Home decor and aesthetics play a vital role in providing a luxurious feel to a house's interior design. Many house hardware products could be installed within the house to make it look great. One of them is to replace the door handles with ones that have a modern style and match your home's interior design.
If you also want to replace your door handles and want to know how do you remove door handles then you have landed in the right place. In this article, we will briefly discuss all the things you need to do to replace the door handles perfectly.
So, let's save time and explore how to change door handles with the greatest precision.
Steps To Remove The Previous Door Handle
Before replacing the old door handle with the new one, you first need to remove the existing door handle. Following are the easiest steps that can be followed to remove the previously installed door handle:
Step 01: Open The Door And Stick A Wedge Under It
When replacing the door handle, it is important to keep the door in place without any movement. Thus, the first step here would be to open the door in such a way that both sides of the doors are reachable to you.
Now, you can fit a wooden wedge under the door so it doesn't move when removing and replacing the door handle. If you don't have a wedge at home, you can put anything under the door that keeps it in place.
Step 02: Push The Handle Pressure Release With A Screwdriver And Put It Off
Almost all the designs of door handles have a small slot at the side of the door knob where the cover plate and the door knob connect. When replacing or repairing the door handles, it is important first to remove this cover plate to separate the door knob from the door itself.
The best way to do it is by using the flat head of a screwdriver, inserting it into the slot and applying pressure with it and then pulling the handle or door knob off. If your door handles don't have the pressure slot, then try to unscrew the doorknob to pull it off.
Step 03: Pull Off The Door Handle Cover Plate By Unscrewing It
There are cover plates for the door handles on both sides of the door. Once you have removed the pressure slot, you can remove the cover plates from both ends of the door by unscrewing them gently. Nowadays, many of the door handles don't have screws on the cover plate. In this case, you can pry them up using the screwdriver.
The cover plates of the door handles have different designs. For instance, there are round cover plates that screw up. Thus, if you want to remove them, you would have to rotate them counterclockwise to unscrew them to install the new door handle (how to install a door handle).
Step 04: Unscrew The Latch And Inner Plates
For changing door handles to knobs, you have to first remove the latch and inner plates from the narrower part of the door. The latch is located at the inside edge of the door, which can be easily removed by unscrewing it.
The inner plates on both sides of the door are also removed by unscrewing the screws that are holding them in place. The inner plates hold the door handle latching mechanism, and it needs to be removed if you want to know how to replace interior door handles.
Step 05: Pull Out The Latch Mechanism And Latch Plate
The final step in removing a previously installed door handle is to remove the latch plate and the latch mechanism. In the above step, you unscrew the latch plates that hold the latch mechanism. So now you can pull out those latch plates and the latch mechanism.
Now, the door should be free from the door handle and have only holes in it. This means it is now ready to be installed with either stylish brass door handles or modern door knobs that match your house aesthetics.
3 Steps: How To Replace Door Handles
Since you have learned in the above steps how a door handle is removed from the door for the installation of a new door handle. Following are some of the steps that can be now followed to fit a new door handle (how to fit a door handles):
Step 01: Choosing The Right Door Handle
Since you have removed a door handle, the door now has holes and markings. Therefore, it is necessary to choose a new door handle that is the same size as the previous one. This way, the new door handle will cover all the holes and marks on the door.
The majority of door handles have a 60—to 70 mm backset. A mistake most people make is that they buy new door handles with different-shaped cover plates compared to their previous cover plates. This leaves room for error when replacing the door handle. Thus, you should avoid it.
Step 02: Insert New Door Handle Latch Mechanism
Installing the new door handle is just the inverse of removing it. You now have to insert the latch plates and latch mechanism of the new door handle where the old ones were installed, making sure that they fit perfectly in place.
Step 03: Screw The Inner Plates, Put The Cover Plates On And Press The New Knobs
This is the final and yet the easiest step of installing the new door handles. Start with screwing the inner plates and fasten them against the door using a screwdriver. Now, put the new cover plates on the inner plates and push them until they snap in place with the inner plates. These cover plates are of the same size for both sides of the door.
Now the only thing that needs to be done if you want to know how do you remove a door handle and then reinstall a new one is to press the new knobs into the handle mechanism. Do the same process for the outer and inner knobs and press them so that they snap into place. Your new door handle is now ready to use.
Conclusion
Removing the old door handles and replacing them with new ones that are modern and match your home interior is an easy job. If you are trying it for the first time and don't know how to replace door handles, then the above article is the best guide for you. It discusses the steps that could be followed to remove and replace the door handles at your home.
FAQs
How to replace door handles myself?
Yes, replacing the old door handles with the new ones is an easy process. You don't have to make the new holes; unscrew the old door handle and screw the new door handle in place of it. Start with unscrewing the cover plates and inner plates and then finally pulling out the latch mechanism to remove the door handle.
How to fix door handles with loose levers?
In most cases, the loose lever of door handles is because of the loose screws or the misalignment of the lever with the door handle. To fix it, inspect the loose screws, and tighten them. If they are damaged, replace them with the new screws to get a tight lever door handle.
Are door handles of universal size?
No, there is no universal size for door handles. They usually come in different shapes and sizes. Therefore, if you want to replace the old door handles, choose the new ones that are the same size as the previous ones so they will fit perfectly in place.