old house. good dog.

[boxofdelights]

My front door is charming, but doesn't latch easily, especially in wet weather. I pull it shut then try to push it open to make sure it's shut. Usually.

Today when Neal and I came back to my house after four hours of volunteering at the Raptor Center, he asked, why is the front door open? Wide open. And there was my good good good[*] dog Aiko, nobly resisting the temptation to nudge open the screen door, which doesn't latch easily either, and come out to greet us.


[*]Aiko says he might have gone out and had an adventure and let himself in again, like Dief. You just don't know.

Comments

[randomdreams]

We'd come home sometimes and find Lily sitting on the doorstep outside, waiting.

Does the doorframe swell, so it doesn't latch well? Does the doorframe move so the latch doesn't go into the latch hole? I have one door that I have to move the strike plate up and down about a quarter of an inch, depending on whether it's winter or summer.

[boxofdelights]

Yes, I think it is the doorframe swelling, but the latch plate doesn't move vertically, you just have to tug a bit harder to get door and frame lined up. Neal pointed out that the lock box the contractors put on the doorknob was making it awkward to pull on. I'll have to point the difficulty out to the contractors, but the dogs won't be here when they are going in and out, so it'll be okay.

[randomdreams]

Can you tell where it's swelling, by eg paint scrubbing? Usually it's near the top, as doors age.
I ask because it's not too hard to remove 1/32 of an inch of wood from the upper half of the door edge and maybe never have to deal with this again. (Other option is to shim the bottom-most hinge, but that's trickier.)

[brigantine]

Aiko says he might have gone out and had an adventure and let himself in again, like Dief.

But he let himself back in again, see? And with no visit from an exasperated neighbor, nor animal control, nor smelling of skunk. Good Dog! ;D

[boxofdelights]

No harm, no foul.

[jesse_the_k]

The very best dog!

[magnetic_pole]

Aw, Aiko. Good, good dog. M.