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How to stop door from slowly swinging open?

unawarek
Cultivating a Following

How to stop door from slowly swinging open?

The door to our master bed oom and common toilet always slowly swings opens if its not shut - is there a way to stop this from happening? All the other doors in the house are fine, they only move when somebody phyiscally moves them. THanks! 

EricL
Bunnings Team Member
Bunnings Team Member

Re: How to stop door from slowly swinging open

Hi @unawarek 

 

It's possible that your door has tilted out of alignment because the hinges have been twisted or the screws holding them in place have come loose. I propose having a look at the hinges and see if the screws are loose by turning them clockwise with a screwdriver. If the screws have stripped the timber inside, it will be necessary to use larger screws to anchor the hinges in place.

 

In regards to hinge alignment, I suggest closing the door and observe if the door itself is on a tilt. Look carefully at the way the hinges are lined up and see if any of them are leaning too much to the left or right. You can use a  Craftright 250mm Multigrip Plier to twist the hinge pin housing in the correct direction. After making the adjustment test the door by opening it and see if it still swings open by itself.

 

Let me call on our experienced members @TedBear and @Adam_W for their recommendations.

 

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

 

Eric

 

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brendawebster44
Making a Splash

Re: How to stop door from slowly swinging open?

I would just use a door stop but depends on what side you’re on. At a very rough guess I say check your hinges.

 

Good luck brenda 

TedBear
Kind of a Big Deal

Re: How to stop door from slowly swinging open?

Hi @unawarek , further to other suggestions... it could be that the wall and door frame  are slightly out of vertical. It's common enough in houses. If that's so,  you may be able to shift one hinge a little to get the door upright. If that can't be done perhaps you could use a door closer to keep it closed:-

e.g.

https://www.bunnings.com.au/rolltrak-white-automatic-door-closer_p4062471

Adam_W
Workshop Legend

Re: How to stop door from slowly swinging open?

Hey @unawarek this really can drive you nuts...
You need to establish the base cause. You need two simple tools to do some checking...
A largish framing square and a spirit level at least 800mm long.

First put the square in the corners at the top and then at the bottom. It should sit flush on both sides in all corners.

Then use the level to check the frame, focus on the hinge side. It should be completely plumb.
If it's all square & plumb then you are looking at a hinge issue.
If not you may have to pack the hinges a little (or rebate them) to fix.

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