I recently remodeled my bathroom and my father-in-law helped me install a new door to the bedroom. At the time it was installed the door would open and shut perfectly. But now that the wall and trim have been finished the door is now binding on the latch side of the frame and I have to apply quite a bit of force to it to get it to open and shut. It seems that the opening for the door has become narrower through the process of installing sheetrock and trim. Is there any solutions to adjust the door frame permanently without romoving the sheetrock or cutting the door?
Doors – New door binding on frame
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Related Solutions
I'm not sure about ChrisF's suggestion since I've never had that particular problem (with the door rubbing on the hinge side) - is the issue that it's hitting the frame on the hinge side or the doorknob side?
If it's hitting the jamb on the doorknob side (as if the door is now too wide) then the usual solution is to trim down the door. Usually I would run it through a table saw, but you could do it with a circular saw as well if you are really careful.
Just make sure to trim off the knob side rather than the hinge side so you don't have to worry about mortising out new spots for the hinges (and then risk being off on the top of the door)
You may have a deadlocking latch bolt, which in addition to a normal door latch has a plunger. When this plunger is retracted (which happens when the door is closed), the spring loaded mechanism on the latch is disabled. This prevents someone from using the credit card trick to open the door from the outside, so the only way to open the door is by unlocking it and turning the knob. In other words, it's for security.
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My guess, assuming this is an external locking door, is that this plunger is either jammed or some of the internal mechanisms that it activates have jammed. You can unscrew the door knob and remove both sides, then unscrew the latch and pull it out of the door. From there, try some lubricant (silicone spray and graphite powder are my preferred lubricants for locks, WD-40 will quickly dry and attract dirt). And if it still doesn't work, it's probably time to go to the store to pickup a new doorknob.
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Best Answer
Very often the change of seasons and corresponding temperature and humidity changes result in the house and woodworking moving around.
The usual fix is to inspect the door frame and door hinges to see of they are secure and installed correctly. If all appears to be in order then the next step is to study the door itself and see just where the binding is and how much. Mark the binding locations with some of the colorful type of painters tape and then demount the door via the hinge pin removal.
The binding areas are normally handled by taking material off the door via sanding, planing or even trimming with a saw. (Note that this applies for wood material type doors - not steel jacketed doors).
Next is to re-hang the door in the frame and test for fit. Sometimes it will be necessary to make several iterations of trimming the door to get the correct fit. The final fitting should be followed up with a fine sanding to get a finish surface.
The final step is to re-finish the parts of the door where the trimming occurred. This may be a primer/paint job or possibly a stain/finish job depending on how the original finish was applied.