Duckbilling

Duckbilling t1_je2hl3f wrote

Reply to [Meta] Hey there, mod of /r/Locksmith here. Please refer people with lock issues to /r/AskALocksmith instead. by Maoman1

I'm a door repair guy, I try to help people out when there are questions about alignment of latch/strike or other door related questions.

If your door is having leverset issues, however, I'll usually just say it's a lost cause, most of the time you can replace the leverset with a new one for under $40, yourself.

I have yet to see a question about a master keyed classroom function leverset, or a dead lock with cylinder lock on it in a class aluminum door.

Sliding doors, all bets are off, I can't help you there.

2

Duckbilling t1_je11afr wrote

Reply to What bit of advice have you ever gotten that you use every day? by scoop967

Do all your layout for a home project on blue masking tape.

Lay the tape, mark your marks with sharpie, that way it's easy to visualize where things will go, if you don't like where they are, remove the tape and repeat.

That way you don't end up with 40 extra lines and marks when you arrive at the final layout. Works for walls, cabinets, hanging pictures or tvs, especially well when there are two mounting points on the back of something, tape to the back of the mount, poke holes where the screws will go, remove the tape and position on the wall where the thing will go

Make cardboard mock ups of small stuff to get the right size, check with the cutout before you go to install, for example a medicine cabinet in the bathroom.

Choose all your materials for finish before you start the project, at least then you'll know how everything will work together once it's nailed to the wall

If you go to HD or Lowes for fittings or fasteners or lumber, get one extra or 10% extra just in case, it might save you a trip or two back to the store, return what you didn't use at the end of a project, returns are easy, four trips to the store in the same day to get the right fittings are a huge time sink.

Put one extra fastener in if you're worried about strength of mounting something, say a stair hand rail, or cabinets. You'll be a lot better off with 7 screws than 6 and a cabinet on the floor with broken dishes.

Make better decisions when buying fixtures for your home, an extra $25-60 or even$100 can save you a lot of headaches replacing low grade stuff, you have to think about it long term. For example when choosing a garage door opener, get the $230 liftmaster/chamberlain instead of the $180 genie.

Seal openings in the exterior of your house extra well for air tightness, insulation helps a bit regulate temps but if you're house leaks like a seive no amount of insulation is going to do you as much good as making sure the inside of your house isn't wide open to the outside, bugs and roaches love to climb in through those spots, too.

Glue is stronger than nails, the pin nails you see in cabinets and furniture are just there to keep everything in place until the glue dries

3

Duckbilling t1_jcq5pqg wrote

Reply to comment by CavMrs in What lubricant to use on garage door? by rockyboy49

Well, the good news is they're not broken, so you have time to decide what you're going to do in the future regarding replacement of the openers. A quality belt drive opener can be bought for $230-260 and you can install it yourself. Until you decide what you want to do, it's going to continue to be a bit noisy in your house a few times a day.

Keep in mind, a quality opener should last 20 years with no problems, and you'll use it several times a day, every day. so take this into consideration long term before you decide what you're going to do

2

Duckbilling t1_jcptela wrote

Reply to comment by CavMrs in What lubricant to use on garage door? by rockyboy49

If you look up from underneath your opener and there is a long threaded shaft that moves the trolley (the piece that the j-bar is attached to) it could very well be your opener. I really don't like the design of that opener.

You could try disconnecting your trolley by pulling the string and then move the door by hand by pulling the j-bar, if it doesn't make the sound when doing that it's likely your opener.

I recommend a belt drive opener for a quieter experience. Replacing the rollers with nylon rollers with ball bearings will also help.

3

Duckbilling t1_j6jroe2 wrote

Reply to comment by Scaith71 in Why rubble blocking a door is so deadly- completly impossible to open. by DAAA_DOOM_SLAYER

Actually, if it’s a commercial building the interior doors are required by fire code to be ‘Hollow metal fire doors’ or HMD’s for short. and the exterior doors are not, but the exterior doors are usually HMD’s anyway, unless it’s a glass aluminum storefront door at the main entrance.

I repair/replace/install doors and frames for a living.

2