Sliding doors to your patio or deck can start getting stubborn and hard to move. If your sliding door no longer slides, then it is not necessarily time to get a new door. Most causes can be quickly mended with a little bit of time and a trip to the hardware or home improvement store. The culprit is typically dirty or bent tracks or a roller that needs replacing. Therefore, all you need to do is get the track working again, rather than getting a new door – unless you were looking for an excuse to get a new sliding door.
Some of the easy fixes go with simple problems. It is usually easy to see if the problem is cause by dirty or buckled tracks. If there is dirt and debris causing your stubborn sliding door to stick, the solution is very easy.
1. Vacuum the track to remove loose dirt, pet fur and other obstructions.
2. Remove caked-on dirt with a stiff brush, using water or cleaners as necessary to remove all dirt and unwanted materials from the track.
3. Lubricate the rollers with WD-40 or similar product.
4. Lubricate the track with graphite or paraffin.
If the cause of your door not doing its duty is a track that is bent out of shape, it is still a fixable problem. Although, if the track is in horrible shape, rather than just suffering from some minor bends, you might be better off replacing the track rather than straightening it. Track is available in most home improvement stores. If that is your choice, I suggest bringing some of your existing track with you so that you can find a perfect match. With that said, here are the steps to straighten bends, bowing and blockages in your track.
1. Run a block of wood through the track. Make sure that the wood is the right size to move through the track but still be snug enough to find the bends.
2. When you come across an area that is bent or bowed, use the wood to lightly tap the metal track in order to straighten it out.
3. Repeat the process until the block can run straight and smooth through the entire track.
If the problem is because the door itself seems to sag or lean in a strange direction there are still some things that you can do to fix the problem. It might be solvable by simply repositioning the track. In most cases, if your door is sagging in such a way that you need to lift the door to move it, the problem lies with the rollers. You might need to adjust their height, or possibly replace them. Here is what you will need to do to replace rollers; instructions for adjusting rollers are included on the steps.
1. Remove the door from the track. Please remember how heavy the door can be, and get someone to help you move it and set it out of the way.
2. Remove the old rollers from the door.
3. Attach the new rollers to the bottom of the door.
4. Follow the package directions. If they include lubricating the wheels or other detailed instructions, do as they require.
5. Adjust the height of the rollers. This is typically done with a Phillips head screwdriver in the holes on either side of the door. Turning the screws in a clockwise direction should raise the roller for that side of the door. The opposite holds true.
6. Put the door back on the track and make sure that the roller height is correct on both sides to make for the easies slide for the door.
