Front door hinge incorrectly positioned

[jon92]

My windows and doors were installed by a company called Woodpecker windows, who have left me with a number of problems including a front door that has to be virtually broken into rather than simply opened. It's because the door is too low and catches on the draughtproofing at the bottom. The hinges seem to be already at maximum upward adjustment (see photo) though, is it possible to remove them and refit them slightly higher? I assume they are screwed directly to the frame and not sure if there is any adjustment on their positioning. Or perhaps there is another solution?

 

[DHFrames]

Surely the other option is to get woodpecker back to put right??!!

 

[s60tsy]

composite doors need to be fitted plumb, because they dont have as muce adjustment as upvc, check the level of the outer frame

 

[jon92]

Woodpecker don't respond to correspondence unfortunately, have tried that one already.
s60tsy, thanks but I'm not sure what you mean by checking the level. The door is scraping the floor, but it is scraping it evenly, so I think it is level just at the wrong height.

 

[s60tsy]

i meant check if the outer frame is level, as if it wasnt level the door would catch at one end. if the gap at the bottom is even and the door is fully adjusted up on all the hinges then it could be a manufacturing fault

 

[DHFrames]

Put a level on the door cill/threshold, these need to be level!! If they're not hopefully its the hinge side that needs to be lifted slightly, by doing this, this will lift the hinge side higher which in turn will lift the door slab higher off the draught proofing. You need to make sure the door is also plumb see pic below, as long as these are both level and upright the door should be fine, although you might have to release the hinges down slightly to suit the now level and plumb door. Obviously the fixings will have to be taken out and any trims, silicone and caulk removed to do this.

I suggest get a local fitter in to sort, he can advise if its a manufacturing fault, hopefully it's not and worse case is the door needs to come and and re fitted, a few hours work



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[Gazman16]

It looks like the black plastic mushroom washers have worn away on the top of the hinges causing the door to drop.
You can see the black washers below the hinge but not on the top, you could pull the pins and swap the bottom ones to the top temperately until you can find some new ones.

Assuming the washers are about 2.5-3mm thick these could raise the door by 5-6mm.

Im not sure if mushroom washers is the correct name but thats what they look like. I had a very quick Google of washers for butt hinges but couldn't find any.

 

[jon92]

The frame is all level and square it seems, I suppose that is the good news.
Gazman16, you have kind of hit the nail on the head I think - the top washers have actually been removed in order to get the door as high as possible (replacing the washers would require the door to move down). This goes back to my original question, can I remove the hinges from the door frame and replace them higher up so I can a) fit an upper washer in,assuming I can get one and b) lift the door a bit to stop it scraping the floor?
Or maybe I should just take the advice of DHFrames and get a man in.

 

[s60tsy]

it may be tricky moving the hinges just a few mm as the old screw holes may cause a problem, then i would guess any guarantee is void once youve tried moving them, sounds like you need a new outer frame and to have the door hinges fitted in different places.

 

[jon92]

Nicely summed up! Thanks all for your help.

 

[Gazman16]

Oops my bad I thought that was the door on the left and frame on the right.

As s60tsy said refixing so close to the old holes could cause lots of problems.

Could you do a pic of the whole of the inside and outside of the door and one of the inside of the hinge with the door open?

Some doors do have elongated screw holes where the hinge is fixed to the door that could alow further ajustment.

Is it a new door that has been tight to the floor since the day it was fitted? If so I would say the fitters have set the whole door frame to low and need to come back and refit the frame a bit higher, Probably only a few hours work.

 

[jon92]

ok, I can see this is getting serious. Here are the photos as requested - just one of the hinges but all 3 are the same.
Thanks for helping.

 

[Gazman16]

Your right definatley no more agistment on the door.
The door could be removed and have the ribs cut off the top, Then refitted but that will only give you 6-10mm and by the time you put the washers back on the hinge (I expect these are needed for any kind of manufacturers warrantee) you will end up with the same problem I expect.

I would say this is a mismeasure and they need to order and fit a new door.
I am assuming the laminate flooring was down before they fitted the door?

If so I sugest your next step is to write a letter to the company. politely but firmly tell them that the door is unfit for purpose and that if they don't get back to you in writing detailing how they will fix the problem within a week you will have no alternative but to report them to Fensa, Trading Standards and any other trade associations they are affiliated with (GGF etc).
Also state that in the mean time you will be getting quotes from 3 other companys to replace the door and frame, and that if the situation is not dealt with within 3 weeks (comp doors take 5-10 days to have made) then you will have to get it done by someone else and take them to small claims court.

Dont expect Fensa or GGF to help you much but it will be a black mark against their name when they come to renew.

Get the quotes, Post the letter by recorded delivery and keep copys and notes of all correspondents.

If they want to attempt to take the ribs off the top of the door and refit it let them try that first but not if they are going to mess you around and keep you waiting.

 

[jon92]

Thank you for your comprehensive answer. I have tried to get in touch with Woodpecker windows in the past but they don't respond to emails or return calls (at least not when you're asking for after sales). I didn't think of Fensa, etc., so I'll write to Woodpecker including that information as you suggest and see what happens.