Step 4: Enlarge Your Striker Hole
Even if by tightening and shifting the striker plate, your door latch still feels loose and doesn’t keep your door locked. Try this method of removing the striker plate from its jamb and readjust its size according to the door latch.
Firstly, unfasten all the screws that are holding your striker plate to the door jamb. Then, insert a metal file through the striker hole and start moving the file back and forth at a rapid pace.
Keep on repeating the above process until you get the desired amount of metal out from the striker plate for the perfect latch fit. The primary goal is to make enough space in the striker hole to accommodate the door latch.
Finally, after making space for the door latch, reinstall the strike plate back to the door jamb.
Step 5: Reposition The Striker Plate
Even after trying the above steps, your door still doesn’t shut close, and you can try this final step. This step considers replacing the striker plate itself. This might be pretty demanding, but it can completely resolve your problem.
Firstly, remove the striker plate from its door jamb. With the help of a screwdriver, remove the screws holding the strike plate to the jamb.
Remember to reposition the new striker plate so that its latch hole doesn’t overlap old screw holes. You can do that by holding the striker plate against the new position and marking the exact suitable spot for installation.
Use the screw holes on the new striker plate to mark the position on the door jamb. This step will later prove to be very beneficial during drilling and installations of the hardware.
With the help of a wood filler and glued toothpick, you can fill in the old screw holes. Later, start drilling in the new screw holes with the use of marked positions.
After successful drilling in new screw holes, it’s time to create a lower edge for your new striker plate. Now, with the help of a utility knife, cut slowly along the marked lines. The only purpose of this step is to cut off a small amount of wood to create space for the striker plate.
Lastly, insert the strike plate by slowly fastening all the screws into the new screw holes with the help of a screwdriver. Now, slowly close the door to check whether the door latch.
Conclusion
The steps above will hopefully help you fix your door latch and save you money. Ensure you take the time in the beginning to determine the root cause of the problem. Continue to check the alignment of the door while going through this process. After a bit of time, your door will be as good as new!
