Use lightweight machine oil to lubricate the rollers in wet climates. Improper adjustment, dirt and moisture can cause a sliding door to squeak when it’s opened and closed. If the rollers aren’t properly adjusted, the bottom of a door can drag on the track and squeak. In other cases, properly adjusted rollers may operate correctly until dirt builds up on the track or moisture affects the rollers. A do-it-yourself homeowner can use a simple procedure that’s proven reliable by professionals to fix a squeaky sliding door. Slide the door open and closed to determine if the door squeaks at the top or at the bottom. If the noise comes from the top, the rollers are adjusted too high and the top of the door is rubbing in the upper channel or the frame. If the squeak comes from the bottom, the rollers are too low and the bottom of the door is rubbing on the track. Locate the small machined holes for adjustment screws at each roller on the inside or outside face of the door at the bottom. Insert the tip of a screwdriver into one of the holes and turn it slowly until the tip catches in the slot of the adjustment screw.
Lift up on that end of the door and turn the screwdriver counterclockwise to lower a door that's too high, or clockwise to raise a door that's rubbing on the track. Typically, two full turns are enough to correct an improperly adjusted roller. Repeat this to adjust the roller at the opposite end of the door. Remove all dirt and debris from the bottom track with a utility brush and shop vacuum. Use the handle of the brush or a small wooden stick to loosen muddy deposits, if necessary. Loosen dirt that's built up at the end of the track with the screwdriver. Move the door, as necessary, and vacuum the track from end to end. Apply a uniform coat of spray lubricant on the bottom track and in the top channel from end to end. Slide the door open and closed and listen for squeaks. Proceed to the next section if the squeaking persists. Slide the door to the middle of the opening. Grip the lower edge of the door at one end and lift up. Insert the tip of a screwdriver into the gap between the track and the lower portion of the roller and pry upward to compress the roller.
Pull that end of the door outward and off the track. Repeat this at the opposite end of the door and take the door out of the frame. Stabilize the door upright on one of its long edges. Rotate each of the rollers at the bottom of the door by hand. If a roller sticks or is stuck, spray it with lubricant and attempt to free it by rotating the roller several times. Proceed to the next step if a roller cannot be repaired with lubricant. Loosen and remove the screws that attach a roller at the bottom of a glass or wooden sliding door and remove the roller. For an aluminum screen door, pry out the roller assembly from the channel at the bottom of the door with a screwdriver. Obtain a new roller or roller assembly of the proper type for your door. Refer to the instructions and install it in the door. Clean and lubricate the track before installing the door in the frame. Follow the procedure in the previous section to adjust the rollers. Things You Will Need Screwdriver Utility brush Shop vacuum Spray lubricant Tip References This Old House: Sliding Door Tune-upPopular Mechanics: Repairing a Screen Door Photo Credits Comstock/Comstock/Getty Images Suggest a Correction
5 Tips to Make Your Sliding Door More SecureWhy doesn't Angie's List rate attorneys?Landscaping: What do your neighbors do that drives you crazy?How much does it cost to be a member here?How much does it typically cost to paint a 2100 square foot house on the exterior? That's very difficult to answer without seeing the house. As one poster said, the prep is the most important part. On newer homes that don't have a lot of peeling paint, the prep can be very minimal even as low as a couple or a few hundred dollars for the prep labor. On a 100 year old home with 12 coats of peeling paint on it, then the prep costs can be very high and can easily exceed 50% of the job's labor cost.A 2100 sq ft two story home could easily cost $1000 just for the labor to prep for the paint job. That number could climb too. Throw in lots of caullking or window glazing, and you could be talking a couple or a few hundred dollars more for labor. Painting that home with one coat of paint and a different color on the trim could run roughly $1000 or more just for labor.
Add a second coat and that could cost close to another $1000 for labor. For paint, you may need 20 gallons of paint. You can pay from $30-$70 for a gallon of good quality exterior paint. The manufacturer of the paint should be specified in any painting contract. Otherwise, the contractor could bid at a Sherwin-Williams $60 per gallon paint and then paint the house with $35 Valspar and pocket the difference. $25 dollars per gallon times 20 gallons? That's a pretty penny too. That was the long answer to your question. The short answer is $2000 to $4000 and up, depending upon the amount of prep, the number of coats, the amount of trim, and the paint used.Judith and Angel Iglesias loved their modest condominium west of Boca Raton decorated with crystal animals, antique dolls and plastic flowers.But two weeks ago the crystal cracked, the dolls burned and the flowers melted and drooped after an extension cord shorted out, causing a patio fire that sent smoke throughout their first-floor Isle of Sandalfoot residence.``Now everything is gone.
I don`t want to have anything to do with it,`` said Angel Iglesias, 69, a retired long-haul truck driver.While the Iglesias family tries to determine its next move, having mistakenly believed condo fire insurance would cover content loss, firefighters say the problem could happen anywhere unless precautions are taken.Too often, residents use extension cords incorrectly, or just for too long, fire inspectors say. ``You get a lot of people who use extension cords 20 years,`` said Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue Inspector Ray Shaw.Extension cords should not be used on a permanent basis because over time they overheat or wear down, inspectors say.A year ago, a resident of Century Village near West Palm Beach died when the extension cord leading to a lamp deteriorated, setting the carpet it was under -- and then the drapes -- on fire, county Fire-Rescue Inspector Doug Moore said.``She never woke up. She died of smoke inhalation,`` Moore said.Three weeks ago, two Delray Beach families living in a townhouse were left homeless after a multiplug electrical outlet device caught fire.``Eventually, it heats up or shorts out and catches on fire,`` Delray Beach Fire Department Lt. Rick Lee said of such devices.
One resident who awoke to the blaze suffered burns on his hand, feet and back. The fire caused $25,000 damage to the townhouse in the 600 block of Southwest 20th Street.In the $25,000 Iglesias blaze, firefighters attributed it to crushed wiring.The extension cord leading to a lamp on the patio was connected from a plug inside the residence. The wiring was crushed by the sliding glass door that separated the inside from the outside of the condominium.Two weeks ago Judith Iglesias got up in the middle of the morning because she could not sleep. She went to take a sleeping pill and lay back down on a couch in the living room instead of her bedroom. Within 10 minutes she arose at the sound of crackling and ran into the bedroom to alert her husband. ``She was screaming, crying, `The place is on fire,``` Angel Iglesias recalled.``I jumped out of bed and I saw the flames on the porch and the smoke already getting into the house,`` Iglesias said. ``I grabbed the phone to call 911 but the phone was already out.``Iglesias started knocking on his neighbors` doors in the condominium building to get somebody to dial for help.
He broke a hallway fire alarm and about that time his smoke alarm also went off, he said. After that, there was little else that could be done except to wait for help to arrive, Iglesias said.Looking back, Iglesias said a mistake may have been made when he and his wife purchased the furnished condominium six months ago. They never bothered to examine any of the wiring.PROTECTING CHILDREN FROM FALLSThe National Safety Council has a number of tips to help protect small children from falls:-- Secure area rugs, using double-sided tape or a rubber pad.-- Make high climbs more work than they`re worth. Countertops and bookcases can be inviting, especially if there`s a reward at the top. Hide the goodies or remove items that may aid the climber.-- Keep stairs clear and install a gate at the head of the stairs.-- Don`t let children lean on screens. They are designed to keep insects out, not children in.-- Keep doors to balconies, decks and fire escapes closed.-- Always use a rubber mat or no-skid stickers in the tub.
MISSINGCall the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678 to report the child`s whereabouts.-- NAME: Delta Jane Bartlett.-- MISSING FROM: Rockmart, Ga.-- DATE MISSING: Dec. 5, 1989.-- AGE AT DISAPPEARANCE: 14.-- AGE NOW: 17.-- BORN: June 10, 1975.-- HEIGHT: 5 feet, 2 inches.-- WEIGHT: 113 pounds.-- HAIR: Blonde.-- EYES: Blue.-- IDENTIFYING MARKS: Delta wears glasses or contact lenses.-- TYPE OF ABDUCTION: Charles Paul Elliott, 36, is wanted on a charge of kidnapping in Delta`s abduction. Elliott is not a family member.MOST WANTEDHave you seen this man? Do not give your name. Cash reward up to $1,000.-- NAME: Jean Marceau Fortilus.-- ALIAS: None.-- AGE: 28.-- BORN: April 30, 1964.-- HEIGHT: 5 feet, 8 inches.-- WEIGHT: 150 pounds.-- HAIR: Black.-- EYES: Brown.-- IDENTIFYING MARKS: Scar on left arm.-- LAST KNOWN ADDRESS: 1660 Stonehaven Drive, No. 7, Boynton Beach.-- OCCUPATION: Car detailing.-- WANTED FOR: Violation of probation on charge of manslaughter with a firearm.