Any gadget to fix this (door always wants to swing open)

[Isaac]

I have a particular indoor door where I enjoy closing it to "a crack" - that is, closed as far as it will swing closed but WITHOUT latching it, or engaging that at all - so there is just a 1/4" crack of space basically. It makes me feel more 'connected' to the rest of the house despite my need to often have the door closed.

For whatever reason, probably quite literally 'shifting sands' [of Arizona], the door used to 'stay' wherever it was put. Most especially it stayed closed to-a-crack, and in fact it wanted to go in that direction.

Now it doesn't, it wants to swing open half or even all the way. Is there some magic trick I can do to the hinges, a gadget or a fix - something easy for a dumb person when it comes to handyman work - that I could do?

It has a full 4 hinges, and I'd rather not remove them, but if there was a spring-like gadget that just attached to the back or something ...

 

[CJ_London]

Which way does the door open? I.e. when you go to the room do you pull it towards you or push away from you

 

[MarkK]

My main customer is a commercial millwork shop. Those guys claim that if you bend the hinge pins a little it adds sufficient friction to solve unwanted swing from an out-of-plumb frame. I have never tried it myself.
• Knock a pin out of a hinge and lay it on a slab of concrete. The head will lift the shaft off the surface.
• Hit the pin in the center of the shaft with a hammer, same action as if you were trying to straighten a nail, but to inverse effect.
This slight bend, when you pound the pin back into the hinge, adds a degree of friction to the operation of the hinge. Maybe just do one hinge at a time, so you don't have to entirely remove the door. Maybe one will be enough.
• Also, remove any lubricants.
hth

 

[Isaac]

Which way does the door open? I.e. when you go to the room do you pull it towards you or push away from you

It opens Into the room. when I go into the room, I push it away

 

[Isaac]

My main customer is a commercial millwork shop. Those guys claim that if you bend the hinge pins a little it adds sufficient friction to solve unwanted swing from an out-of-plumb frame. I have never tried it myself.
• Knock a pin out of a hinge and lay it on a slab of concrete. The head will lift the shaft off the surface.
• Hit the pin in the center of the shaft with a hammer, same action as if you were trying to straighten a nail, but to inverse effect.
This slight bend, when you pound the pin back into the hinge, adds a degree of friction to the operation of the hinge. Maybe just do one hinge at a time, so you don't have to entirely remove the door. Maybe one will be enough.
• Also, remove any lubricants.
hth

Very appreciative of your answer, I will definitely give it a try!

 

[Isaac]

@MarkK worked like a charm.
See, now why didn't I think of that ?!

Thanks again!

 

[JonXL]

@Isaac is the door noticeably harder to move or latch properly? I could probably use this trick on a door or two in my house but don't want more problems than I solve...

 

[Isaac]

It's not at all noticeable, I have a feeling it's "far from". The leverage you have is just massive compared to the tiny friction, but the friction just enough to hold door in place. And I always have another 3 pins I can massacre

 

[MarkK]

@MarkK worked like a charm.
See, now why didn't I think of that ?!

Thanks again!

Cheers Isaac,

 

[Pat Hartman]

A very clever trick Mark. Thanks for passing it on.