Property How to fix a squeaky door
Carpentry · Beginner
How to fix a squeaky door
Affiliate disclosure: This guide contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. We only recommend products that are genuinely useful for the job. Shop links go to a product search on a local store for your country. Until a tracking tag is in place they are ordinary store links, not tracking URLs. We have not listed made-up prices on this page; check the live price before you buy. See our full disclosure.
A squeak is usually a dry or slightly loose hinge, not a mysterious fault in the door. Tightening the screws and putting a little lubricant on the hinge pin sorts most of them in a few minutes. If the hinge is cracked, the screws have torn out, or the door is binding on the floor or the frame, that is a different repair.
Advertisement
Display ad slot — after header. Empty until an ad partner is connected.
At a glance
Your call
Go or no?
Fancy giving it a go, or would you rather call in a carpenter? There’s no wrong answer.
Right then. Here’s the kit, then the steps.
No problem. We’ll show you how to find a local carpenter.
Shop the full kit
You can pick up the items below as you need them. Prices vary by shop and country, so we have not invented a figure here — check the live price before you buy. Shop links go to a product search on a local store for your country. Until a tracking tag is in place they are ordinary store links, not tracking URLs.
All-in-one kit
There is not usually a single boxed kit for this job. Buy the items below as you need them, and skip anything you already have.
Free printable
Get a free printable fix a squeaky door checklist
A one-page list of tools, prep and the order of work, emailed once this is live.
Before you start
Safety
Stop and get a pro: Do not unscrew all of the hinges at once or the door will drop. If the door is a fire door with a closer, do not remove or adjust the closer unless you know the door will still do its job — get a carpenter. If a hinge is cracked, bent, or the screws have torn a hole in the frame, stop lubricating and get a repair. Do not drill blindly into the frame; cables sometimes run around door openings. This is not gas, electrical or water-mains work.
- Wedge the door so it cannot swing while you work on a hinge.
- Support the door if you take a pin out, especially on a heavy or solid door. Take one pin at a time, not all of them.
- Use lubricant sparingly. Oil that runs down a painted door is a nuisance, and it can drip on the floor and make it slippery.
- Keep lubricant off rubber seals and off a floor you have just walked on.
Prep that is worth doing
- Open and close the door slowly and listen, so you know which hinge is noisy — often the top one, or the one that moves first.
- Look at the screws. A hinge that has pulled away from the frame, even slightly, needs a proper bite, not just oil.
- Choose a lubricant that will stay put: a light white grease, a silicone spray, or graphite. Thick engine oil tends to run and collect dust.
Tools and materials
Check the live price at a shop you trust. Typical prices on this site, where they appear, were checked in the UK and may be out of date. Do not invent or assume a figure from this table. Shop links go to a product search on a local store for your country. Until a tracking tag is in place they are ordinary store links, not tracking URLs.
| Item | Why you need it | Typical price | Shop link |
|---|---|---|---|
| A screwdriver that matches the hinge screws | The wrong tip chews the heads, and then you cannot tighten or remove them. | check price | |
| A suitable lubricant: white grease, silicone spray, or graphite | A small amount on the pin and the knuckle is enough. | check price | |
| A thin nail, a punch, or the tip of a screwdriver, and a cloth | If you need to tap a hinge pin up and out. Put a cloth on the floor to catch the pin. | check price | |
| Longer or slightly thicker screws, only if the existing ones spin | A longer screw that reaches the stud in the frame often holds when a short one will not. Do not use a screw so long it comes out the other side of a thin lining. | check price | |
| A step if the top hinge is out of easy reach | Safer than stretching from a stool. | check price |
Shop this list:
Advertisement
Display ad slot — after the shopping list. Empty until an ad partner is connected.
Step-by-step
Tighten any loose screws first, then lubricate the noisy hinge, and only take a pin out if you need to clean it.
Find the noisy hinge and tighten the screws
Open the door and try each hinge. Tighten every screw that will take a turn, on both the door and the frame. If a screw spins and will not bite, take it out and use a slightly longer screw, or pack the hole with a wooden matchstick and a dab of wood glue, let it set, and refit the screw. A hinge hanging on two loose screws will squeak again by next week.
Lubricate the hinge without taking it apart
Put a little lubricant on the top of the pin and around the knuckle, then swing the door back and forth so it works in. Wipe the excess. For many doors, this is the whole job.
If it still squeaks, take out that one pin
Close or wedge the door so it is supported by the other hinges. Tap the pin up from below if it has a hole, or ease it up from the knuckle, and pull it out. Wipe it clean, put a thin film of grease on it, and slide it back. Do not take every pin out at once.
If the door is rubbing, not just squeaking
A scrape on the floor or the frame is a sticking door, not a dry hinge. You may be able to tighten loose hinges and lift the door a fraction. Planing a timber door or packing a hinge is a careful job — and on a fire door, it may not be something you should do at all. Get a carpenter if you are unsure.
Test it for a day
Open and close the door several times, and again the next morning. If the squeak returns immediately, you missed a loose screw or a dirty pin. If the hinge itself is worn or cracked, replace that hinge — one hinge at a time, with the door supported — or get a carpenter to do it.
General guidance only. Check our disclaimer.
Common mistakes
- Oiling a hinge that is actually loose or pulled out of the frame. The squeak may quieten for an hour; the door will still drop.
- Taking all the pins out at once. A heavy door is then hanging on nothing, and it can twist the remaining screws or fall.
- Using a thick, dirty oil that runs down the paint. A little grease or silicone spray is cleaner.
- Planing a fire door to stop a rub. You can take it below its rated size. Get advice first.
- Ignoring a bent or cracked hinge. Replace it, or get a carpenter. Lubricant will not weld metal back together.
Upload a photo to see the finished job
When the mock-up is live, you can upload a photo and see an impression of the finished job — not a quote or an exact product match.
FAQ
WD-40 or grease?
A light spray can free a dry hinge, but it can also run and then dry out. A thin smear of white grease or a silicone spray made for hinges usually lasts longer. Avoid anything that attacks paint, and keep it off the floor.
The top of the door has dropped and it is rubbing on the latch side.
That is often long, loose screws in the top hinge, or a hinge pulled out of the frame. Tighten or replace those screws so they bite into the stud, then see. If the door still sags, get a carpenter.
It is a metal door in a metal frame.
The idea is the same — tight screws (or bolts) and a little lubricant — but fittings can be different. Do not grind or drill a fire-rated steel door. Get a specialist if the hinge is failing.
Should I replace all three hinges?
Only if they are worn or you want them to match. Replace a failed hinge like-for-like, one at a time, with the door supported.
Would rather not DIY? Find a local carpenter
If the hinge is broken, the screws will not bite, or the door is a fire door with a closer you should not remove, a carpenter is the right person. A squirt of oil will not fix a hinge that has pulled out of the frame.
Advertisement
Display ad slot — end of article. Empty until an ad partner is connected.
This page contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.