will definitely come loose, resulting in a door that wobbles when closed. First, try tightening the screws. If they're stripped, which is often the case, use our golf tee trick to make the repair. Remove the screws and the strike plate. Dip two golf tees in glue. Drive one golf tee into each of the holes. When the glue has dried, cut off the excess golf tees with a razor knife. Then all you have to do is reinstall the strike plate. No more wobble after this repair.

Loving your locks
In addition to making sure that your locks are securely fastened to the door, you also need to clean and lubricate locks to keep them in good working order.

To remove the lock, first remove the knobs. Unscrew the screws holding the faceplate on the inside knob. Remove the knobs. Remove the screws in the latch plate and remove the latch bolt assembly. The latch is that part of the door hardware that fits into the strike on the door frame when the door is closed. Clean the latch bolt assembly with mineral spirits. Lubricate the assembly with silicone spray, and then reinstall the lockset.

Bolts that hang up on the latch plate may catch on paint. Remove the paint and lubricate the bolt.