Having a patio door or patio door screen that separates you from the outdoors can be a beautiful feature in your home. You can enjoy the view, get a great breeze flowing in, and never once have to worry about mosquitoes finding their way in on hot summer nights. But even if you have the best patio doors richmond on hand, you’ll still most likely have to deal with a stuck patio door every so often. Even if you do your best to keep your door clean and well-oiled, weather and other determining factors can often get in the way, causing your door frame to swell, your track to warp, or any number of unfortunate issues to crop up. However, getting your door to behave properly isn’t a huge deal if you know what tools to use and how to keep your door from getting stuck. If you want an easy-to-open sliding glass door, here’s what you should do first.
Clean the Track
Before doing anything else, you’ll want to make sure you’re not dealing with a dirty track that’s causing your door’s rollers to stick in place or meet with too much resistance to create a smooth opening and closing motion. While most people don’t think to clean their sliding door or window tracks along with the rest of the weekly cleaning, it’s important to keep these areas clear of dust and dirt. When your door’s track isn’t cleaned regularly, the dirt buildup can lead to an extremely hard-to-remove crust that makes your door stick and damages your rollers along the way. It can also lead to rusting if you’re not careful. If your door’s track is made of aluminum or another cost-effective material, too much dirt buildup could even lead to bending. Clean out your track thoroughly with a toothbrush or small bristled brush and use a small vacuum attachment to suck up all the debris. Once your track is clean, it’s time to look at the rest of your structure for damage.
Check for Damage
Even if you’ve done a lot of maintenance and kept your track spotlessly clean, you could still be dealing with damage. If your frame is bent, or the wood around your door has become warped, your door won’t be able to function as it’s supposed to. Your rollers will constantly be sliding off track, your door won’t be able to close flush, and you’ll have to deal with some major repairs. Before removing your door for closer inspection, try taking a close look at the track to see if there are any dents you can identify. Your track doesn’t have to be fully bent to create problems. After you’ve looked at your track and your door frame, inspect your rollers to see if they’re damaged. Before you do anything else, you should pick up an extra set of rollers just in case you need to replace them. Since rollers can easily get damaged due to a bent track or excess dirt buildup, it’s always good to have an extra pair handy for emergencies.
Adjust Screws and Rollers
Sometimes your door’s rollers need to be adjusted to a different height in order to move more smoothly across the track. If your door keeps getting stuck or won’t close flush to the wall, you may need to adjust your roller height. Using a small screwdriver, look at the bottom of your door to find a small covered screw. Prying off the cover, use your screwdriver to try out different heights by adjusting this screw until your door starts moving more smoothly. It might take a couple of tries to find the right height for your rollers. You can also spray a bit of WD-40 in the area to make the process move a bit more smoothly. If you still aren’t seeing progress, it’s time to take the door out and do a more thorough inspection before moving forward.
Remove Your Door
Before you remove your door, pry off the strip of stop mounting found on the top panel to make sure your door comes off in one smooth motion. Once you have a firm grip, remove your door from its track and place it to the side. From here, you can take a closer look at what’s going on with your rollers. Does your door look warped at all? Do your rollers look like they need to be replaced? Does your frame look crooked? If your sliding door has a lock built in, has it been improperly aligned so that it can’t close flush? Take a thorough look at your door to try and see what you’re dealing with. If you still can’t identify the problem, it may be time to call in a professional.