Door Latch Too Short

But the latch tongue is too short to catch into the plate.

Door latch too short.

If so your latch barrel needs a bit of lubrication. Some brands of door hardware like schlage weiser kwikset sure loc and weslock are shipped with adjustable backset latches which makes ordering easy. Before cutting a door to size it is important to accurately determine how tall the door should be. A door cut too short is not difficult to open or close but it is an eye sore and it allows anyone to peer underneath.

The door closes perfectly no gaps or light showing through nothinging blocking the edges. Machine oil is available in a spray or a small can with a. Hold the door open and examine the latch barrel s movement as you turn the doorknob both ways. There could be however some mismatch in the grain pattern or color when the door is extended which may require that you restain or paint the door.

Is the latch sticking. Tighten the hinge screws and then try adjusting the strike plate by loosening its screws and shifting it slightly. This moves the door slightly toward the latch side of the opening effectively reducing the gap to help. Shim the bottom hinge.

The tongue lines up just fine. Rexbeti 16pc metal file set great price. Gaps along the latch side of a door may be reduced by shimming out the hinges in some cases. Door lock doesn t latch properly when a door latch doesn t click into position it usually means the latch and the strike plate are out of alignment.

If it s falling below the strike plate opening then you need to raise the bottom of your door i e. For the shim cardboard is perfect. Once the door is cut too small a new door is needed. Repairs range from making minor latch adjustments to repositioning the door.

Shim the top hinge if your door needs to be lowered. Again use a flashlight to watch your latch bolt as you close the door. Http bit ly rexmetalfile16pc gox rotary tool kit 140pc also works great for grinding. If you don t order the correct backset your latches will either be too long or too short and you will not be able to mount your door hardware.

When doors won t shut it s almost always because the striker latch on the door won t fit into the striker plate on the jamb. If the door wasn t accurately measured you can extend its length. If your house is an older one it may be that the problem is a sticky latch which is one of the easiest latch problems to fix.