best product to soften the blow of a door that WILL be slammed frequently. weather stripping? what kind looks best? is paintable? thanks-
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got teenagers?
sorry, had to ask.
three ways you can deal with this- 1) install a door closer that will shut the door automatically, but at a controlled rate;2) install weatherstripping as you already thought- check out kinds at HD or one of the other big boxes. You might have to reset the stops to allow room for the stripping. Or get the weatherstrip stops and just replace it all. 3) threaten to shoot the door slammers.
I vote for Shep's option "3". My stepson used to slam the front door like it was a bank vault. Took a bit of hollering to get him to just shake the windows. But then, I can hear him leave so he can't sneak out so easily...
The stepkids in my first marriage slammed the bathroom door so often that they pushed the frame out of the wall--the jambs weren't shimmed and nailed, only the trim on each side and those little finish nails didn't hold it!
wasn't that method of hanging doors recommended years ago in an issue of FHB?
I think Gary Katz was the author.
Never felt like that was "fine homebuilding"
msm,
After next slamming episode take the door off the hinges and store it for a week. Sure cure.
KK
A lot of door closers intended for commerical installation have hydraulic pistons in them which control the speed of closing. I think I've seen ones like this for residential application too. http://www.quietouch.com/residential.html
Edited 9/8/2005 7:14 pm ET by Buxton
sadly, the door and slammers in question belong to my next door neighbor, so violence and/or removal of door is out of the question (for now). i left out that detail at first to avoid the inevitable "mind your own beeswax" advice- LOL. lots of coming and goings all day every day every season grandkids dog etc etc etc. grand central station.
about 8 yrs ago i went to the hardware store and bought 2 different models of that piston thing. i figured i would not complain unless i could offer a solution and was willing to work with him and i was real nice. but neighbor said "they won't work. i've tried them". me, i seriously doubt it. luckily for him, he's oblivious to noise, which we have plenty of as we are near fraternity row and a large university. he's also the type that you can't tell anything he doesn't already know--- he sometimes has contradicted himself unwittingly in order to keep disagreeing with me about whatever. his screen door, btw, is a simple old-fashioned wood frame ca, 1926, with the screen attached under wood trim to the back. no woodwork or detail within the frame; just an open rectangle.
i am renovating the house next door to him and DH, son and i hope to move in in the next few months. currently we are living in a smaller house next door, on the other side, to the renovation house. the slamming is not as noticeable 2 doors down, where we have lived for the last 8 yrs, but really loud in every room of the house and front and back yard where we are about to move into. i am overloaded with stress right now due to numerous other factors and i am pretty afraid i will totally lose it once we're closer to the slamming, LOL (that would be a desperate, maniacal "LOL").
i have considered all the possibilities y'all have kindly offered up. at this point i am looking for something foolproof
It sounds like you need a commercial grade door closer, not one of those piston ones. They're much heavier duty, and will hold up under a lot of use and abuse.
either that, or get yourself (and the rest of your family) a good set of hearing protectors.
Another thought- some of those old wood screen doors have hinges that are spring-loaded, to help close, and keep closed, the door. Maybe they just need some tension taken off the spring. That's easily done by just using a nail set to turn the top of the hinge to take the pressure off, and moving the little pin that controls the tension.
I seem to remember a screen door closer that is a C-shaped device on the frame opposite the hinges that is spring loaded and has a roller at each end of the "C". The inner roller catches the edge of the door as it slams and then pivots so the outer roller holds it in place. When you open the door, the door hits the roller on the outer end of the "C" and the device springs open to release the door. It is then in position so the door hits the roller on the inner end of the "C" when the door closes again. Maybe I'm wrong and this was just to hold the door closed?
Another solution like weather stripping would be to install little "bumpers" or felt strips that would quiet the slamming--similar to what are used with cupboard doors.
I'll look in Van Dyke's and see if they have the first device. If so, I'll post again. Edit: Just looked; no, they don't have it.
Edited 9/9/2005 8:15 am ET by Danno
Maybe you could go over for a vist, and accidently tear the door off the hinges. Maybe lose your balance, fall backward and grab the door for support. Then offer to replace it as soon as you have time.
"When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it." T. Roosevelt
thanks guys- all ideas are worth looking into
shep, i'll check the springs if he'll let me.
danno, i hope the device you are thinking of does exist as a slam preventer and not just a secure. please post again if you find out (and find it) or recall the name of the device.
fast eddie- LOL. i am picturing myself spending 10 mnutes hanging onto that door and going "whoa! woooowoooo whoa!" as i strain to accidentally rip it out. it's on a large sheltered brick porch with an inside corner; the shape of the house protects it from wind and also directs the noise straight over to me.since neighbor is mr. negative, i'm preparing for all his arguements against. i'm guessing that he wont like the small pads, as they'd leave a teensy gap for skeeters and ants to get in. probably he'll say that he likes the slamming sound (after previously saying he doesn't notice it) because he can tell from another room if someone has come in or gone out (i'm thinking of presenting a little tinkling bell along with whatever solutions i come up with).
Edited 9/9/2005 9:49 am ET by msm
"i'm thinking of presenting a little tinkling bell along with whatever solutions i come up with"
How about big, giant, wake your neighbor with the slightest breeze, Westminster Abbey-sized wind chimes? Don't give them to the neighbor, hang them from your eave. When he complains, tell him that the bells are preferable to the door slamming. Then maybe you can reach a noise compromise. If he doesn't complain, the chimes really are preferable to the door slamming.
The truth is that most people adapt to noise, even unexpected noise, eventually. If your neighbor were to hang a small, pleasant bell on the screen door, then your ear will naturally expect the slam that comes next and tune it out. At some point, you won't hear the door slamming either. And from your neighbor's point of view: it's his house and you are the one moving in. You know what you're getting into, so adapt or don't move in. I'm not saying this because I agree with it. I try to be considerate of my neighbors, but I'm not your neighbor; so while trying to get him to see your point of view, you might also try to see his.
i like the chime idea and may have to resort to it.
i am trying to see his pov, which is why i'm trying to come up with a good solution for us both, since the noise doesn't bother him. if i was doing something that bothered him and didn't matter to me, and we were able to come up with a solution that didn't trouble me but benefited him, i'd be all for it. it's being a good neighbor. i have incredible hearing, sad to say. i've had my hearing tested 2ce- in 1990 and in 2003; once out of curiosity and once when i had a bad ear infection. both times both ears scored 100%. the technician told me that "good" hearing averages around 80%, and also that they use a scale of 1-100%, but it is possible i am capable of hearing frequencies above that that most people are unaware of. i believe the condition is called hyperacusis. i put small wads of cotton in my ears at mealtime so i don't hear other people chewing... it may sound silly, but i do try to deal with it discreetly and not expect the rest of the world to cater to my unusual problem.i bought the reno house in 1983 and lived there until 1997, when my fiance-now-DH bought the house next to to mine, which we live in currently. (i paid my house off in 1997, and have been using it as art studio and storage since then. someday we will move again into a larger house, but are looking forward to living housenote-free for a few years first). when i lived there, 83-97, though it was less frequent in the days before neighbor and wife retired from day jobs and more grandkids came along. i used to let the guy practice putting across my front yard fo years (he didn't ask, but i didn't complain). their friends used my driveway as needed, as i did not own a car. i used to catch him using my spigot for his garden hose when i first moved in (he apparently had gotten into the habit of treating my property as his own before i purchased it, when college kids rented there and were usually not home).
not to mention that his chesapeake setter, who is a good dog, is not on a leash and poops occasionally in my yard, front and back. neighbor has pointed out the weak spots in the back fence between our yards and is of the opinion that if the poop bothers me, it's up to me to keep the dog out.
aside from acting like he's king of the block, he's not a bad neighbor generally speaking.given my annoyance to the slamming despite efforts to overcome it, and my general willingness to accept other annoying stuff he's done -- not to mention the fact that the slamming is not something that matters to him one way or the other -- i think it's his turn to be a good neighbor, which he sees himself as anyway. time for him to give a little.
i do like all the suggestions so far--Edited 9/9/2005 2:56 pm ET by msm
Edited 9/9/2005 3:13 pm ET by msm
Growing up, I used to drive my parents crazy with what I could hear. I was in a local jeweler's with my mom at one point and was complaining about the high-pitch noise I was hearing. My mom thought I was nuts, but the store owner overheard us, went into the back for a minute, and the noise stopped. He had some kind of ultrasonic alarm system that I picked up on.
Fortunately, 30 years of carpentry has dulled my hearing a bit:)
I still hear more than a lot of other people I know. Unless my wife starts talking. Then my hearing all of a sudden gets worse.
Good hearing is a blessing.
At my parents cottage both screen doors had a clever device for tempering the slamming.A rubber ball (mabe 1 to 1½ inches diameter) on the end of a 4 or 5 inch thin steel rod that was hanging from a screw on the inside of the door on the latch side.The closing of the door builds up air pressure which causes the ball to swing out and prevent the door from slamming. The door bounces once or twice and then the air pressure is negated and the ball falls back straight down allowing the door to gently close.Where the rod is screwed to the door there is a metal disc that servs to restrict the motion of the rod to the needed motion.Rich BeckmanAnother day, another tool.
this sounds brilliant, rb- i'm having a bit of a hard time picturing how the ball systems works tho-- but that's me being tired. a screen door creates enough pressure? i'll re-read tomorrow.
thanks for the info stinger- i'll look into that too.nice to know someone else who knowswhat it's like, shep! i know exactly the security system sound you are talking about too. most stores had them eventually and it really made me a fast shopper. some places, i had to turn around and walk out, it was so shrill and painful. it always amazed me that no one else heard those things.
when DH and i got married, he did not believe i could hear him chewing so he went out of the room and ate a cookie. a soft cookie. alternated his chewing rhythms while i called out the beats. he was pretty shocked how far he got before i lost the sound.
i don't know about you, but it was more miserable than not for me. i had fantasies of destroying warehouses full of leafblowers. my fault though; it could have been a great asset if it had occurred to me to train to be a sound engineer.
Loud noises still really aggravate me. I don't know how this younger generation can stand being cooped up in their cars with their stereos SO loud.
Guess I'm showing my age, huh. . .
but I was never one to listen to music real loud - most of the time, anyway.
this past weekend I was playing golf with a couple of friends. One of the guys hit his ball into the trees. We heard this big "crack" but lost sight of the ball. I thought I heard a dull "thud" out in the fairway about 150 yards from where we were, but they didn't believe me. The other two started looking in the woods, while I started walking to where I heard the "thud". Lo and behold, his ball was in the midle of the fairway, right where I thought.
And I'm the one who uses power tools all the time ( although I'm pretty good about using hearing protection, too). One of my friends is a junior high principal, and the other one is some kind of computer programmer. Maybe the principal has an excuse for hearing loss, but not the other guy.
I found this:http://www.dictator.de/us/produkte/prod_201.htmDon't know how good it is, but....Rich BeckmanAnother day, another tool.
thanks everyone-- mission accomplished! DH went over yesterday to chainsaw ou an enormous branch that fell into neighbor's backyard, being a "good neighbor" with the stipend that he let us fix that door. (LOL- homemade closer: the door just had an enormous spring screwed in place).
about $1 worth of thin hollow rubber weatherstripping did the job great. it still slams hard, and makes a loud thump, but the sharp sound is gone. also LOL, as i had predicted, as i demonstrated the softer sound, neighbor said "i liked the slamming. you know why?" (of course i knew why, i told you BTers already). i said, yeah, you can hear when people come in. i'll get you a bell for the door". he said "no, i already have a doorbell". i said "i mean a real bell on the door that will ring when the door moves". he said "don't need one. door still is pretty loud". i thought, no sh&t....arggghhh. but it's heaven hearing that dull thud instead of the Crack that went round the street. thanks again for the suggestions. as much as anything, it was hearing shep's stories that gave me more courage to try again. i've never met anyone with hearing as sensitive as mine, and people tend not to understand what a serious aggravation it is. i deal with it and adjust as best i can (with the help of earplugs and cotton). but when i can't escape from certain sounds inside my own home, that's too much and i do try to address those at the souce and look into getting them changed. i look upon noise at that level as noise pollution.
Commercial steel door frames are often fitted with molded rubber button bumpers that are pressfit into holes punched into the stopface of the frame.
For wood frames, there may be similar bumper buttons with a stem feature that can be glued into a hole drilled into the stop.
Talk to a local commercial door and hardware jobber. They may have a lead on what you need.
Here ya go. I googled away, and found this: http://www.shifflerequip.com/subcat.phtml?cat_id=15&subcat_id=207&subsubcat_id=360
Edited 9/9/2005 6:59 pm ET by Stinger