I have a closet door (no key) which will not not open as the 
latch is not responding.  Since the handles are porcelain and they are
kind of stuck, I am afraid I may break them.

I took off the 3 door spindles but I am having difficulty pulling the
door out.

Please tell me how to do that and how do I fix the lock once door is
open.

Thanks,
Harr

Hi harryalain-ga,

You said that the lock was stuck and that you had pulled the three
door spindles.

Get a WD40 and spray in the hinges just to loosen any rust that might
prevent the door from swinging freely.

Insert 2 flat blade screwdrivers - one below the first hinge at the
top and the other above the last hinge at the bottom.  Apply preasure
on both screwdrivers at the same time in the opposite direction of the
door nob, in other words push the screwdrivers handles towards the
wall.  This should allow the door to slowly ease out of it's frame.

The lock is defective and it would require a locksmith replace the
defective part or if it is not repairable then the lock should be
replaced.

Hope this helps.

Contact me if you have any further questions.

Best regards,


jeanwil-ga

When my children were very small, they had a habit of locking
themselves in the bathroom.

To successfully open the door required that the doorknob be removed,
and the latch flipped with a flathead screwdriver.  It takes a few
minutes to get the screwdriver situated properly, but that's the only
solution I ever found.

Good luck!

--Missy