Most common door problems come down to three causes. Hinges work loose or wear, the latch stops meeting its strike plate, or the timber swells, shrinks or builds up too many layers of paint. Sticking, dropping, rattling, squeaking and failing to latch all fit into that group, and nearly all of them are small repairs rather than a reason to replace the door. A smaller number of door problems are really signs of something else, such as damp, a raised floor, movement in the building or a fire door that isn’t working. Those need a different response.
Five quick checks before you book anyone
You need nothing more than a screwdriver for these, and they tell you, or whoever repairs the door, far more than “it’s sticking”.
- Look at the gaps with the door shut. An even gap all round is normal. A wide gap at the top on the hinge side and a tight one at the opposite corner usually means the door has dropped.
- Hold the handle and gently lift. If the door moves up and down at the hinges, the screws are loose or their holes are worn.
- Try the hinge screws. Tightening a loose screw is a safe first step. If it just spins, the hole is stripped. Leave it rather than forcing in a bigger screw at an angle, which can split the frame.
- Find where the latch hits. Rub a little chalk on the latch, close the door gently and look at the strike plate. A mark above or below the opening shows which way the door has moved.
- Notice when it happens. Sticking only in winter or after wet weather points to swollen timber. Rubbing that started after new flooring points to the floor. If several doors have started sticking at the same time, that is worth a closer look (see below).
Problems that are usually straightforward repairs
Sticking, dropped, rattling and non-latching doors, and faulty handles, latches and hinges, are covered in detail on our door and door handle repairs page. The problems below are ones people often live with for years because they don’t realise how simple the fix can be.
Squeaking or creaking hinges
Usually dry or dirty hinge pins. Cleaning them and adding a little light lubricant often stops the noise. Wipe off any excess so it doesn’t drip onto the floor. A hinge that still grinds afterwards, or has a worn or cracked knuckle, needs replacing rather than more oil.
Doors that slam or blow shut
Internal doors that bang shut are often being pushed by air pressure from an open window or extractor fan, not by a fault in the door. A suitable door stop or holder may solve it on an ordinary internal door. A door that swings by itself even when the air is still is usually hanging slightly out of plumb, which can often be corrected at the hinges. On fire doors, the closer must still pull the door fully shut, so the answer is adjusting the closer, never removing it.
Draughts around front and back doors
Draughts usually come from worn or missing seals, a gap at the bottom of the door, or a door that has dropped and no longer presses evenly on its seals. Adjusting the door often has to come first, because a new seal on a door that doesn’t close evenly won’t seal properly for long.
Sliding and wardrobe doors
Doors that jump off their track, drag or sag usually have debris in the track, worn wheels or runners, or a loose guide at the bottom. Clearing the track is a safe first step. Whether worn parts can be replaced depends on whether matching parts are still available for that door system.
Damage around the door
Loose door stops and split architraves often turn up along with a door problem, and are handled as minor carpentry and trim repairs. If a handle has been hitting the wall, there may also be a hole in the plaster to patch, and a door stop fitted so it doesn’t happen again. Larger damage is a drywall and wall repair.
When the door isn’t really the problem
Some door symptoms are worth taking seriously because easing the door would only hide them.
| What you notice | What it can point to | What to do first |
|---|---|---|
| Several doors start sticking at about the same time, with new diagonal cracks running from the corners of door frames | Possible movement in the building | Have it assessed by a surveyor or structural engineer before any doors are planed. Easing them removes the evidence |
| A door swells and sticks, with damp patches, condensation or a musty smell nearby | A source of moisture, such as a leak or poor ventilation | Find and deal with the moisture first. Our guide to a water leak at home covers the first checks. Then ease and seal the door |
| The door scrapes the floor after new flooring, or where a board or threshold has lifted | A raised floor or threshold | A loose threshold or lifted board is a flooring repair. A new, thicker floor means trimming the door |
| A flat entrance door in a block won’t close fully on its own, or its closer has been disconnected | A fire door that isn’t doing its job | Report it to the managing agent or the building’s responsible person, who usually arranges fire door repairs |
| A uPVC or composite door handle is stiff to lift, or the key is hard to turn | The door has dropped out of line with the locking points, or the multipoint mechanism is failing | Stop forcing it. Alignment can often be adjusted. A failed mechanism needs the part identified first |
| You’re locked out, or a key has snapped in the lock | A lock problem rather than a door problem | This is usually a job for a locksmith |
Fire doors in blocks of flats also come with specific duties. In England, the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 require the responsible person in residential buildings with storeys over 11 metres to check communal fire doors every three months. Flat entrance doors must be checked once a year, on a best-endeavour basis. Residents are asked to keep fire doors shut, not to tamper with self-closers and to report damage straight away.
Habits that make door problems worse
Planing before checking the hinges. If a door has dropped, taking wood off the top corner leaves a permanent gap once the hinges are fixed.
Painting over hinges and seals. Paint stiffens hinges and latches. On fire doors, the seals around the edge should not be painted over, because they have to expand or seal against smoke to work.
Wedging fire doors open. It defeats the reason the door is there, and it strains the closer.
Forcing a stiff handle on a multipoint lock. This is one of the most common ways a repairable alignment problem turns into a broken mechanism.
Getting a door looked at
If your checks point to the hinges, latch, handle or the fit of the door in its frame, Voltify Contractors’ door repair service covers internal doors, front doors, handles, hinges and latches. Photos of the door closed, showing the gaps, with close-ups of the handle, latch and hinges, help plan the repair. If the result of the chalk test is visible, include that too. If the door is one of several small jobs, our guide to what a repair callout usually covers explains how a single visit can be used.
