Screws spin inside door hinges

[El_Viajero]

I recently soundproofed the door to my home recording studio. It's a metal exterior door. I added a piece of 3/4" MDF to the inside of the door and applied soundproofing "glue" between the MDF and the door. I also screwed the MDF in tight to the door and there are tight gaskets on all sides to eliminate air gaps. Anyway...

When I was putting the door back up, I noticed that two of the screws in the jamb side of the top hinge (one is the topmost screw, which, per my understanding, should be the largest and strongest screw in any hinge) don't find purchase inside the screw hole. They just spin and don't tighten. Ditto for one of the screws in the middle hinge.

I wouldn't be worried except adding the MDF made the door REALLY HEAVY. I'd feel better if it was more adequately attached. Is there some way to improve this without taking apart the door framing? Could I, say, inject some kind of epoxy in the hole and wait for it to dry before screwing the screw back in? Just spitballing...

[lthenderson]

If the jam is wood, you would be better off drilling out the hole and glueing a hardwood dowel into it which after it dries you can cut flush and redrill your hole. This will make it as good as it was new. For a temporary fix, you can jam a toothpick into it with some wood glue and then follow it with your screw. Toothpicks aren't the hardest of materials and will probably strip out again the next time you remove the screw which is why it is more temporary. Just squirting epoxy into the hole isn't as good depending on the quality of the epoxy you are using. Many of the DIY epoxies you have in stores don't have good shear strength properties to hold metal threads.

[APowers]

Or just....replace the screw with a longer one. A lot of times, door hinge screws are 1" long at best (just enough to screw into the jamb, but not interfere with easy installation). They are easily replaced with a 3-4" drywall/deck screw, which should find hefty purchase into the wall framing, and provided more than enough strength to hang pretty much anything from.

[lthenderson]

They are easily replaced with a 3-4" drywall/deck screw,

Don't use drywall screws. They are made from cheaper materials and brittle and have very poor shear strength. Make sure you use good quality deck screws if you are able to just use a longer screw.

[former player]

I agree longer screws, but you can also pack an overlarge screw hole with wire wool, which is probably easier than drilling out for a dowel and makes a better fit than a toothpick.  If it doesn't work those options are still available.

[Papa bear]

As was mentioned upthread, toothpick and wood glue.  Back in the old days my dad said they used match sticks.  Those construction guys always had smokes and matches on them, and they ended up being used as tools. 


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