Service
Sliding Door Alignment & Adjustment
Some doors do not need parts. They need to be put back square. A panel that binds at one corner, a gap that lets light through at the top, a lock that misses its keeper by a few millimetres — these are geometry problems, and geometry is adjustable.
What alignment actually means
Every roller assembly has an adjustment screw that raises or lowers that corner of the panel. Set correctly, the panel hangs plumb, contacts the weatherstripping evenly along its full height, and the lock hook meets the centre of its keeper.
Set incorrectly — or knocked out of adjustment over years — the panel tilts. One corner takes all the weight, the weatherstrip seals at the top and gaps at the bottom, and the rollers on the loaded side wear out at several times the normal rate.
When adjustment is not enough
Adjustment moves the panel. It cannot move the frame. If the opening itself has racked — and in San Diego that usually means foundation settling or seismic movement over decades — no amount of roller adjustment will produce an even gap.
We measure the frame diagonals. If they differ by more than about an eighth of an inch, the frame needs shimming or resetting before adjustment will hold. Skipping that step means the door drifts back out within months.
Symptoms this fixes
Doors that slide easily for most of their travel and then bind in the last few inches. Locks that need the door pushed or lifted to engage. Daylight visible along one edge when the door is shut. Draughts and noise coming through a closed door.
Uneven weatherstrip wear is the diagnostic tell: if the seal is crushed flat at one end and untouched at the other, the panel is hanging out of plumb.
Cost
A straightforward adjustment and service visit typically runs $125 to $195, with no parts. It is the cheapest call we take and it frequently resolves a door the owner assumed needed replacing.
Where the frame needs shimming or resetting, that is quoted separately after measurement — but you will know the number before we start.
From the van
Alignment & adjustment — from real jobs
Photographs from work we have carried out across San Diego County.
Questions
Alignment & adjustment — common questions
My door only sticks in summer. Why?
Thermal expansion. Aluminium frames grow measurably in heat, and in the inland valleys — El Cajon, Santee, Escondido, Temecula — a door set with minimal clearance in January can bind in August. The fix is to set the clearances for the hot end of the range.
Can I adjust my sliding door myself?
The adjustment screws are accessible at the bottom of the panel, so a small correction is within reach for most people. The difficulty is knowing whether the problem is adjustment, worn rollers, or a racked frame — turning the screws on a door with collapsed rollers achieves nothing.
There is a gap at the top of my closed door. Is that adjustment?
Usually yes, if the gap is uneven along the width. If the gap is even but present across the whole top, the panel has dropped on both sides and the rollers are the more likely cause.
Will alignment stop my door draughting?
If the weatherstripping is intact, yes — a plumb panel seals evenly along its height. If the weatherstrip itself is perished, hardened or missing, it needs replacing as well, which we do on the same visit.
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