11 Common Interior Door Repairs in Your Northern Virginia Home

The doors in our homes serve a greater function than merely enabling or preventing entry into various rooms. Doors can invite loved ones into our space, act as a barrier when we need time alone, and protect what we hold dear.

However, like all areas of your home, your doors can wear over time. Repeated use, slamming during heated moments with your teenager, and even fluctuations in humidity and temperature all take their toll. And when you need interior door repair services, the team at Mr. Handyman of Northern Virginia has got you covered.

Our Northern Virginia handyman technicians are highly trained and bring an average of 10 years’ experience to every job—with some of our handymen having worked in the trades, carpentry, and construction for upwards of 20 years. Not only do we deliver outstanding workmanship, but we also truly care about our customers. Our Mr. Handyman location is dedicated to the Northern Virginia community and consistently goes above and beyond for our clients. When you hire our team, you can expect to be treated with respect, dignity, and integrity.

There are many common interior door repair services we offer. Sometimes, you might not even notice that there is an issue with your door because you’ve grown accustomed to the squeaking, sticking, or rattling of a damaged door. To help you know when you may require interior door repair services, our experts have compiled the following list. Have a read to know when your doors will benefit from a little TLC.

1. Noisy Doors

In the middle of the night, a squeaking door might as well be as loud as a fire alarm. Perhaps you and your better half are on different bedtime schedules and you’re continually being woken up by a jarring squeeeaaakk when trying to fall asleep. Or maybe, the whining of a rusty hinge is a cue your child has crept downstairs for a midnight snack.

Squeaking doors can be an annoyance—and one that is easily remedied. Whether your hinges are rusty and need lubricating or the hinges are too tight or too loose, our technicians can complete the necessary interior door repairs so that irritating noises stop affecting your quality of life. Our carpenters can re-align the door, replace damaged hinges, or make minor adjustments that will have your door opening and closing quietly in no time.

2. Problems Opening and Closing

When you try to get into your bathroom, do you have to use the force of your body to push open the door because it sticks? Likewise, do you have to pull on your bedroom door’s knob with all your strength simply for it to close? Or maybe you think the door has shut, only to watch it slowly swing open?

Doors are designed to open and close with minimal effort. If it’s a struggle each time you want a little privacy or are leaving your home office at the end of the day, then you need interior door repair services. There are many reasons why your doors may not operate properly, including:

• The door latch does not align with the hole in the strike plate

• The latch is too high or low

• The hinges are too loose or tight

• The door has warped from humidity or insect damage

• Your home’s structural foundation has shifted and the door frame has warped

One of our experienced technicians will be able to diagnose the reason why your door will not open or close properly, while also fixing the problem with ease.

3. Damage from Termites

If you have wooden doors and live in Northern Virginia, then you must be vigilant for termite damage. One of the best ways to uncover whether your wood doors have been infiltrated by these tricky pests is to give it a knock. Tapping on the door will help you hear if it’s been hollowed out or not. While your door might look fine from the outside, within hungry little termites could slowly but surely eat your door—and possibly infest the rest of your home as well. Keep in mind, this trick will only work for solid wood doors.

Should you have damage from insects, a pest control service and one of our interior door repair experts will be able to set the situation right as soon as possible. Our technicians can even replace your wooden doors with vinyl or fiberglass, which will be much less tempting for termites to sink their teeth into.

4. Loose, Tight, Rusty or Damaged Hinges

Hinges are fundamental to a smoothly functioning door. When the hinges are too tight or too loose, alignment can be compromised and the door will not be able to open, close, or even lock correctly. Additionally, damaged hinges pose another set of problems. Rusty hinges could squeak or break. Since your hinges hold the door to its wall and support its weight, damaged hinges could impede safe movement and security.

5. Peeling Paint

As we’re sure most Northern Virginia homeowners would agree, peeling paint has never been a good look. Not only is peeling paint unattractive and can take away from your otherwise cozy home, it can also be bad for your health. Lead-free paint may not be poisonous, but can still bother your lungs when inhaled. Paint that contains lead, which may be found in older homes, is highly toxic and must be carefully replaced by a certified professional.

When your doors begin to peel, call one of our technicians right away. We’ll carefully sand your lead-free paint, prepare the surface, and give your doors a new lease on life with a fresh coat. Painting your doors is an easy interior door repair that can boost the aesthetic of your home, put your personal stamp on your place, and make an old door look good-as-new.

6. Misaligned Wheels on Sliding Doors

Many Northern Virginia homes have sliding doors on closets, shower doors, and patio doors. When the wheels are misaligned or the door is knocked off its track, it can make opening and closing the door very difficult. Have you ever experienced reaching into your closet blindly to try to grab something just out of reach because the door won’t open all the way? It’s not exactly an ideal situation.

Luckily, the experts at Mr. Handyman of Northern Virginia are well-versed in repairing a range of doors, including sliding models. Our interior door repair professionals can ensure a sticking closet will never get in the way of finding your favorite sweater again.

7. Inoperable Knobs

Pulling at a door knob only to have it fall off seems like a scene straight out of a cartoon. However, broken or damaged door knobs in real life are hardly comical. When a handle is sticking, no longer turns properly, or won’t lock, sometimes swapping it out with a new one is the best option. But if you want to keep your original door knob, say it’s historically significant, it is possible to repair it or replace just the damaged part.

Our interior door repair experts will be able to help you know why your handle is not working correctly and the best way to fix it. We’ll help you decide whether repairing the doorknob or handle is in your best interest, and complete whatever task you decide is right for your door.

8. Damage from Wear-and-Tear

Even your interior doors can be impacted by humidity and fluctuating temperatures. This is especially so if your HVAC system is not very effective, if you often leave windows propped open to receive fresh air, or if your ventilation system does not work well in humidity-prone rooms (e.g. bathrooms). Humidity, water damage, and moisture can cause wood doors to warp and frames to misalign.

However, these are not the only factors that can damage a door over time. Frequent use, slamming, the age of the door, and even pets can all cause damage that impacts the functionality and aesthetic of your door. Your new puppy might be adorable, but the bite marks it left in your bedroom door are not quite as cute.

When your door has seen better days, call the pros at Mr. Handyman of Northern Virginia. We can expertly complete repairs that will erase years of damage with one visit.

9. Outdated Aesthetic

Sometimes, you might have a perfectly functioning door but it just doesn’t suit your style or taste. Maybe you’ve moved into a fixer-upper and want to renovate. Maybe as time has gone by your style has evolved and with it how you want to design your home. Either way, our interior door repair experts are more than happy to paint, stain, or replace your doors entirely. Although an often overlooked part of your home’s aesthetic, it’s amazing the difference new doors can make in your space.

To that end, maybe you’ve been working on updating other areas of your home and have not changed the doors. Take a moment and look at your space. Do your current doors match the new style of your home? Try taking photos on your phone of your living room, kitchen, and bedrooms to see if the proverbial “shoe fits.” If your doors do not add to the look of your home, it’s time to change them.

10. Misaligned Double Doors

It’s not uncommon for double doors to open into master bedrooms or basement suites. When French doors do not line up correctly, they won’t close or lock correctly either. Additionally, the doors will look a little wonky. French doors are meant to be elegant, so any misalignment will detract from their otherwise sophisticated aesthetic.

As we’ve covered earlier in this article, there are many reasons why doors might not line up in their frames. This is true of double doors as well. Perhaps one door has warped or its hinges are loose. Alternatively, when the doors were installed they may not have been aligned correctly. This will cause issues from the get-go. If your double doors look out of whack from one another, call our professional interior door repair experts today. We'll skillfully line up both doors, so they are a perfect fit.

11. The Latch Does Not Work

Most interior doors do not have locks—after all, why would you need to lock up your closet or pantry? But for those that do, say a bathroom or master bedroom, it can be frustrating when the lock fails. If each time you try to lock your door and it does not stay latched, you’ll need the help of a professional handyman service to solve the problem. It’s unlikely that the issue is with the lock itself, but rather the alignment of the door. The lock may not be able to latch because it can’t fit into the latch bore (the small hole opposite the lock that enables it to latch). Subsequently, the lock will be practically useless. Maintain your privacy by calling an interior door repair expert to correct any misalignment as soon as possible.

Hire an Interior Door Repair Expert Today!

When you have problems with the doors within your home, we have solutions. Whether squeaking is driving you crazy or you want to update your home’s design, the team at Mr. Handyman of Northern Virginia can help. With our years of experience and commitment to customer service, we can tackle any interior door repair task on your to-do list.

We invite you to give our friendly team a call today at 703-621-4817 or to request a service online. We look forward to hearing from you!