Vancouver Door Repair: Key Indications Your Interior or Exterior Doors Need Help

Whether they're on the inside or the outside, doors are a critical part of any Vancouver, WA home. They protect your home and household, give you privacy when you need it and prevent heat transfer from driving up your energy costs. But when your entryways have suffered damage or just deteriorated over time, they can't provide you with those benefits—in fact, without effective Vancouver door repair, the opposite happens, and they become more of a liability than an asset.

It can be surprising how often homeowners don't realize just how bad the condition of their entries really is. The damage often starts out barely noticeable and slowly gets worse over time. Much like the proverbial frog in hot water, we don't see the problem until it's too late for door repair services and a complete replacement is needed. This guide covers some of the most common signs that trouble is knocking, to help you recognize them early on so you can save money and stress by getting the Vancouver door repair help you need.

If you notice these problems on your property, depend on your local Vancouver handyman to deliver the highest standards of professional workmanship and outstanding customer service. The service professionals at Mr. Handyman of Vancouver, Camas and Ridgefield have the experience and expertise to tackle a wide range of quality services for both residential and commercial properties, including expert Vancouver door repair solutions.

Signs That Exterior Vancouver Door Repair Is Needed

In all fairness, exterior entryways may be a bit more critical than the interior ones—they have to stand strong and take a lot of abuse over time from wear and tear, harsh weather patterns, wildlife attacks and even vandals or would-be intruders, so it's really important that they are durable, long-lasting and well-maintained. Damage to your exterior doors can cause some major issues that will make your house a lot less comfortable, safe and energy efficient.

Here are some of the warning signs that indicate your exterior entryways could benefit from Vancouver door repair service:

1. Increased Energy Costs

If you can feel cold drafts of air coming through your exterior entry even though it's firmly shut, that's definitely a bad thing. It obviously reduces the indoor comfort levels in your house, but it also needlessly costs you a lot of money on your monthly utility bills by allowing heat transfer to occur. That's the natural process in which thermal energy tries to transfer from a warm place to a colder place.

Manufacturers and home builders spend a lot of time trying to find new ways to prevent heat transfer, because it changes the temperature in your house and undermines the efforts of your HVAC system, making your house less energy efficient. Your furnace and air conditioner already use quite a bit of fuel to keep your house at the temperature set on your thermostat, so that additional operation time really adds up and the extra energy consumption is reflected on your energy bills.

When the frame or slab itself on your exterior entry deteriorates, the seal is compromised and it can't block heat transfer as effectively. Increased energy costs can be the result of other problems as well, like inadequate insulation or damaged siding, but getting Vancouver door repair to stop noticeable air drafts from your entryways will absolutely make a difference in how much you have to pay on your monthly bills.

2. Rotting Wood

After reading all about heat transfer, you may start wondering how exactly those drafts are getting in, anyway. There's a couple of possibilities, but it is very often related to wood rot. Any wood that is on the exterior of your house and exposed to rain is naturally going to be susceptible to wood rot, which is a form of decay that only affects wood that has soaked up excess water and has a moisture content that is at 20% or higher.

Wood rot causes timber to soften and crumble apart, compromising its ability to block air drafts and prevent heat transfer. It's capable of causing serious structural stability problems if it's left to run rampant, so it's really important to be on the lookout for any signs of wood rot. The earlier you can catch it and get Vancouver door repair service from a qualified handyman, the easier and faster it will be to eliminate it from your house. Not sure what to look for? Here are some of the key warning signs that timber is taking on moisture and will soon begin to rot, or that the decay has already begun:

• Peeling paint or flaking wood stain

• Gray, weathered-looking wood

• Patches look lighter or darker than the rest, or have a white, purple or yellowish cast to them

• Texture changes where the timber appears to be webbed with cracks, or looks spongy or stringy

• When you probe a suspicious patch with a tool, it sinks right into the wood

Unfortunately, there's no way to fully restore rotted timber back to its former glory. Usually, wood rot repair involves removing the affected wood and replacing it, then painting it and adding a coat of sealant to give it added protection against moisture.

3. Sliding Door Doesn't Move Smoothly

Your sliding patio entryway should glide open and shut with a gentle nudge. If it's a struggle to heave or shove it even a few inches at a time, it's an irritating pain, and who needs that in their life? Sliding entries usually operate on a roller and track system—there are small rollers on the bottom of that heavy slab of glass and sash that roll along tracks on the floor. If the tracks, rollers or both are damaged, it makes it really difficult to operate your entry as intended and takes away from your enjoyment of your home.

This may sound like a clear sign you need Vancouver door repair, and that may very well be the case—but it's also possible that dirt has built up in the track or pieces of debris such as hair and grime have gotten wrapped around the rollers and are preventing them from working properly. If they look pretty dirty, grab a scrub brush, warm water and mild detergent, then give the track and rollers a good scrub. Once they're dry, vacuum or sweep up any remnants. That may be all it takes to restore function, but if it doesn't change anything, it's time for Vancouver door repair.

4. Pest or Pet Damage

Wildlife attacks and pest infestations can do a lot of damage to your exterior entryways, but often the biggest threat comes from within—and if you have a dog with separation anxiety or a cat that likes to scratch everything except their scratching post, you know exactly what we're talking about. Cats and dogs like to scratch or gnaw at both exterior and interior entries, and they're capable of causing a lot of damage in a short amount of time. Our Vancouver door repair professionals can fix scratches, gouges and other surface issues in wood entries, or refinish other materials that have had the paint scratched off of them.

You may also encounter insect damage, and it can sometimes be difficult to spot. It may look like a maze of holes or channels on the surface of your entryway slab, or you may notice that the entry feels a lot lighter than it used to, as if it's been hollowed out from the inside—because it has. Surface issues may be repairable, but an entryway that has been hollowed out by destructive insects has to be replaced.

Symptoms of an Interior Entry That Needs Vancouver Door Repair

While open-concept floor plans are showing no signs of decreasing in popularity, we'll never completely eliminate the need for interior entries. They give us much-needed privacy during our most personal moments and can provide the peace and quiet you need when it's time for a break away from the rest of your household. If you've ever tried to share a house that doesn't have bathroom or bedroom doors with other people, you know exactly how important interior entryways are—and of course they need to be kept in great condition to offer the privacy, security and sound separation that makes it a lot easier to get along with your family members or roommates.

Here are some of the most common issues that call for interior door repair in Vancouver, WA:

1. Misalignment

When an entryway is misaligned, the two sides of the latch don't meet up perfectly. This can happen with almost any type of entry, but it's most common with doubles, such as a set of French doors, where each door has one half of the latch. If they don't meet in the middle properly because of misalignment, they won't latch together and it may be pretty much impossible to even get both of them closed in the frame. There are plenty of possible causes for this issue, but it's pretty common for it to be an issue from the very beginning because the installation was not done correctly. That's a frustrating situation, whether you attempted a DIY installation and it didn't turn out how you'd hoped or worse, you paid someone to do it and they didn't get it right. Our experienced Vancouver door repair professionals can rehang your entry slabs and get them perfectly aligned so they latch together smoothly.

2. Knob Doesn't Turn

When a knob on your entry is stuck and won't turn at all, it's a huge inconvenience. Either you won't be able to latch the door, or you won't even be able to get the door all the way closed in the frame because the latch is sticking out and banging into the frame. This may be happening because the tumblers in its locking mechanism are jammed up so the handle and latch parts can't move. If that's the case, all you need is basic Vancouver door repair services to get them unjammed and working smoothly again. But if your knob or interior mechanisms are broken or have become clogged with grime over a long period of time, it will probably be more cost-effective to just have your handyman replace the entire knob.

3. Impact Damage

While exterior entryways need to be built tough to withstand a lot, interior entries aren't usually as sturdy. They're often hollow and can be badly damaged by a direct impact. If there's an outright hole in your door, replacement is almost certainly going to be the most cost-effective solution. But if there's less severe damage like chips, scuffs or small cracks, we may be able to get it fixed up with a Vancouver door repair strategy that will leave it looking like nothing ever happened.

Commercial Door Repair in Vancouver, WA

Of course, homes aren't the only buildings with doors and they're not the only buildings that need expert Vancouver door repair service. Business owners in Vancouver and nearby areas can rely on our team of professional technicians to find solutions for commercial door issues as well, including automatic, revolving and handicap-accessible entryways. Our commercial handyman team also offers installation and preventative maintenance services for commercial properties.

Trust Your Local Handyman for Experience Vancouver Door Repair Services!

Whether you're in Vancouver, WA or an area that is close by such as Battle Ground, La Center or Washougal, you can count on the same exceptional service from the team of professionals at Mr. Handyman of Vancouver, Camas and Ridgefield. Customer satisfaction is our first priority!

If you'd like to book an appointment for a time that's convenient to you, or you want to know about our reliable handyman services in the Vancouver, WA area, give us a call at 360-719-4128 to chat with our friendly customer service representatives.