Adjust Exterior Door Strike Plate

Bend the strike plate s latch pocket tab straight with the pliers.

Adjust exterior door strike plate.

Need to drill a new hole really close to the original one. Tighten the screws on the hinge plate that holds the door onto the frame. Have a door out of alignment due to settling. What you didn t know you could adjust a door strike.

4 score the outline. Place the strike plate against the door jamb its the new location then trace around the plate with a pencil. The strike plate is the piece of door hardware that attaches to the door jamb and receives the latch. To snug the door up you would move the strike plate toward the center of the door jamb.

You should be able to get an idea without the door being closed fully if the strike plate. Thankfully the door latches and knobs don t have to be moved to correct these problems. Adjust strike plates to close doors securely. First shut the door and take a look at how far off the strike plate is in order for the latch barrel to align with the plate hole.

If your filing action is shaking the strike plate remove the plate and secure it in a vise for your repair. From inside the room begin closing the door while keeping an eye on the latch bolt and the strike plate. If it only misses by 1 8 inch or less the problem can likely be solved by tapping the plate in the right direction with a hammer. Tighten the top hinge to make the latch hit higher on the strike plate or the bottom hinge to make it hit lower.

Then reinstall the plate with longer screws. Step 4 add cardboard shims between the hinges and the frame on either the top or the bottom depending on whether you need to raise or lower the door. The stripped hole repair kit from king s original ha. Insert either a triangular file or a flat file that s small enough to fit inside the strike plate.

Move it away from the center if the strike will not seat when the door is closed. For an exterior door you want the door to snug up against the weatherstripping.