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Repairing Loose Screws In A Door Latch

Filling the screwholes is an easy fix

By The Experts At The Family Handyman

From The Family Handyman

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You go to tighten a screw in a door latch or hinge and it doesn’t grab and draw tight. It spins. Or worse, wobbles in the screw hole. First try using a larger or longer screw. If the screw still doesn’t get a grip, or if the screwhead size is too large for either the hinge or the strike plate, try the solution my grandfather taught me.

Fill the hole with steel wool, a short length of plumbing solder, or a wooden match (noncombustible end first; see photo). Then reinstall the screw. Don’t use glue—the screw may never come out again!

Break off a matchstick flush with the strike plate hole. Start a centering hole with a nail in the new material and drive the screw. To fill larger holes, insert a wooden golf tee, then cut it off flush. Now, drill a centering hole and replace the screw.

From The Family Handyman - February 2000

• How to Hang a Door
• Tips and techniques for hanging a pre-hung door with basic carpentry skills and tools
• 
• How to Repair Interior Doors
• Here are simple solutions to the four most common door problems.
• 
• Fast Furniture Fixes
• Repair nicks, scratches, dings and dents in your wood furniture.
•