Brain Fertilizer

Two days ago my front door fell off its hinges (on the 'door' side rather than the 'jamb' side). Apparently the screws pulled loose out of the wood.

The house was pretty badly treated by the previous owners...I have no idea what they might have done to damage the door. And it was certainly something that was caused (or started at the very least) by them, because the door handle was broken and I replaced it right after we purchased the home; within one month the deadbolt didn't fit into the new hole I had cut. In my ignorance, I thought it might be seasonal swelling alterations or something.

So the door needed repairing. It was still attached in the bottom most hinge. So I considered replacing the door...but I didn't want to try to hang a door, and I didn't really want to replace the whole jamb. So I went to Lowe's (much more helpful than Home Depot in my experience...care to advertise here, Lowe's?) and asked about plugging the holes with dowels and redrilling. I was immediately told about this cool product, described as a mesh, that you stuffed in the holes to help the screws grip again.

What it actually was, however, was strips of steel with holes punched into it. The lip around the punched holes would act as teeth, gripping both the wood and the screw surfaces to increase surface area contact and friction to hold the screw in place. You could also use such strips to repair furniture joints that have loosened over time, as well, but I have no such need at the present time.

And, obviously, it worked. The door no longer sags at all, closes much more easily, and the deadbolt slides easily into the socket. I completed a project that I feared would be expensive and time-consuming for less than $2, and in less than 15 minutes, including the time it took to gather tools (although not including the time it took to go to Lowe's and research/purchase supplies).

I'm quite pleased with myself and with Lowe's.