Does Your Patio Door Roller Need an Adjustment, or Is it Time for a New Patio Door?

Here in the United States, we have a bit of a bad reputation for just throwing things out and buying new, rather than repairing broken items. The reasons for this probably vary from person to person. Maybe someone doesn’t know how to do the necessary repairs, or perhaps it seems easier just to buy a new item. Or maybe it’s simply that a person likes to have new things. We suspect that many people are in the first category when it comes to their patio doors. They would like to save some money and repair their doors themselves when they become difficult to open and close, but they just don’t know how.

Fortunately, it’s easy to make the adjustment that will likely help your patio door open and close freely again. All it takes is a few minutes of your time and a Phillips head screwdriver.

Actually, the first thing you should do is a simple cleaning of your patio door’s track. Open your patio door all the way and vacuum away any loose debris from the lower track. Then, wipe the track down with a damp rag. This should be done fairly regularly to keep your door operating smoothly.

If, after cleaning the track, your patio door still doesn’t slide freely, your patio door rollers may need an adjustment. Open your patio door and locate the screws at the end of the door—at the top and the bottom. Adjust these screws slightly. The goal is to straighten the door, so it doesn’t drag on the track when you try to open and close it. Turn the screws clockwise to raise the door and counterclockwise to lower it.

If this still doesn’t fix the problem, you may have bad rollers that have been damaged and need to be replaced. This could also be a DIY project if you’re handy, but it’s a quite a bit more involved. And if you have an older patio door, it may be difficult to find replacement rollers. However, it is usually do-able for a handy individual and can extend the life of your current patio door.

There does come a time, however, when a patio door needs to be replaced. If your patio door is made of an aluminum frame and a single pane of glass, you probably already know that it is doing very little to keep out the heat in the summer and the cold in the winter. However, you may not know how much better modern patio doors are at keeping the inside of your house comfortable! The patio doors we sell at BM Windows have vinyl frames that resist heat transfer. They also have dual panes of Low-E glass, with a special gas in between the two panes that will help make your home more energy efficient. With a new patio door, you should find that you need to use your cooling and heating systems much less than before.

You may also need a replacement patio door if you are finding that your door leaks every time it rains, or if it comes off the track every time you try to open it (and doing the recommended roller adjustment doesn’t help).

When you’re ready to get a quote on a replacement patio door for your San Diego home, contact us at BM Windows. We can come to your home, take measurements, and give you some options based on your needs and your budget.