Most doors in a home have metal hinges that, after years of use, squeak or creak. While this is a common occurrence, this can be annoying to anyone who has to listen to a squeaky door being opened and closed. Thankfully, there are remedies that are readily available for a squeaky door hinge.
What Causes a Door Hinge to Squeak?
A door hinge is made up of two interleaved pieces of metal held together by a long metal pin. One piece of the door hinge is mounted securely (using screws, bolts, rivets, or some other permanent fastener) to the door; the other piece is mounted to the door frame, cabinet, or other enclosure to be accessed.
With each opening or closing of the door, the metal pieces of the hinge rub together, and over time, the metal pieces start to wear each other out. The friction between the metal pieces of the hinge causes the hinge to squeak, or creak.
Prevent Door Hinges from Squeaking
Because friction causes a door hinge to squeak, reducing friction between the moving parts of a door hinge will reduce or eliminate the squeak. How, then, do you reduce the friction between the parts of the door hinge?
In other applications, such as in an automobile engine, lubrication of moving parts allows for metal objects to move against each other without damage or friction noise. Similarly, lubrication of the moving parts of the door hinge will reduce or eliminate squeaking.
A petroleum based lubricant, such as WD-40 or 3-in-1 Oil, can be used to lubricate the moving parts of a door hinge. Other lubricants that are used for metal-on-metal applications can be used to lubricate a door hinge as well. Some of these include chain lube (such as is used for motorcycles and bicycles), small amounts of bar-and-chain oil (used to lubricate chainsaw chains), silicone spray (used to lubricate the moving parts of a treadmill), or small amounts of automotive grease.
Whatever method of lubrication is used, it is best to use only enough to stop the squeaking. Excessive lubrication of a door hinge will cause the lubricant to drip or leak out of the joint.
