Loose door hinge problem

IaLeo · Feb 7, 2015

I have a 42" steel clad door with light for my entrance door off the solarium. It has three hinges. It gets used a lot. The center and top hinge loosened years ago and after tightening them several times, I put in longer 3" screws and now they are slipping and I cannot get much torque on them, assuming they are stripping out the wood core between the clads. I cannot move up to the next larger wood screw (not longer) unless I take off the hinge and bore the hole and countersink larger. I do not know how much depth there is to the wood stile inside the door and I maybe can't get any longer wood screw in the current size. I don't like to put some kind of glue into the threads as I might want/have to take the hinges off some day. The sagging door is wearing the metal seal strip on the threshold.
This is an Anderson model door.
Have you ever successfully effected a repair like this? Leo

Zachary Hoyt · Feb 7, 2015

I would not worry about putting glue of some kind in there, if you need to take the door off you can unscrew the other side of the hinges from the frame and take it off. You might want to replace the hinges with new if they have any wear on them now, then they should last for a good while and by the time new hinges wear out it may be time for a new door anyway.
Zach

Duner Wi · Feb 7, 2015

Stuff an appropriately sized plastic Zip tie down the hole and re insert your screw. This has worked for me. No guarantee.

JML755 · Feb 7, 2015

I'd try drilling out the hinge holes to just undersize for a wood dowel that's bigger than buggered-up holes you have now. Put some wood glue on the dowel and tap it in. Wait a day and then redrill for the correct size wood screws. I've done this before on other wood items.

Michael Soldan · Feb 7, 2015

Right On! That's the only way to make a permanent and lasting repair to chewed out door hinge screws.

kencombs · Feb 7, 2015

These work well in the appropriate size:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.anzor.com.au/exonet/image/Wood_Insert_Stainless.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.anzor.com.au/stainless-steel-threaded-insert-rivnut-nutsert/wood-inserts-threaded/product&h=150&w=434&tbnid=fX66Lkx5asjg4M:&zoom=1&docid=wEWmPASt---YOM&ei=FWbWVPKpB6zgsATAjYBo&tbm=isch&ved=0CCcQMygFMAU

Your local hardware/lowes/home depot etc should have them.

Drill the hole to the correct size for the insert, screw it into the wood, then attach the hinge with a flat head machine screw. A #10 will probably be the right size head to fit the hinge hole well.

Steve@Advance · Feb 7, 2015

That's a lot of door to hang on 3 hinges. I'm surprised they haven't pulled out of the door jamb too. If the wood inside the door is split, not likely anything will give a real permanent fix. If it is split, I would take the door down, remove the hinges, pry the splits open and try packing some thin epoxy type glue into the split and stripped holes, drive wood dowels into the holes then clamp the core together (use blocks so not to damage the skin). Then go back with new original size screws, predrill to prevent splitting again. Long screws won't do much good, especially if the threads don't go all the way to the head. That piece of wood is probably only about 1 1/2" wide, filled with styrofoam behind it.

If you're handy with a router or wood chisel, might consider adding a couple more hinges.

Ellis Kinney · Feb 7, 2015

I have had success using 2 part epoxy. Mix up a batch and poke as much as you can into the hole with a match or small drill bit and then coat the screw and snug it down. Ellis

DENNIS MIN · Feb 7, 2015

Ia Leo,

Perhaps a different hinge altogether?

http://www.rixson.com/pivottypes/

D.

Dusty MI · Feb 7, 2015

Or use a disposable syringe to fill the hole with 2 part epoxy, when the hole is full use a sharpened stick or pencil to plug the hole. after the epoxy is set then drill new screw holes.

Dusty

Lakeguy · Feb 7, 2015

I had a similar problem on a utility room door. Used
gorilla glue in the cracks and the screw holes.put
shims in to hold the door and hinges in place, no
more problems.

Jiles · Feb 7, 2015

I have made similar perminant repairs with Body filler Bondo and with JB WELD.
You cannot fill a blind hole. Best way to fill is to drill a tiny hole through the stripped hole and out the other side (all the way through the door. This lets the air and eventually the filler, to escape out other side.
When dry drill proper size hole,

Hoenes · Feb 7, 2015

Check into a "Roton" hinge. (continuous hinge) Might have to go to a commercial door hardware supplier to find one. That would give you all the new meat that you need, on both the door and the jamb.

Jason the Red · Feb 7, 2015

None of the potential solutions below offer a fix for the problem. Is the hinge side of the jamb plumb, and properly shimmed? That is where you should start. You state the top and center hinges are stripping out, which tells me the jamb is not plumb and is leaning in at the top. I would start by correcting this issue, then fixing the damage created by the problem.

john *.?-!.* cub owner · Feb 7, 2015

A good way to fixed stripped screw holes in wood is take a wooden golf tee, put some glue in the hole, and tap the tee in as deep as it will go. Once the glue is dry cut the Tee off flush. A Dremel is handy for that. Your description makes me think the hinges are not aligned correctly for one reason or another. It takes someone who really knows what they are doing to get 3 hinges aligned right, or a couple of them will always be fighting each other, which is why most doors only have 2

hillbilly2 · Feb 8, 2015

The golf tee trick does work very well. Thr copmpany I work for uses particle board core doors and we have to use golf tees in them regularly.

Loose door hinge problem

IaLeo

Well-known Member

Zachary Hoyt

Well-known Member

Duner Wi

Well-known Member

JML755

Well-known Member

Michael Soldan

Well-known Member

kencombs

Well-known Member

Steve@Advance

Well-known Member

Ellis Kinney

Well-known Member

DENNIS MIN

Member

Dusty MI

Well-known Member

Lakeguy

Member

Jiles

Well-known Member

Hoenes

Member

Jason the Red

Member

john .?-!. cub owner

Well-known Member

hillbilly2

Member

Similar threads