How Do Door Stoppers Work?

Built-In Door Stoppers

• Built-in door stoppers come in a variety of different shapes and sizes. They are normally located slightly above floor level near the outside edge of the door, away from the wall. There are hook-style door stoppers, which can be bolted or screwed to the floor, baseboard or wall. There are also spring-style door stoppers, which are bolted to the wall. Kick-stand-style door stops are attached to the door and can be put down at any point. Most doorstops are two or three inches tall/long and have rubber- or plastic-tipped ends that the door will slam into instead of the wall.

Portable Door Stoppers

• Portable door stoppers are weighted wedges designed to be placed underneath the edge of a door to prevent it from moving beyond the point where the door stop has been placed. These door stops can be used to prop heavy doors open or prevent doors from swinging too widely. This type of stopper blocks forward motion. The door can move away from the stopper without hindrance, though a stopper that has been wedged tightly underneath the door may be difficult to remove. Portable door stoppers can be anything from a small, triangular wedge of wood or rubber to an elaborately designed, decorative piece in stone, marble or any other material.

Protecting Walls

• If you have ever lived in a home without built-in door stoppers behind all of the doors, you know that door knobs can hit the wall and leave dents or holes in the drywall or other wall material when doors are opened with too much force.

Slamming and Closing Doors

• A door stop placed in front of the door will keep it from slamming closed. This can be used to hold a door open while you are using it or prevent children's fingers from being slammed in a heavy door. Many schools use door stoppers for keeping classroom doors open. A door stop can also be used to prevent a door that automatically locks from closing and locking.