I have a door with hinges that must not be aligned as it tends to fall open on its own. I’d like it to stay in the position where I put it. Is there anything I could squirt on the hinges to make it more sticky? (If it was sticking then I’d use WD40 - hence I’m after something that is the *opposite *of WD40).
Glue?
I mean, the problem is going to be, if you get something that’s too sticky, you won’t be able to move the door at all. Not sticky enough, and it doesn’t do what you’re asking. I think the solution you’re looking for is not something to spray on the hinges, but rather putting the hinges on right so the door isn’t unbalanced. You might be able to get away with just putting a shim behind one of the hinges, which might fix it. If not, you’ll probably have to drill new holes and all that jazz.
You can take out a hinge pin, lay it flat on something solid (sidewalk maybe) and hit it with a hammer to give it a slight bend. That should keep the door from being too loose.
This is the standard “This Old House” quick fix for such a door. However, the professional way would be to shim the hinge if there is room at the jamb. It may even be a problem with the hinges being loose. Another common fix is to hold a block of wood against the jamb at the hinge (probably top) and hit it hard with a heavy hammer. You do this with the door removed. This forces the whole jamb back into the wall enough to change the alignment. The same can be done with 4" screws driven in the general area. I like the screw idea better because it stays and you can observe the jamb pulling in. The downside is that it takes a powerful driver for that length screw. Soap and pre-drilling the first 1.5" will help ease the force needed.
There is an old tongue-in-cheek adage floating around out there…it may have originated with Red Green…
“Anything can be fixed with only two items - WD40 and duct tape. If it’s stuck and shouldn’t be, WD40 it. If it isn’t stuck and ought to be, duct tape it.”
So… I suppose one could advance an axiom that Duct tape is the opposite of WD40.
Of course, this doesn’t do a durn thing for your door…I dunno, maybe wrap the hinge pins with duct tape to stiffen the action?:dubious:
The direct answer to your question is that a a spray adhesive would be like the opposite of WD-40. I have used it under slippery rugs over smooth floor to prevent falling. It made a big mess too. In the case of your door, it would not work as there is not enough surface area for the glue to grab. Another opposite would be a thread locker. That has a chance of working temporarily. That blue locker Ford uses is really strong. Better to just fix the door.
Another “opposite” might be carb cleaner or TSP (industrial degreasers) to clear out any oil in the hinge.
Bending the hinge pins is the tried and true method.
Wouldn’t the true (pedantic) opposite of WD-40 be H2O?
Well, if the hinge is made of steel, that could make it rusty, so it might have the desired effect.
Gadzookes! This makes me cringe. Glue? friction? if the door swings shut it is because it is not installed plumb and true. Introducing enough friction may overcome its impulse to swing, but then it is going to be harder to use and is probably going to start squeaking. If that is the route you want to go you might as well replace the hinges with self closing sprung hinges and tension the springs to hold the door open. I am sorry it is just wrong. Wrong!!
The way I fix this is by shimming / rebating the top and bottom hinge pockets and/or moving the top and bottom hinges in or out to make the door hang plumb. Screwdriver, mallet & chisel, and card stock for shimming, and wooden matchsticks and drill if you have move some screw holes are all thats required. Most often can be fixed by shimming one hinge - card stock and screwdriver all that is required.
Some old carpenters used to bend the hinges with a wrench to plumb the door as a quick fix, though I have never tried this.
Properly installed the jamb is usually pretty hard to move, but a common method of replacing a hinge screw with a big three inch screw driven into the frame will usually suck a hinge over. This is usually used fix a door from rubbing the jamb, and usually doesnt move things enough to true the door.
Heh, sorry. I was referring to the origin of WD-40:[
](What Does 'WD-40' Stand For? | Snopes.com)
FluffyBob, while we’re on the subject of fixing doors … we have a door that doesn’t close without a light nudge. The top side hits/rubs against the jamb as it closes. It’s never been a problem, but now that RhythmDude is mobile, we want to put in a self-closing hinge that will flawlessly latch it shut if we forget to close it (it’s leads to basement stairs). I was going to sand the affected area down until it closed, but your post reads as if that would be a silly thing to do. Stuff cardboard under the top hinge? Top of the top hinge, bottom of the top hinge, both … take the door on and off each time?
Thanks for all the replies. This is only a very minor annoyance so I’m not going to go to the trouble of taking the door off its hinges. I’ve tried spraying some photo adhesive so I’ll see if this works, if not I’ll try water and leave it to rust slightly. If it then starts squeaking I’ll… use some wd40!
Sanding or planing the offending portion of door should work well, and is probably the best choice, just make sure you paint or otherwise seal the exposed wood after.
You could rebate the lower hinge to bring the top of the door away from the jamb, but this may put the door out of plumb. If you are going to make it self closing anyway I guess that won’t matter.
That’s why I thought too… or maybe something that attracts/collects water - a sponge?
Wow, I was going to do something right! Thanks!
(Oh, I can’t rebate the lower hinge; I lost the receipt a long time ago and the rebate terms specify submitting it by a certain date 
)