Golf Tees Fix Stripped Screw Holes

If the latches and strike plates on your doors can no longer be tightened, you can use a golf tee to renew the hole into which the screw threads.  Remove the old screw, insert the tee, tap the tee until it is snug, and then break off the tee flush with the wood.  Then, reinstall the screw.  If needed, use a little wood glue on the tee; but that isn't always necessary.

You can use this idea on just about any hole you find that is stripped out!

Golf Tees Are Great When Filling In Stripped Screw Holes!

Golf tees make great hole fillers!

If you find that the strike plate or latch on your door will not stay "screwed in", that is because the screw holes have been stripped out.  This usually occurs when people use electric drills or screwdrivers to install locks.  Always use hand tools when doing installations.  Not only will that keep your screws from stripping out, it will also prevent you from marring the finish on your lock.

If you have a stripped hole in your door, or anywhere else, insert a golf tee into the hole.  You may want to put a little Elmer's Glue on it, but it is not necessary.  Gently tap the tee into the hole. Do not force it too much or you will split the wood.  Once the tee is nice and snug, break it off flush with the surface. Now, you have fresh wood into which you can drive your screw!

Callin Residential Lock Latch Locks Up - Remove and Replace

Callin makes a beautiful lock. However, the latches are prone to jamming in such a way as to render your door inoperable. No matter what you do, whether you unlock it with the key or turn the inside and outside knob or lever, the door simply will not open. Here is what you can do:

1. Have a flat head screw driver, a hammer, and a pair of vice grips ready.
2. First, try to pry the door away from the jamb. Be careful not to go to far with this or you will mar your door and jamb, necessitating cosmetic repair. If this works, then remove the lock entirely and replace the latch with a new Kwikset latch from the hardware store.
3. If the door is too tight, remove the interior screws of the lock and remove the inside knob/lever. The outside knob will be locked into place because the latch is jammed. If you can remove the locking spindle (that is the tube-looking spindle that has a hole in the end which the interior knob turn-button inserts into) then you can remove the knob. I cannot in words describe how to do this. But there is a catch either at the 12 or 6 o' clock position underneath the spindle that is spring loaded. Turn the spindle half way between left and right with the tip of a 32 regular Phillips driver, lift up on the catch and hold it there, and slip the spindle out. If you are lost at this point, destroy the lock spindle where it joins the lock body. Just pry it apart. Just get the outside knob off!
4. Now you have to deal with a jammed latch. This may take some time. With your flat head driver, carefully destroy the latch so all the parts and guts come out. You may need a hammer to get started. Just use your flat head driver to pry the latch apart. Once all the parts are gone, you should be able to use a small driver to pry the latch back. The door should open. 
5. This may take you from 15 minutes to one hour or more. Replace the lock with another Callin, but buy an optional Kwikset latch.

Your Door Bounces Off the Jamb Instead of Latching

All of us just swing the doors until they close. But sometimes, the slam against the strike plate and bounce open. Then we go back, turn the handle and close the door manually. So, what is wrong here? The solution may be easy.

1. First, using WD-40, lube the latch on the lock. Shoot it in but do not let it drip all over your floor. Swing the door shut gently without touching the knob. This usually does the job.
2. If after you lube the latch the door is still bouncing off the strike plate, the the latch is bad. Get the name off the latch and go to Lowe's. Either buy a new lock and have the attendant key it to match your key, or just buy the latch.
3. Do not forget to check the strike plate to see if it is in the correct place.
4. If the latch is broken, and you have a Kwikset lock, your door could get locked up.

House Locks Are Not Locking Into the Jamb Properly

You should always test your doors in order to make sure that your lock latches and bolts are lining up with the strike plates in the door jamb. The reason for this is because 1) houses settle and move over time and 2) the weather will cause wood to shrink and expand. Here is how you check your latches and bolts.

1. Standing on the inside, close you your door and notice where the knob latch hits the plate on the door jamb. It should be dead center. If it hits off center and still locks, then you are still okay for the moment. You may need a flashlight.
2. Throw your deadbolt and verify that it is entering the plate dead center.
3. If everything looks okay, try this next test. Close the door gently. Look and listen to determine that the knob latch has clicked into place. Operate the deadbolt. If you have to close your door with a slam to get the latches to line up properly, that is not necessarily a bad thing. Over time, however, it may become an issue.
4. Check your hinge screws and make sure they are snug. If they are loose, they can cause the door to sag and the locks to lose their alignment. If your screws are stripped, get 3 inch long sheet rock screws and replace two in each hinge on the jamb. This will often pull the door up and realign the latches. If this doesn't help, proceed to the next section. But, by all means, tighten the hinge screws!

How to realign your strike plate. (Tools needed: Phillips screwdriver, wooden golf tees, pencil, hammer, and 1 inch wood chisel from Lowe's).

1. Using the above instructions, determine whether or not you need to raise, lower, set back, or move forward the knob strike plate.
2. Remove the strike plate.
3. Reposition the strike plate where needed and outline the place with a pencil.
4. Using your wood chisel and hammer, chisel out the wood by first outlining the marks you made with the pencil, and then chiseling out the wood itself.
5. Use golf tees to fill in the old screw holes. Just gently hammer them in until they are snug and then snap them off flush with the jamb.
6. Replace the strike plate and fasten with screws.
7. Follow the same procedure with the dead bolt strike plate.