I have a new french door installation which worked great until it started to rain here in Seattle, and now it sticks, right around the latches. I figure I need to plane a bit off the side(s) of the door(s), but I am not sure which side(s) are best to plane down.I anticipate taking 1/8 inch maximum off, but is it best to take it off the latch sides or the hinge sides?
the hinge side.
And redo the hinge mortices after doing so
Before you cut anything try spraying a bit of silicone on the spot where the rubbing is at. Chances are that the spot will loosen up with seasonal changes and you don't want a bigger gap.
One thing to remember is that when it stops raining (if it ever does) that door will likely shrink back so be careful not to remove too much. I agree that you probably want to plane the hinge side/s.
If you plane the door edge, you will have to make the butt pockets a little deeper. Before planing the door though, with the door closed, I would have a look at the gap between the door and the jamb on the hinge side. If you have a little extra gap at the hinge/jamb side you may be able to let the butt pockets in (on the door) just a little and solve the problem there without having to plane the door. You can't go very much or you will put the door (hinge) in a bind. If that happens, you can solve that problem by planing the door edge anyway.
Mike O.
"Leon" wrote in news:hPQQi.9821$ snipped-for-privacy@newssvr27.news.prodigy.net:
May I recomend you try rubbing on some beeswax before you try thre silicone. The reason for this is that the silicone will soak into the wood (I'm assuming you're talking about bare wood here). Beeswax will sit on the surface and can be scraped off if you need to paint or do other work. Parafin from a candle or block of sealing wax could also be used.
snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com wrote in news:1192478850.058979.141320 @q5g2000prf.googlegroups.com:
First, look at the top and bottom of the door. If they are not sealed, the first thing to do is to sela them with a good quality varnish or sealer.
Next, if the margin at the hinge sides of the door is greater than the thickness of your tr-=square blade, you could back shim the hinges. do this by loosening the hinges in the jamb and insert a small piece (s) of paper board ( thin cardboard) under the stop side of the hinge. then tighten the screws back up. This will have the effect of moving the center of the pin toward the jamb, thus opening the margin at the meeting part.
If that doesn't solve the entire problem, you might try bending the hinges toward the jambs by using a 10/12" crescent wrench on the jamb hinges and bend them back slightly. Be mindful that the margin at the jamb will be getting tighter with these ideas, so you don't want to over-do either one.
These are the first things I do when trying to shim a steel door in a steel frame that doesn't quite fit right.
Good Luck
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