Shut yer trap
The latch on my front door hasn’t been working for months now. The latch, while still present, did not spring back out to catch in the frame. This was noticed by an awesome friend-slash-housesitter.
A failing front door is not something to announce to the masses. You know, safety and all. Fortunately the deadbolt worked and helped to keep the insides in and the outsides out.
After calling Weiser, they happily sent me a free replacement. [Isn't this sounding like my leaky tap story?]
Being independent and self-reliant, I set out to install the new piece.
1) Unscrew handle…check
2) Slide out front and back handles…check
3) Remove cylinder…check
4) Insert new cylinder…check
5a) Close door and set deadbolt while running to the bathroom…check
5b) Realize handles were not replaced prior to shutting door. No easy way to unlatch door. Consider taking door off hinges. Try understanding latch mechanism first by studying broken latch. Poke and prod a bit. Slide a thing-a-ma-bob over. Latch unlatches. Open door…check
6) Handles won’t go on. Realize cylinder is inserted in wrong position. Rotate 90 degrees. Cylinder aligned…check
7) Slide on handles…check
8) Tighten screws…check
Please note: steps 5a and 5b are optional and completely unnecessary. However, they do add a certain amount of excitement to the overall process.
