Troubleshooting Problems with French Patio Doors

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French patio doors are a great addition to your home. This type of door adds a lot of elegance and character to the entrance to your patio, into different rooms, or even as a front door. These doors are not sliding glass doors as are usually found in most homes leading to the patio. They open up in the middle in one direction. There are generally two doors and can be either opened together or individually.

Troubleshooting and Maintenance of French Patio Doors

As with any other part of your home, there should be some maintenance done to the French patio doors on a consistent basis. This maintenance will include washing the doors, cleaning the hinges, tightening the door handles, and making sure all the working parts are in good shape. If you begin to have problems with the French patio doors, you will need to do some simple troubleshooting.

Doors Do Not Latch

Because the French patio doors open up in the middle, they are susceptible to the latches not working as they should. This is due in part to some settling of the home. If you notice that the doors are not staying latched when you close them, check to make sure the door is lined up with the latch. If not, you will need to reposition the latch.

Doors Are Sagging

Another common problem with the French patio doors is that the hinges will become loose. This will cause the doors to sag when they are open. It is also another cause of the latch not working properly. Check this by looking at the hinges to see if they are loose or any of the screws are loose. There are several ways to fix this problem. Removing the hinges and setting some wood dowels in the screw holes is the most popular way.

Door Handles Are Sticking

There are typically two types of door handles for French patio doors. There are the ones with a small latch that you must press to open them. Then there is the type that you twist to unlatch the door. They can both stick causing the door to malfunction. This sticking is mostly due to build up within the door handle itself. You should use some WD-40 lubrication to clean out the gunk and grime from within the handle.

Crack Between Doors

After some period of time, there can be a space in between the doors. This will cause the air in the home to be lost through this crack. The reason for this is mostly because the weather stripping has been worn away. Replace the old weatherstripping with a new piece.

Doors Jamb and Do Not Close

If the door's jamb on the sill when you go to close them, there is a structural problem with the door frame itself. To fix this you will need to do a little bit of repair work to the frame. Remove the trim and try to place some shims to level the French patio door frame. If this does not straighten out the low spot, you will need to remove the frame to check the wall studs and sill.