Dear All,
I would be very thankful for your thoughts on the following.
We have some uPVC windows and a sliding patio door which were fitted around 15 years ago. They were fitted as a complete replacement of all the windows and the doors at our property. I believe they were of good quality and were installed to a good standard. We take good care of the windows and doors and in the case of the sliding patio door we regularly clean the bottom track on which the door slides.
Since installation the windows have been excellent and have had no faults but the sliding patio door has always had the following fault condition. Probably around once every 1-2 weeks, without warning the 'non striker plate end' of the door seems to instantly drop around 7mm causing the 'non striker plate' end of the door only to drag resulting in a door that is difficult to slide but with the same resistance through its full range of motion. As a result, my standard solution is to remove the cover strip on the end and without taking the weight strain off the door to turn the wheel assembly adjustment screw clockwise utilising the full limit of adjustment which raises the door height at the `non striker plate' end removing the fault for another 1-2 weeks. It's worth noting that the without warning and instantaneous occurrence of the fault combined with the fact that at each fault removal there is then fresh adjustment available on the screw suggests that perhaps there is a problem with the wheel assembly adjustment mechanism and it is perhaps not a fault associated with 'slow wear' of the wheel mechanism. The 'non striker plate' wheel mechanism has always sounded like it is 'metal on metal' and not particularly smooth. I have been able to live with this annoying fault.
Today the door has a new fault condition which has also appeared without warning and is instantaneous. The new fault condition is that the door is now heavy to slide through it's complete range of motion yet the `non striker plate' end has not dropped. With the fault condition in place, the door is smooth and there is no abnormal sound. If anything, the door sounds and feels smoother than ever. I have temporarily taken the weight strain off the door and then adjusted both the 'non-striker plate' wheel assembly and 'striker plate' wheel assemblies to the limits of their adjustment but this has not cured the fault. In this later fault condition, the operation of the lever lifts the door in the frame perhaps 3-5mm as it engages the striker plate making it hard to lift the lever. Annoyingly, there appears to be no adjustment mechanism in the door or the striker plate to allow for adjustment.
There is a Catnic lintel above the sliding patio doors which was installed by a local builder so I believe the brickwork is square.
I would appreciate your thoughts on what may be causing these faults
I have attached some photos of the doors. I know its not the same as being here in person but it may assist.
Kind regards
Paul
I would be very thankful for your thoughts on the following.
We have some uPVC windows and a sliding patio door which were fitted around 15 years ago. They were fitted as a complete replacement of all the windows and the doors at our property. I believe they were of good quality and were installed to a good standard. We take good care of the windows and doors and in the case of the sliding patio door we regularly clean the bottom track on which the door slides.
Since installation the windows have been excellent and have had no faults but the sliding patio door has always had the following fault condition. Probably around once every 1-2 weeks, without warning the 'non striker plate end' of the door seems to instantly drop around 7mm causing the 'non striker plate' end of the door only to drag resulting in a door that is difficult to slide but with the same resistance through its full range of motion. As a result, my standard solution is to remove the cover strip on the end and without taking the weight strain off the door to turn the wheel assembly adjustment screw clockwise utilising the full limit of adjustment which raises the door height at the `non striker plate' end removing the fault for another 1-2 weeks. It's worth noting that the without warning and instantaneous occurrence of the fault combined with the fact that at each fault removal there is then fresh adjustment available on the screw suggests that perhaps there is a problem with the wheel assembly adjustment mechanism and it is perhaps not a fault associated with 'slow wear' of the wheel mechanism. The 'non striker plate' wheel mechanism has always sounded like it is 'metal on metal' and not particularly smooth. I have been able to live with this annoying fault.
Today the door has a new fault condition which has also appeared without warning and is instantaneous. The new fault condition is that the door is now heavy to slide through it's complete range of motion yet the `non striker plate' end has not dropped. With the fault condition in place, the door is smooth and there is no abnormal sound. If anything, the door sounds and feels smoother than ever. I have temporarily taken the weight strain off the door and then adjusted both the 'non-striker plate' wheel assembly and 'striker plate' wheel assemblies to the limits of their adjustment but this has not cured the fault. In this later fault condition, the operation of the lever lifts the door in the frame perhaps 3-5mm as it engages the striker plate making it hard to lift the lever. Annoyingly, there appears to be no adjustment mechanism in the door or the striker plate to allow for adjustment.
There is a Catnic lintel above the sliding patio doors which was installed by a local builder so I believe the brickwork is square.
I would appreciate your thoughts on what may be causing these faults
I have attached some photos of the doors. I know its not the same as being here in person but it may assist.
Kind regards
Paul
