Ask This Old House

Repairing a bathroom door that won't latch
Tom visited a homeowner with an interior door that wouldn't latch shut. He started by inspecting the gap around the perimeter of the door when closed and found that the gap was wider at the bottom than at the top, indicating that the door was not hanging plumb in the opening. Rather than re-hang the entire doorjamb, which is very labor intensive, Tom recommended "shimming" the hinges using thin pieces of cardboard in the mortises behind the bottom and middle hinges. Tom used half as many shims for the middle hinge as the bottom one because it's halfway up the door. No shims were installed behind the top hinge because that hinge acted as a pivot point. Once installed, the door hung plumb in the opening and the door latched shut. Then, back in the studio, Tom showed how to keep a door from swinging closed by itself by bending the hinge pin with a hammer, which causes friction inside the hinge. He also showed how to make a door "plumb" by moving the top and middle hinges forward.

Where to Find It
Tom made his shims from cardboard.

You can also purchase plastic shims made specifically for door hinges.

EZ-SHIM, Inc.
Sunburst Sales & Assoc., Inc.
951-582-0770

What is it?
The guys try to guess the intended purpose of an unusual-looking product. Where to Find It
Tom showed a tool built in 1908 for loading and driving nails. Midwest Tool Collectors Association

Planting a bamboo privacy screen
Roger helped two Las Vegas homeowners select and plant a row of bamboo plants for privacy screening. They visited a local preserve where a horticulturalist showed them what types of plants thrive in the desert. After settling on a "clumping" variety of bamboo, they went back to the house and got to work. Roger started by laying out the new plants where they would go and spaced them 5-6 feet apart. Once the plants' locations were established, they started digging holes for each plant that were 2-3 times the width of the plants' containers. The soil was very dry, so Roger had the homeowners saturate the soil with water before planting. They also added "planter's mix" to the soil, which contains organic material that is beneficial to the plants. The plants were then put in the holes, backfilled, and once again saturated with water. The homeowners already had an irrigation line installed, so Roger used it to install 4 drip irrigation emitters for each plant. Finally, Roger added a layer of cedar mulch on top to help moderate soil temperature and retain moisture. Where to Find It
Roger visited a local preserve to see a variety of plants that thrive in the Mohave Desert.

The Gardens at the Springs Preserve
Horticulturalist, Peter Duncombe
702-258-3206

Bamboo plants can be purchased at your local nursery or garden center. The ones Roger planted were supplied by a local landscaping contractor.
Par 3 Landscape & Maintenance
4610 Wynn Rd., Suite B
Las Vegas, NV 89103