Door Handle Latch Bolt Stuck

If the latch bolt doesn t move and is fully extended the issue is with the strike plate.

Door handle latch bolt stuck.

Pull the door latch out of the door. If the latch does not catch close the door slowly to watch how the latch bolt meets the strike plate. Once you let go of the knob grab the end of the latch bolt with your fingers and pull. On the kwikset locks this looks like two little teeth that the cylinder pushes back.

Once you have the door handle off you can now try to open the latch manually with either a large flathead screwdriver or pair of needle nose pliers. Use the screwdriver to lever the latch out of the door. Turn the knob to open the door and release the knob slowly. This is because the issue is not with the door and not even with the control the knob has over the stuck latch.

You can see where the cylinder entered the dead latch mechanism and pulled the latch back. If it won t come out this is sometimes the case with stuck latches insert your screwdriver into the latch at the point where the door knobs intersected with it. Scars on the strike plate will show where it is misaligned it is also possible the door has shrunk and the latch no longer reaches the strike plate. The issue a door latch stuck due to a jamming latch will have no real variation between how the latch moves when it is pressed in or when the handle is turned both when the door is open and when it is shut.

Taking the lock of the door is often simpler than it would be to take a deadbolt or exterior door knob lock of the door. If the latch bolt moves it is sticking in the door knob and requires some disassembly to fix. Sometimes the lock button being stuck is endemic of the latch bolt freezing so you might not be able to take advantage of spring loaded latch through the gap between the door and the frame. The bolt may be positioned above below or to one side of the strike plate.

This is a short video to demonstrate how easy it is to remove a door handle view what s inside and repair the failed latch. One of the problems that causes this is that the hinges are loose or the house has settled from the freezing and thawing of the ground.