How Do You Fix A Sagging Interior Door?

Fixing a sticking door is one of the home improvement repair tasks you need to know. When it comes to fixing a sagging door, you need to look for one of three main culprits: a swollen door due to humidity, loose hinges, or a shifted door frame. Generally, the hinges are mostly responsible for sticking doors, and fixing them is quite easy.

Causes of a Sagging Door

A door will start to sag over time due to the strain it puts on its fasteners, and they can't support the weight of the door. As a result, the door leans away from the jamb and either stick in the grate or jamb. For interior doors, the short wood screws are not suitable for holding more weight, and they pull out with time. It can also be due to out of square door frame.

Tighten the Hinges

First of all, you need to examine to hinges to make sure that they are in good condition. If the screws in the hinge plate are not tight, use a screwdriver to give them a little twist. Put upward pressure on the door to see if it is still sticking. If it is the case, a ratcheting screwdriver would do the job but make sure you do not overdrive the screws.

Replace the Hinge Screws

If tightening the screws doesn’t help, you need to replace the hinge screws. Start by removing the top and bottom screws. Once you do it, replace them with 3-inch or longer screws using a drill-driver. It will give a stronghold to the screw as it will go through the door jamb into wall stud's framing. Repeat the same process for the lower hinge as well.

Straighten The Hinge

There is a possibility of bent knuckles if the hinge knuckles still look a bit funky even after you’ve tightened the hinge leaves. You will need an adjustable wrench or a large pair of tongue-and-groove pliers to bend the knuckles a bit toward the hinge jamb. However, you need to make sure that you do not overdo it. If you notice that the door opens without sticking, stop bending the knuckles.

Other Easy Fixes

A swollen or an out-of-square door can cause a door to stick. If you notice that there isn't much rubbing, then use a hammer to tap the troublemaking area of the door jamb outward. If tapping doesn't help, you can get a little more space by sanding with a 150-grit or finer sandpaper. You don't need to sand too much as it may expose bare wood. It is best to sand a little and inspect if the door sticks or not.

The Bottom Line

The primary causes of sagging doors are loose hinges. We are quite sure these methods mentioned above would fix the problem. In case they don't fix the problem, trimming the door would be your last option. We would recommend you to get professional help if it comes to trimming the door.