Why Doors Stick (and When to Plane, Rehang or Replace)

A door that catches the frame or drags on the carpet is one of those small annoyances that grates daily. The good news: most sticking doors are a quick fix. The trick is working out why it sticks before reaching for the plane.

Find the cause first

Where the door rubs tells you the story. Catching at the top corner on the handle side usually means the door has dropped on its hinges. Rubbing along the whole closing edge points to swelling or a lining that has moved. Scraping the floor or carpet means either a drop or new flooring that sits higher than the old.

The three usual culprits

• Hinges: screws loosen over years of swinging, and the door sags. Often a ten-minute fix with longer screws into the stud behind the lining
• Humidity: timber doors swell in damp weather and shrink in heated winters. A door that only sticks in autumn may need nothing at all, or a whisker off the edge
• Movement: new extensions settle, and old Hampshire cottages never really stop moving. Linings rack out of square and the door no longer fits the hole

Plane, rehang or replace?

Planing is right when the door is sound and only a few millimetres are in the way. Rehang when the lining is square but the hinges or their mortices have failed, or when the door was badly hung in the first place. Replace when the door is twisted, cracked, or a hollow door has been planed so many times there is nothing left at the edge. A twisted door can never be planed straight; it will always spring back.

A note on fire doors

If the door is a fire door, the rules change. Gaps are specified in millimetres, seals matter, and planing the wrong edge can void its rating. Fire doors should be adjusted or replaced by someone who understands the certification, not trimmed until they close.

Sort yours

Door hanging, easing and adjustments are everyday second fix carpentry for us. One sticking door or a whole house of them, call 07983 630628 and we will get them swinging properly.