{"id":2155,"date":"2018-04-26T09:39:31","date_gmt":"2018-04-26T08:39:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.savoytimber.com\/help-and-advice\/?p=2155"},"modified":"2023-03-28T14:56:42","modified_gmt":"2023-03-28T13:56:42","slug":"fixing-locking-problems-with-internal-doors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/savoytimber.com\/help-and-advice\/fixing-locking-problems-with-internal-doors\/","title":{"rendered":"Fixing Common Door Issues \u2013 Locking Problems With Internal Doors"},"content":{"rendered":"

Continuing in our series of fixing common issues with your internal doors<\/a>, this week we\u2019ll be looking at issues with your door\u2019s locks. Even if you don\u2019t count yourself as a particularly private person, there\u2019s always at least one room in your house that will require a sturdy lock on your internal door, possibly even several. Security in private spaces is one thing, but someone walking in while you\u2019re going about your morning business in the bathroom (if you catch our drift) is quite another! Right then, we won\u2019t beat around the bush \u2013 let\u2019s get to it!<\/p>\n

Understanding Why Door Lock Issues Arise<\/h2>\n

As we\u2019ve just touched upon, there are certain rooms in our house that we don\u2019t want open to all and sundry. Come to think of it, the bathroom is a great example. Now, bathrooms tend to be fitted more often with white primed doors<\/a> rather than oak internal doors<\/a>, but colour aside, a decent lock is always high up on the priority list of key features!<\/p>\n

\"door<\/p>\n

You might often find that lock problems arise shortly after you\u2019ve just performed another repair or adjustment. Don\u2019t worry, there\u2019s a reason for it \u2013 it\u2019s not just Murphy\u2019s Law! Occasionally, making minor alterations like adjusting the door hinges can result in the door\u2019s latch becoming out of line with the strike plate, which can sometimes end up in difficulty properly locking the door. Private places like bedrooms and studies might be less of a problem, but where bathrooms are concerned you\u2019ll probably never want to take the risk! So, what should you do first if your internal door won\u2019t lock properly?<\/p>\n

What To Do If Your Internal Door Won\u2019t Lock Properly<\/h2>\n

You\u2019ve got a couple of options right off the bat. If you think the alignment might be off by just a few millimetres, you should be able to sort things out by simply enlarging the cut-out of the strike plate with a metal file, to allow more room for the latch to move through it. If you\u2019re not quite following, basically a central element of the strike plate is one big hole through the centre, which the door latch moves through to lock the door. What you\u2019re doing is simply making that hole bigger.<\/p>\n

If that\u2019s not working for you, you may find it necessary to remove the strike plate, which is a slightly more involved process. We\u2019ll break it down for you.<\/p>\n

1. Remove the strike plate<\/strong><\/p>\n

What you can do is fairly limited with the strike plate still in place, so firstly you\u2019ll need to remove it, which you can do by taking out the screws.<\/p>\n

\"strike<\/p>\n

2. Work out where the problem area is<\/strong><\/p>\n

Next, rub the latch with some pencil, soft chalk or other soft substance, then open and close it a couple of times. Now, take a look at the door frame. The chalk should have rubbed off slightly on the frame, letting you know where the latch currently sits.<\/p>\n

3. Enlarge the area<\/strong><\/p>\n

Use a pencil to definitively mark the location of the latch, and then use a chisel to enlarge the area in line with where it should be. Plug the original screw holes for the strike plate, ideally with wooden pegs so that you\u2019re left with a smooth vertical surface that\u2019s all roughly the same material.<\/p>\n

4. Drill new holes for the strike plate<\/strong><\/p>\n

Make sure that your drill bit is the appropriate size, and then drill in the new holes for the strike plate. Then it\u2019s just a matter of putting it back on. Voila \u2013 your door should now lock with no problems!<\/p>\n

This post should give you a pretty good plan of action for sorting out problems locking your door \u2013 but if you\u2019re still not sure about the process, or it\u2019s your first time tackling a bit of DIY, our friendly members of staff are only too happy to help! You can find them in any of our three DIY stores<\/a> across the North West \u2013 in Wigan, Preston and Blackpool. Don\u2019t hesitate to pop by, and take a look at our vast range of our pre finished doors<\/a> while you\u2019re here! Couldn\u2019t hurt to look, could it?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Continuing in our series of fixing common issues with your internal doors, this week we\u2019ll be looking at issues with your door\u2019s locks. Even if you don\u2019t count yourself as a particularly private person, there\u2019s always at least one room in your house that will require a sturdy lock on your internal door, possibly even […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":2158,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow To Fix Common Door Issues | Locking Problems With Internal Doors<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"It can be worrying to find out that an internal door in your home isn't locking properly. There are all sorts of reasons why a lock might be necessary; it could be security, childproofing, or simply a matter of privacy. 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