How to Maintain and Fix Sliding Doors The two types of doors that are easiest to open don’t have hinges at all; instead, they slide on tracks. Sliding-glass doors are a popular feature in rooms with decks or patios because their full-length glass panels open the room visually to the great outdoors while providing easy access to the outside. Interior sliding doors are frequently used for closets and pantries, and sometimes to conceal water heaters and furnaces. You can remove sliding-door panels easily to gain complete access to what’s behind them. Follow simple repairs and maintenance procedures to keep your sliding doors on track. Patio doors slide horizontally — or at least they’re supposed to. All too often, these big, pesky contraptions stubbornly resist opening, and getting outside becomes about as easy as dragging a refrigerator through a sandbox. The most common cause of a sticking patio door is debris in the lower track. This channel easily becomes clogged with dirt and leaves because people and pets walk over it whenever they go in or out.
Each time you vacuum your floors, use a small brush attachment or cordless vacuum to clean the sliding-door tracks. Apply a lubricant to both upper and lower tracks to keep the door hardware clean and operating freely. In addition to cleaning and lubricating sliding-door tracks, you want to lubricate the door lock. The best way to lubricate any lock is to disassemble it and use an aerosol lubricant to flush away grime and coat the moving parts of the lock. Sometimes, patio doors become hard to open even when the track is clean. In these cases, the problem is usually that the rollers at the bottom of the door have started to rub against the track. The rollers at the top can also wear down, lowering the bottom of the door so that it rubs on the track. Most sliding doors have a mechanism called an adjusting screw located at the bottom of the door ends. Turning this screw raises or lowers the roller. Give the screw a clockwise turn and test to see whether the door slides easier.
If the door becomes even harder to open, turn the screw in the opposite direction. After a bit of adjustment, the door should roll easily without rubbing on the bottom track. Sliding closet doors operate on rollers that are positioned in tracks at the top jamb and floor, allowing the doors to bypass each other in the tracks. Because sliding doors don’t fold out the way bifold doors do, they allow access to only half the width of the opening at a time. To clean and lubricate the hardware of a sliding closet door, use a stiff brush, a toothbrush, or a hand vacuum to clean dust from the tracks. Use an aerosol lubricant to lubricate all the door rollers. If the rollers are damaged, install replacement rollers (available at home centers). If the door doesn’t hang level, leaving an uneven gap between the door and door frame, look for an adjustable mounting screw at the inside top of each door. Use a screwdriver to adjust the mounting screw and even out the door. How to hang a door
Bring privacy to a room by installing a door. We’ll teach you how to hang one yourself.Laundry Closet Door IdeasSliding Closet Door IdeasInterior Sliding DoorsLaundry Room DoorsIndoor Sliding DoorsThe LaundryTrack Sliding DoorAlternative To Bifold Closet DoorsTriple Sliding Closet DoorsForwardInterior Sliding Door Track System | door, we only need sliding this door right or left side. • Lay a drop cloth on the floor and pop off the two plugs covering the roller adjustment screws at the bottom of the sliding-door frame. (These are sometimes located in the edges of the door.) • Insert a flathead screwdriver into each hole and turn the screw all the way counterclockwise. This retracts the rollers, lowering the door. • Outside, set up a couple of sawhorses with pads. • Take down any removable grilles, shades, or drapes. • Slide the door fully open and remove the head stop by backing out its screws. CAUTION: Don't leave the door unattended; without a stop, it can fall.
Remove from Bottom Track • While standing inside, lean the top of the sliding-door panel toward you and lift it off the bottom track. • Set the panel on the sawhorses. CAUTION: Sliding doors are heavy. Make sure to bend your knees to take the weight off your back, or recruit a helper. • Use a flathead screwdriver to gently pry each roller from its pocket in the bottom of the door. (Rollers are typically held in by friction and the weight of the door.) • If they are bent or broken, replace them with new roller assemblies. • Scrape any dirt from the wheels, then clean them with denatured alcohol and a rag. • Lubricate only with silicone spray, which doesn't hold dirt. • To reinstall, align each roller's adjustment screw with its access hole and tap in the assemblies with a hammer, using a wood block to protect the wheels. Once they're seated, retract the rollers as far as possible. Clean & Lubricate Tracks • Wipe the head track and the outside face of the removed head stop with alcohol and spray with silicone.
• Vacuum loose debris from the bottom track, then clean thoroughly with alcohol. The bottom track needs a more substantial lubricant than silicone; rub it a few times with a block of paraffin wax. • To replace torn or cracked weatherstripping where the sliding and fixed panels overlap, loosen its staples with a flathead screwdriver, then grab one end and pull it and the staples off the door, prying gently with a putty knife. • Remove any remaining staples with pliers; sink the broken ones with a hammer. • The strip on the jamb side is generally glued. If it's damaged, pull it off and scrape the adhesive residue with the putty knife, taking care not to mar the finish. • Where the sliding panel's frame overlaps the fixed panel, orient the new weatherstripping with its flap facing as indicated on the instructions. Align the top end with the shadow line of the head stop, and secure the flange tightly along the door's edge. • Drill a 1/8-inch-diameter pilot hole at each of the holes in the flange and drive the screws provided.
• Do the same on the fixed panel so the two strips interlock. • Glue the jamb-side strip in place with a plastic adhesive. Clean up smudges and fingerprints with alcohol. • Set the door back on the bottom track and tilt it up. Brace the door with your body and reattach the head stop. (Don't leave the door unattended until stop is installed.) • Roll the door to within a half-inch of the latch-side jamb, then turn the roller adjustment screws until the door is parallel to the jamb. • If the latch does not mate with its receiver on the jamb, adjust the receiver by loosening its screws and moving the plate up or down. Install a Hands-Free Lock (Optional) • Close and latch the door, then temporarily mount the lock against its lower edge. • Now lower the locking bolt and mark its location on the rail in pencil. • Remove the lock and drill a hole (sized as specified) through the track, and pop in the rubber grommet provided. • Remount the lock and test it.