How to Repair a Door Hinge

A hinge that's loose, binding or otherwise not working correctly often has come loose in the wood of the door or the jamb (the inner frame surrounding the door). One way to repair it is to remove the whole hinge assembly and move it to a new spot where there's been no damage in the wood from stripped screw holes or splintering. If the hinge is in good shape you can reuse it, but it's just as easy to install a new one.

Things You'll Need

• Hammer
• Drill
• Screwdriver bit
• Pilot bit
• Pencil
• Razor knife
• Wood chisel
• Door hinge unit with pin and hinge screws
• Wood putty
• Putty knife

Instructions

1. Remove the hinges from the door jamb by unscrewing the screws with a drill and screwdriver bit. Set the door on its long edge, hinged side up.

2. Remove the hinge plate from the back edge of the door, using your drill and screwdriver bit to take out the screws.

3. Reposition the new hinge plate on the door, just below the space where the old one was and on the same side as it was. Use your pencil to mark around the hinge plate, drawing a rectangle.

4. Remove the hinge plate. Cut along the pencil mark with your razor knife, making the cut about 1/8 inch deep. Peel away the top layer of wood in the marked area, using your hammer and chisel. Again, make it about 1/8 inch deep.

5. Set the hinge plate back on the door so it sits flat in the cutout area. Mark inside each screw hole of the plate onto the wood. Remove the plate again, and use your drill and pilot bit to drill a pilot hole at each mark.

6. Load your drill with its screwdriver bit. Set the hinge in place with its hinge screws at the pilot holes.

7. Hold the door in the opening, with the loose side of the hinge plate flat against the door jamb. It should be just below the space where the previous hinge was set on the jamb. Use your pencil to trace around the perimeter of the hinge plate. Chisel out the new space as before.

8. Remove the hinge pin from the hinge, using your hammer and chisel to tap it out, separating the hinge into two halves (one of them attached to the door). Install the loose half of the hinge plate into the new space you chiseled out on the doorway, first drilling pilot holes and then screwing in the screws through the plate.

9. Re-install the door, setting the hinge plates together and sliding the hinge pins into them.

10. Fill in the spaces where the hinge sat previously by spreading wood putty over each space with a putty knife, getting the indentation smooth and even with the surrounding wood.

Tips & Warnings

• Wear goggles when chiseling the wood for the hinges.

References

• ThisOldHouse.com: Installing Door Hinges.