How To Fix A Closet Door A DIY Guide
When living in a house for a few years, some pieces of furniture are bound to give in. The closet is a piece of furniture that gets a lot of beating, day in and day out. Creaks can break-in at any time, and when this happens, you might find your closet door needing some repair.
In this article, let's look at few ways on how to fix closet door that's creaking. We’ll also identify the different type of closet to better help us with our repair. A closet is where most of our household stuff is stored from clothes, towels, blankets, and shoes. Before we talk about how to repair your closet door, we will need a few things first.
Thing You Need To Repair A Closet
Here are a few things you will need before knowing how to fix closet door that went through a beating. These items may already be available in your woodshop, and if not, you can purchase these items in a hardware store near you. Have these necessary tools ready to save you time and frustration.
- A screwdriver
- Straight Edge
- Tape measures
- Utility knife
- Screws
Identity What Your Closet Type Is
There are a lot of different closet doors out there in the world. We will focus on two of the most popular ones in the market. The Bifold and sliding closet doors are practical, space-saving, and is usually seen in every household. To identify it accurately, here is a brief description of each one.
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Bi-fold closet doors
- The bi-fold closet door has two vertically hinged panels that fold on top of one another when the door is opened—providing ample space for you to move around. When the door is closed, the bi-fold closet door seals shut. For your mental image, its appearance usually comes with grills, and this type is usually located in the bedroom.
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Sliding closet doors
- The sliding closet door is also called the bypass door. It has two separate panels that slide past each other. The sliding door has limited space, unlike the bi-fold closet. When one side is open, the other hand is usually shut. But both can be shut together.
Both designs use tracks and rollers that guide the doors to open and close. Frequent accidents are when the doors get bumped out of the frame, causing the doors to misalign. When this happens, the track, roller, and pivots of both types need realigning. Let's check out the steps on how to fix closet door that need realignment.
How To Fix Unaligned Closet Doors
This is a walkthrough on how to fix closet doors when they get unaligned. Just follow these few easy steps for each closet door style.
Fix unaligned bi-fold closet door
- The closet should be closed. Measure the gap between the edge of the door and the closet door jamb. Make sure you take the highest and lowest points of the jamb. It should be the same length if the doors are correctly aligned. If not, proceed to step 2.
- Look for the top pivot bracket, loosen the screws, and then move the door to the direction needed to align with the door jamb. Tighten the screw.
- Repeat step one and check if they are now aligned.
- Measure the door-to-jamb clearance on both sides of the door. If you notice that the gap is more significant on one side, open the door again.
- While the door is opened, lift the bottom pivot to the direction of the jamb and set it into the next adjacent tooth at the bottom.
- Loosen the top-track and push the top of the door towards the jamb until it is straight vertically.
Fix unaligned sliding closet door
- Slide each door panel from left to right to identify if the top roller and riding the tracks. The doors should move smoothly from left to right, with little to no friction.
- If friction occurs, one of the top or bottom rollers may have gone out of the track.
- To fix this, remove the door guide located at the bottom track.
- Lift the door at an angle to fully seat the top rollers into place, in the track.
- Reinstall the door guide into the bottom track and make sure it is not bent from the bump or accident.
- Loosen the screws that align each door to the roller brackets. If you see it misaligned, lift the door and align it as necessary. Because the brackets are slotted, it is easy to move the doors up or down.
- Tighten the screws to secure the alignment.
Additional Things You Should Know
Replacement Parts
You should know the different parts of the closet if you want to know how to fix closet door. This is so you can identify the problem and replace them accordingly. Here are the different replacement parts for the closet door.
- Top rollers
- Top Pivots
- Bottom pivots
- Brackets
- Height adjustments
- Knob
The parts mentioned here can easily be bought in your nearest hardware store. Knowing how to fix a closet door relates to identifying what part is damaged and replacing it right away.
A Loose Pull or Knob
Add a drop of epoxy to the door pull, screw it on, and let it sit for 24 hours. Epoxy lasts longer than super glue, and it is much more effective.
Conclusion
The closet is part of everyone's everyday routine, and it is pretty much a staple in every household. We use it to store the dirtiest of things, to the most valuable ones. Now that you know how to fix closet door, take your time when your repairing household furniture. So, remember, fixing a closet door is one thing, knowing what handles best fit your doors is another! Elegant Hardware can surely help with this. Patience is a virtue and skill, so be gentle with yourself. The key to being good at woodworking is to practice, but even more, enjoy what you do! Get more tips on closets.
