How to Fix a Stuck or Difficult Sliding Door

We've all been there: the sliding door that doesn't get used because it's too inconvenient or difficult to be worth the effort. But don't worry, it's not necessarily time to replace it, we may be able to save you the money and hassle!

Here are the typical causes of a difficult or stuck sliding door:

1. Dirty Tracks

Sliding glass door tracks are a home for dirt, debris, hair, bugs, food crumbs, and more. Over time, all of the movement paired with the elements outside build up on the tracks. Even more, it's not typically a place that gets vacuumed so debris builds up fast even on the interior!

As part of our service at DNA Sliding Doors, we clean out the tracks with a specialized vacuum tip. After cleaning out the debris, we may take a brush to it to get more stubborn and stuck debris out. This is followed by lubricant as needed, to help the rollers move smoothly across the tracks!

2. Bad or Old Rollers

Hardware goes bad, especially if it's subject to movement and the elements. This is especially true in Florida, where the high humidity or even saltwater (if you're near the water) will rust or degrade it even faster!

If your sliding door has become difficult to move, this is often the next place that we check. After all, if the tracks are dirty or worn, then the rollers likely are as well! Luckily, new rollers are significantly cheaper to replace than the doors themselves.

We can replace the rollers in your sliding doors with new, higher-quality ones that will move smoothly and effortlessly.

3. Misalignment or Bent Tracks

If the rollers and tracks are good to go but the door is still difficult, this points to alignment issues. The door may have come off of the tracks due to debris dislodging it, or the tracks themselves may be bent.

For slight bends, we may be able to safely realign them. If it's particularly bad, we may be able to install caps, which go over the top of the rails to effectively replace them without having to redo the entire track system.

After a free inspection, we can reliably create a plan for how to tackle this and get your sliding doors back to working order!

Any questions? We would love to answer them! (941) 342-7707