Attic Door Won T Close

Enlarge the strike.

Attic door won t close.

Check the springs or struts of your ladder and make sure they are working correctly. Tighten the hinges first. As a result the door may scrape the door frame when closing or may no longer properly meet the latch side strike plate. Loose jambs and gaps the jambs are the pieces of wood that frame the opening in the ceiling.

On one side the spring always comes off its bracket when the door opens. In order to get the door to close we have to bend the arm back in as much as we can and hook the spring back over the bracket at the top. Over time screws used to hold a hinge in place start to work their way free causing the door to sag. From inside the attic check for obstructions when the door is closed check shims installation cords to make sure nothing is interfering with the door shutting properly.

First thing i would do is to get into the attic space and have someone you can trust to let the stairs up slowly. There should be a spring on each side of the steps. You have to go up into the attic and while someone closes the steps and pushes up from underneath take one spring out of. The folding is made possible by hinges between the sections and the whole contraption is secured with nuts and bolts.

The hinge side of the door is often the source of closure issues. After it is closed and still has the gap carefully grab one or both springs and see if you can pull on them to close that extra inch. The top third is fixed to the top side of the trapdoor while the two lower sections fold up to let the door close. Look as it closes to see if anything is rubbing or binding.

When a door latch won t catch it s because the latch doesn t align with the hole in the strike plate.