Signs Your Door Has Dropped
- The bottom of the panel scrapes or drags on the track or sill
- You can see a gap at the top of one side when the door is closed
- The door's vertical edge does not line up evenly with the frame
- The latch hits above or below the keeper instead of catching it
- Metal shavings or a shiny worn line along the track
Why Sliding Doors Sag
A typical sliding glass door panel weighs well over a hundred pounds, and an impact panel can weigh much more. All of that weight sits on two small roller assemblies at the bottom corners. When one of them wears out, breaks a wheel, or rusts solid, that corner drops. The door then rides on its bottom rail instead of its wheels, which is the scraping sound you hear.
Less often, the bottom rail of the panel itself has corroded or cracked around the roller pocket, so the roller can no longer hold its height. We see this most on older aluminum doors near pools and on the coast.
Can You Adjust It Yourself?
Most sliding doors have an adjustment screw near each bottom corner, behind a small cap on the edge of the panel. Turning it raises or lowers the roller. If your door has only settled slightly, a small adjustment can help. But if the screw turns and nothing changes, or the door drops again within a few weeks, the roller is worn out and adjusting it is not a fix. Cranking on a seized adjustment screw can also strip it.
How We Fix It
We lift the panel out, inspect both roller assemblies and the bottom rail, and check the track for wear where the door has been dragging. Then we:
- Install new stainless steel rollers matched to your door's size and weight
- Repair the bottom rail around the roller pocket if it is damaged
- Repair or cap a worn track rail so the new wheels ride smoothly
- Set both rollers to the same height so the door sits square and seals evenly
A level door slides with one hand, latches cleanly, and seals out water and air again. We handle this repair every week across Orlando, Dr. Phillips, Kissimmee, Winter Park, and the Space Coast, usually with same-day appointments available.