Fixes
Why the drawer sticks, and five fixes to try in order
Start with the cheapest fix and stop as soon as the drawer slides. Most drawers only ever need the first or second.
A drawer that sticks is rarely broken. It's usually one of three things: the wood has swollen a little, the runners are dry, or something has worked loose and the drawer now sits crooked. The fixes below go from free and reversible to slightly more work. Try them in order and stop when it slides.
- Time
- Ten minutes for the first fix, up to an hour for the last
- You'll need
- A candle or bar soap, a screwdriver, fine sandpaper, a pencil
- Stop if
- The runner is cracked or the drawer box is splitting at the corners. That's a joinery job.
First, look before you fix
Pull the drawer all the way out. Most come free if you lift the front slightly at the end of the run. Look at the bottom edges of the drawer sides and at the runners in the cabinet. Shiny, polished patches show you exactly where it rubs.
Then push the empty cabinet gently from side to side. If it leans, the drawer will bind no matter what you do to it. Fix the cabinet first: level it, or tighten its back panel.
1. Wax the runners
Rub a plain candle or a dry bar of soap along the runners and along the bottom edges of the drawer sides, wherever you saw a shiny patch. Slide the drawer in and out a dozen times to spread it.
If the drawer slides after this, stop. That's the whole fix, and it's the one most drawers need.
2. Tighten what has worked loose
Check the screws that hold metal runners, and the knob or handle. A loose front panel lets the drawer twist as you pull it. Tighten by hand with a screwdriver; a drill can strip the hole.
A screw that won't tighten
If a screw spins without biting, the hole is worn. Push in a wooden toothpick with a little wood glue, snap it off flush, let it dry, and drive the screw again.
3. Let it dry out
Drawers that stick only in damp months have swollen. Empty the drawer and leave it out of the cabinet in a dry, warm room for a few days, away from direct heat. Then wax it as in the first fix.
4. Sand where it rubs
If it still binds in the same place, mark the shiny patch with a pencil and sand just that area with fine sandpaper wrapped around a block. Take off a little, test, and repeat.
- Sand along the grain, never across it.
- Test after every few strokes; you can't put wood back.
- Wax the sanded patch afterwards.
5. Re-set a runner
If a runner has dropped at one end, the drawer will tilt and catch. Undo its screws, line it up with a pencil mark measured from the top of the cabinet, and screw it back in new holes a few millimetres away from the old ones.
When to stop
Cracked runners, split corners or a drawer bottom that has dropped out of its groove need glue, clamps and time. They're very fixable, but that's a different letter, and it's coming in a few weeks.