As we get much warmer weather across the summer months, the hot days are certainly more welcome. Our grass, our plants, our way of living all take positive impacts from the warmer weather. However, our UPVC windows and doors tend to have a negative effect which can often turn a nice warm steady day into a panic day.
As many of us are aware, UPVC is manufactured of tough plastic composites and nearly every home or business in the UK is often secured by UPVC doors and windows. UPVC is usually a light and durable solution to secure our homes and businesses. UPVC is also a cheaper solution to wooden composite doors and often operates much smoother, however it doesn’t come without its downfalls.
UPVC doors & windows expanding in heat
One of the major problems with UPVC is that it is made of plastic, which means that heat has a massive impact on what the UPVC does and how it reacts. An interesting fact about UPVC is that it can expand up to 2.4 centimetres in just over 40 degree heat. We don’t get 40 degree heat in the UK, but if we did not many UPVC doors would be opening or closing correctly as they would have expanded themselves out of alignment.
This happens on a much lower scale even at 23 degrees. UPVC doors and windows are lined up when fitted so that they shut firmly but smoothly, the fitting to make the door smooth only allows for fine margins so when the door opens and closes everything lined up in the exact place it needs to be for the locking points to engage with the strike plate holes. Once the door slowly starts moving out of alignment over time, you will notice the handle will start becoming stiff to lift or the door is catching and hitting off the frame itself. The longer the door is left misaligned, the stiffer the handle becomes to lift.
How to repair misaligned UPVC doors or windows?
To realign a UPVC door it’s quite a quick repair taking no more than 5-10 minutes, however the longer the door is left misaligned the more damage the mechanism will start taking and eventually become broken, either locked shut and unable to open or open but unable to lock shut. A mechanism replacement will cost a lot more than a quick, simple UPVC door or window alignment.
Your Secure Locksmiths are experts in and around Nottingham at UPVC door alignments and it would be highly recommended to book an accredited engineer if your door has shown any signs of dropping, become stiff or hitting/scrapping off any part of the door or frame itself.