by Anthony Megna

Created on: April 05, 2010

Do you have a sliding glass door that is tough to open and squeals like a stuck pig?  Well, I do, and it was driving me and my wife crazy.   Our condo isn't that old, about five or six years.  But since we live in the Mojave desert, where Las Vegas is located, the dust can be a bit extreme at times.  So all this sand and dust accumulates in the tracks of the sliding glass door that leads out on to the porch.  This can be a problem when the door is either opening or closing, and the squeaking and squealing was driving us mad!

At first, I thought that I could just take the door out, but it is one of those big 6 by 5 doors that seems to be locked into the tracks.  I did some research on the door itself, and the instructions the manufacturer dictate are to clean and oil the tracks with furniture polish, not WD-40.  Which unfortunately is what I used, the WD-40!  Even though this is miracle stuff, and there are thousands of uses for it, cleaning the tracks of sliding glass doors only attracts more dirt and dust.  After I realized my mistake, I used the furniture polish.  That worked for a while, but then the squealing started all over again.  So I called Lowe's, the home improvement store.

They told me to take the door out as they sell the replacement rollers which are located on the top of the sliding glass door.  I knew they were going to say that, and I told them that was not going to happen as I'd already tried.  I also told them that I had spoken to a handyman that lives in our community, and he told me to get some zipper wax and apply it into the tracks.  "Do you guys sell zipper wax"?  Then they put me on hold and I waited....and waited....and waited!  I was starting to get pissed off.  How difficult a question is that?  I mean, come on!  Finally they came back on and told me that Dupont sells a Teflon spray product that cleans and lubricates not only window tracks, but garage door tracks as well.  Bingo!  That was the answer I was looking for.  I couldn't wait to get down to the store and pick up some of this stuff!

So down the store I went and after another cleaning of the sliding glass door tracks, I sprayed some of this miracle Teflon into the grooves.  What a difference!  No squealing, no squeaking, and it slides smoother than a baby's bottom!  So check out this stuff at your local hardware store.  If you have a stubborn sliding glass door, this is the ticket.  Next job on my list?  The garage door......

Learn more about this author, Anthony Megna.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.