Coastal Joinery Hardware

Why is my handle drooping excessively? Multipoint Door Locking Solutions

Valid on: 8-21-2014

Coastal Group Industry Knowledgebase

The information and material contained on the Coastal Knowledgebase is presented for informational purposes only, and in no way forms part of any contract of legal obligation. Although every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the accuracy, reliability, and completeness of the information, all materials are provided “as is” with no warranties of any kind. It is the readers’ responsibility to verify the accuracy and completeness of information found on the Knowledgebase website and any related documents. Coastal Group www.coastal-group.com Industry Knowledgebase support.coastal-group.com

We have identified some checks that you can make to troubleshoot door handles that

do not spring back satisfactorily to a horizontal position.

Unsprung Levers Where the door handles are not sprung, we would generally advise that you use latches or locks with heavy-

duty springs. The latch on this type of handle provides all the sprung force. However, the vast majority of

handles are sprung, so standard latches should be suitable.

Multipoint Handles It is important to remember that most handles suitable for use with multipoint door locks need an unsprung

design so that they can be lifted upwards. Therefore, heavy and/or solid multipoint levers are most prone to

sagging quicker; this can cause excessive and premature wear on the latch spring mechanism within the

lockcase. This is the main reason behind the development of the Villand handle.

Fixings Start by loosening off the fixing screws on the handle back plates or roses. If you find that the handles now

work correctly, there is most likely a binding or misalignment problem. The mechanism on the inside of the

lever (where the spindle is put in) can often slightly protrude from the rear face of the rose or backplate. It

is a relatively common fault for the mechanism to bind in this area, and by loosening the handles slightly this

bind will have been released. There needs to be enough clearance on the door face for this mechanism to

rotate, normally achieved by having a larger hole on the door face to provide adequate space. Simply enlarge

the hole as necessary, and reinstall the handles.

Spindle Length Check that the spindle is not too long and causing a bind or misalignment as the door handle is tightened up.

Spindles will need to be cut to suit the door thickness, so should also not be so short that they can disengage

with the lever follower. This can cause a door handle to become inoperative, potentially trapping someone

in a room. However, there should be a small amount of space ('end float') in the spindle length to prevent

binding and to allow for natural movement during operation.

Spindle Alignment Check that the spindle and the latch follower are not misaligned. It should be possible to see any spindle

misalignment by viewing the spindle from the door edge with the handle loosened. This could however be

difficult to fix because the mounting screw holes for the handles are likely to be in the incorrect position. It

is also likely that they are just slightly out of square, meaning drilling a new pilot hole right next to an existing

one. To resolve this, you will need to replace the screws with back-to-back fixings that will clamp the handles

on the door even with elongated fixing holes.

Coastal Group Industry Knowledgebase

The information and material contained on the Coastal Knowledgebase is presented for informational purposes only, and in no way forms part of any contract of legal obligation. Although every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the accuracy, reliability, and completeness of the information, all materials are provided “as is” with no warranties of any kind. It is the readers’ responsibility to verify the accuracy and completeness of information found on the Knowledgebase website and any related documents. Coastal Group www.coastal-group.com Industry Knowledgebase support.coastal-group.com

Component Condition If your lock is old but has worked well in the past then it is likely that one of the parts have failed. A good

way to test this is to dismantle the door handle assembly from the door and individually check each part. Try

each lever and then check the latch by rotating the spindle. A visual inspection of the latch follower may

also show that this may have cracked, a fault that can develop due to spindle misalignment. If the latch has

failed, then a replacement is relatively inexpensive and will likely solve the problem (but try to resolve any

misalignment that caused the failure too to prevent this from reoccurring).

The Latch Check the door latch itself. Many people fit new handles but leave in the original latches and locks which

may be old and worn. Take off the handles completely and check the movement of the latch by turning the

spindle. If the latches are relatively new, remove them to check that the mechanism body is not being

compressed by the mounting hole being too small which will prevent it working freely. If the latch bolt was

sticking while fitted in the door but works fine when removed from the door, this indicates binding of the

mechanism within the door mortice. Make sure that the mechanism has adequate space, ensuring that no

external moving parts catch on the wood when the latch is screwed into place.

Sawdust and Swarf Check that wood shavings or sawdust has not entered into the mechanism of the lock or latch. Over the years,

we have seen many supposedly faulty locks only to find wood shavings inside the mechanism when we inspect

them inside. Remember that many manufacturers will void their warranty where the lock case has been

opened, so do not however open a lock case unless you are experienced and competent in doing so.

Corrosion Sometimes door handles can become stiff due to the mechanism becoming corroded, particularly on an

external handle or where the environment is harsh, such as in a swimming pool area or within five miles of

the coast. Remove the handle and try easing the mechanism with a spray lubricant such as WD40. Once you

are happy that it is operating correctly, wipe it down and re-grease the mechanism before replacing to avoid

any future problems. It is a good idea to apply a corrosion prevention system such as CoastGard Corrosion

Protection System to the mechanism fitted externally, or handles exposed to excessive moisture, if fitting

them from new. It is important that this is also applied to any locks that are fitted to a modified timber such

as Accoya or Kebony, or acidic timbers such as oak.