A door that squeaks every time someone leaves the room at night is a special kind of annoying. The good news: in most cases the fix takes fifteen minutes and zero new parts.
Why doors start squeaking or sticking
The most common causes are dry or loose hinges, a sagging door leaf due to stripped screw holes, or a frame that has shifted from moisture or normal building settlement. In older Warsaw apartment buildings, wooden frames are especially reactive — they swell and shrink with every change in humidity.
Squeaky hinges: the quick fix
Squeaking hinges are the easiest problem to solve. Lubricate the hinge: your options:
- WD-40 or light machine oil — fast, but wears off in weeks
- Petroleum jelly: lasts longer, less drip
- Candle wax: completely dry, leaves no stain
Swing the door back and forth a few times to work the lubricant into the hinge pin. If the squeak returns after a few days, the hinge is worn and needs replacing — about thirty minutes of work with a screwdriver.
Door rubbing on the frame: how to adjust
Before reaching for a plane, check the hinge screws. Loose screws are the most common reason a door drops and starts rubbing at the bottom corner. Tighten them; if a hole is stripped and the screw spins freely, push a toothpick with a dab of wood glue into the hole, let it dry, then drive the screw back in.
Modern interior doors (PVC or aluminium) often have three-way adjustable hinges, you can shift the leaf up, sideways, or in depth with an Allen key. That usually eliminates rubbing without touching the frame at all.
For wooden doors swollen by humidity, you need to remove a little material at the friction point. Rub chalk on the door edge, close it, and open again — the chalk mark on the frame shows exactly where it rubs. Sand that spot lightly or plane if the contact is heavy.
When to call a professional
Hinge adjustment and lubrication are well within DIY territory. But if the frame is visibly warped, the door will not close because the opening has gone out of square, or hinges need replacing: it is worth calling someone in. A poorly fitted hinge or a frame patched in a hurry can lead to cracking the door or the frame itself.
If after checking the hinges the problem is still there, describe it in the app. A handyman will look at the door on site and can usually fix it in one visit. Cost depends on the door type and what needs doing.
Door still rubbing, or the hinges need adjusting? How a handyman does it is covered in the article on door adjustment. You can post the job in the app, and independent handymen will send their quotes.