Interior doors are usually not made of the best materials, and even the nicest homes may have simple hollow core doors. Since these doors are in high use areas, they can frequently have issues, such as hinge wear, and even in many cases, holes where something fell against it. If your interior doors have seen better days, it’s time to get cracking and get them fixed.

First, let’s tackle the issue of hinges. It is a good idea to inspect all interior door hinges every year. Try picking a holiday like Memorial or Labor Day to make it easy to remember. They should be properly oiled during this time and you should check to make sure that all of the screws are present, tightened and that the hinges are not coming apart.

If you notice a few hinges that are loose, you’ll need to get an appropriate screwdriver and tighten them in. It may be necessary to get some help to make sure that this is done properly. Have a friend or family member push the door up and in until the hinge is flush with the wall. Tighten the screw and then ask them to release the door. This is the easiest way to make sure that a hinge is properly tightened.

For high traffic areas, wood stress is very common, especially in older homes. This occurs when a door is opened to swiftly or too hard, and over time, the wood starts to give way. After awhile, the hinge no longer has a strong anchor and it may come loose. You may need to rehang a door, especially if the wood is severely damaged. For a quick fix, insert a shim that is thicker than the screws for the hinge. You’ll need to attach this to the area where the wood is rotting, and then attach the hinge to the shim. It may be necessary to cut into the door jam to get the shim and the hinge to sit flush.

For interior doors that are starting to show signs of wear and tear, a good cleaning is essential. Start with Murphy’s Oil or a similar wood cleaning product and carefully scrub away any dirt and grime that is present. If the wood is not too old, the soap and oil should restore the former shine. You can also take some olive oil on a rag to restore wooden doors.

However, if this does not help, you will need to take the door down, sand it down completely and either paint it or re-stain it. This doesn’t take too long, and can really bring a lot of life back to an old door.

For interior doors with holes or cracking, the best solution is a replacement. The integrity of the door has been compromised, and there is no point in patching it up. When you purchase a new interior door, consider getting one that has a solid core. Although they are more expensive, they will usually last much longer, especially in high traffic areas.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2008-09-29 05:11:27. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Related Posts

• Taking Care of Stained Wooden Floors Whether you live in an old house that has original wooden floors, or if you have a pet problem with staining, taking care of stained wooden floors doesn’t have to be difficult. Before you think about replacing expensive wooden floors, there are a few options that you can try that......
• Restoring Built-Ins If your home is from the arts and crafts era, or if you have built-ins that are looking a little worn, restoring them is not as difficult as you may think. Built-ins are incredibly useful but they are often overlooked by many home owners. Here are some great tips to......
• Winterizing Your Roof Before winter comes, there are a few things that you need to do to make sure that your roof will make it through one more season of rain and snow. While many of us are familiar with the tasks of cleaning out the eaves, there are quite a few other......
• How to Make Old Appliances Look New If you’re stuck with some aging appliances and replacing them isn’t in your budget, there are a few appliance repair tricks that you can use to give them a facelift and make them more energy efficient, on the cheap. For this article, we’re going to focus on refreshing your refrigerator......
• Top Five Ways To Increase the Value of Your Home If you are looking for new ways to increase the overall value of your home, there are numerous projects that you can tackle on your own. Whether you are an experienced DIY’er, or just starting out, these projects are fun and add more than just monetary value to your home.......

Related Websites

• More Tips on Buying Violins With the vast assortment violins to choose from, buying a new instrument can be quite a challenging endeavor. However, this task can be much easier if you do some research ahead of time. The following are some points to remember when buying a new or used violin. If you are......
• Antique Lighting Antiques -> Decorative Arts -> Lamps Whether you are trying to restore an older home and would like to keep it in the period style, or you just appreciate older light fixtures, antique lighting has much to offer. There are many different styles from Victorian, to Art Deco to Modern......
• Player Profile: Tiger Woods Tiger Woods may be out of commission for the 2008 season, but he is never really out of mind. When he first burst onto the scene and turned golf on its ear, no one really knew what to expect. This upstart kid went on to numerous championships, endorsement deals and......
• Collecting Money World Wide There are several money collectors here in the United States and around the globe. There are even some people who make special trips to other parts of the world just for the purpose of collecting currencies for their personal collections. Many people go to some of the events and trade......
• Antique Door Locks Antiques -> Architectural & Garden -> Doors The look of antique furniture and hardware can lend such old-fashioned charm to a room, so it's no wonder than an antique door lock is a popular item that can look great in all but the most modern décor. Someone searching for this......

Online Stores

• Privacy Knobs Doors & Door Hardware Building & Hardware Home Improvement
• High Cutaway Classical Acoustic Electric Guitar Acoustic Musical Instruments
• National Park Series 2010-Present Quarters Coins: US Coins & Paper Money
• Mahogany Doors Doors & Door Hardware Building & Hardware Home Improvement
• Wood Hunting

If you liked this article, vote for it on del.icio.us and stumbleupon.


Categories:

Clean, Doors, Handy Man, Refresh, Repair, Replace

Tags:

anchor, best materials, better days, cleaning product, dirt and grime, family member, hinge, hinges, holes, hollow core doors, interior door, interior doors, labor day, screw, screwdriver, screws, soap, stress, traffic areas, wear and tear