(02-22-2020, 02:11 PM)Marc Wrote: I had a new exterior door installed about 2 weeks ago. It's a fiberglass door with leaded glass and it came with the jamb. I had a carpenter with "45 years" experience install it. When he was finished he said give the weather stripping time to compress,,,so I may have to push the door to close it. That wasnt working. I had to use the deadbolt to shut the door.
After looking at it myself,,I doubled lthe strike plate. That worked for a day. Then I noticed the latch bolt wasnt extending out all the way when closed so it would pop open. I somehow managed to get that to work.
Today I had a refrigerator delivery and we had to unscrew the hinges off the jamb. The pins wouldnt come out. I am now back to square one. The door wont stay latched closed and we have to use the deadbolt. Even if I lean real hard on the door the latch wont go into the hole.....it seems.
I'm about to post an ad locally asking for an expert door repair/installer to look at it. Before I do that,,is there anything i can try?
I just now went to look and the latch bolt is hitting the lower edge of the strike plate.
I think you are too quick to rag on the contractor. First thing is you do not remove hinge pins on ball bearing hinges. Very good chance of knocking the bearing loose. Two possibilities come to mind of why the door won't stay latched. First is the margins on the head, is it even? If not the hinges need shims to get the head margin even. This will probably raise the latch so it enters the strike plate. Check the hole in the jamb, any debris that will keep the latch from entering fully. Open the door and work the knob or lever, does the latch extend all the way? Does it extend all or part of the way but does not close when releasing the knob or lever? Try turning the screws just a bit that connect the inside and outside knobs. Often when a lock is installed the connecting screws are tightened so much that the latch will bind.
If the latch works fine when the door is open ,and the margins are reasonable then look at the strike plate. The strike plate may need filing.
Your last sentence " latch bolt is hitting lower edge of strike plate" tells me that the bottom and maybe the middle hinge need packing.
I'll assume you haven't done this before. Your contractor will be able to do this in 15 minutes or less. If you want to try it yourself then the following will help.
The cardboard from the hinges is what is used for packing. Cut the cardboard 1/16" or so shorter than the mortise height. Score the cardboard 1/4" wide. Fold over itself so the next score will still be 1/4" wide. One more time but cut thru this time instead of scoring. This gives you
three 1/4" pieces of packing that is connected. If it turns out the packing is a bit too much, remove it and cut thru one piece.
When you want to raise the lock side head of the door the packing will go against the closed portion of the mortise. First back off the two screws close to the closed part of the mortise. The other two screws are loosened only 2 full turns at most. In order to slip the packing into the mortise the hinge must open only at the back of the mortise. Slip the packing in , make sure it is against the mortise and in back of the screws.
Tighten the screws that are the highest and lowest on the hinge. This will push the door head up and make the margin better, tighten the other screws. I forgot to mention you may need to back off the middle hinge same as the bottom. If the middle hinge needs packing only insert 1/2 the thickness or less . EG. 3 pieces on the bottom , only install 1 piece of packing if needed. I only pack the jamb, rarely have to pack the door. If a metal jamb in masonry opening is off and no way to fix it , then I may have to resort to packing both the door and the jamb.
I use a stick of wood to pop the hinge by gently prying the door against the jamb. Just enough to insert the packing.
Some carpenters wedge the door bottom and completely remove the leaf on the jamb. Then they pack it and replace the leaf. I've have done this a few times, mostly when the door opening is right next to a wall.
Hope this helps
mike