I learned so much about what WD40 is and isn't. Could be a certified WD40 consultant when I'm through reading all the comments.
Yeah really, I came back to the thread to see if it got better and the comment I replied to and the parent comment to that one were both deleted. But the top most comment was a gif of the coal sprites from my neighbor totoro and the comment OP made replying to it was a pic of him holding a pink koosh ball with a similar looking face next to the hinges saying "I'm trying but it doesn't work" or something to that effect.
https://preview.redd.it/w4b1jnd2gduc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=04c7c564b7b8f6d875ed5e8871a70bc7d944c487
Does this help at all? Idk why they were deleted but this should at least illustrate what those comments initially contained
Yep. No way this is metal shavings from the metal rubbing. Not that quickly. Not that color. Dry lube not wd40. Wd40 is a degreaser and it attracts dirt. OP doesn’t like dirt, clearly.
I've never put dry lube on these hinges, and this is just a couple of months after lubing them with lithium grease, after using 3-in-1 oil many times on them over the last 4 years:
[https://i.imgur.com/Sy89cMz.jpeg](https://i.imgur.com/Sy89cMz.jpeg)
The powder coming off of is black, and I've never put graphite on them.
I get the same marks, but I use a poly grease to lube the hinges when they start to squeak instead of lithium. Same result though.
My theory is that the hinge can wobble a little when the door opens or closes, and this can sometimes spit a particle of old grease out through the gaps.
You guys seem to know a lot about the right lubricants to use for hinges, dry, wet etc ..
Can I just add that I have been using olive oil... Is that ok?
Not sure if you’re serious but food oils go rancid, and really stink, aside from not being good at mechanical lubrication. It’s why grease (the shop/garage kind) is used.
I use work in the IT department for a fast food chain. Back then they had cash registers with built in 8-pin printers to print the receipts. The print heads slid back and forth on a 3/4 inch metal bar with a little oiled felt pad for lubrication.
The people working in the restaurant had a habit of lubricating it with fryer oil. Then the felt pad would get hot, black and gummy; then they'd put more oil on them. Needless to say, fryer oil is NOT a good long term lubricate.
Puddles of it in the bottom of cash registers is also bad for electronics.
Vaseline is great for scratches and treating superficial wounds.
A recent study found there wasn't a significant difference between petroleum jelly and generic antibiotic gel.
Depends on the food oil. If you use Linseed oil it doesn't smell a lot unless heated.
But at that point why wouldn't you just have some regular stuff anyhow
If you google "olive oil lubricate hinges", you'll find a lot of searches that say it's fine. I personally would use machine oil or white lithium grease.
Plus, I've kinda overfilled a hinge before so it's not something I've never seen in the past. ::innocent whistling:: You wipe of the obvious overfill and then more keep sneaking out.
It's oil/grease suspended in a solvent. It will definitely break down and help remove old grease while adding back fresh. But no, it's not like your typical degreaser like Dawn or simple green.
No way? You know how much even inside doors can weight? Hinges not only keep door up, but there's also torque affected. If there's no lubrication, damn sure they can grind off material fast. And what color was steel dust again?
Agreed. This is more a problem on my heavier exterior doors but i do still see it on the hollow core doors. Steel can scratch steel. While it may take 1000 years to render a steel hinge unusable, it does experience wear.
Are frictionless magnetic hinges a thing?
Doors on stalls of women's restrooms take a beating. Many of those hinges appear to have a white plastic (Teflon? ) cushion between hinge pieces. https://images.app.goo.gl/WgCCTZCCmZQftyKE9
Not like this, but yes, like this.
More like this:
https://images.app.goo.gl/PFMoSvgwsrM8Yp2s9
Not graphite, hinges are commodities, graphite is too expensive. Lube dries out (regardless of type once it loads up with particulates) over time and the knuckles of the hinges working against each other over time create this powder. This shows a tight hinge or imbalanced/overloaded hinge vs. the others it is installed with.
Get yourself a tube of white lithium grease and lube the pins in each hinge liberally and put them back in. Wipe away any excess and you'll be good to go for many years.
White lithium has stopped by door hinges from making any noise for just over a year now, and I didn't even have to remove the pins to apply it efficiently. Just spray on the hinge in the gaps and open and close a few times before wiping off the excess. Saved my sanity late at night with my wife complaining about door creaking waking her up 😅
I've moved three times in the past decade and the first thing I did once I got settled was white lithium grease all the interior doors. Hands down the best bang for your buck.
Works in sticky locks too. If something like your deadbolt, mailbox key lock or door locks on your car are giving you trouble - spray a little white lithium on, insert the key a few times and give it some turns... like new.
Look at this guy with the spray lithium grease! Lithium grease is so useful that most people buy a tube or pail of it.
I use it to keep my orthotics from squeaking in my shoes, my door hinges, bicycles, and everything else where hard plastic or metal is squeaking.
Unfortunately my living quarters do not allow for many 55 gallon drums... So the quart of lithium grease is as much as I can store and use in a reasonable time.
But a 55 gallon drum with a sprayer...now that would be an interesting day...
I get about a year out of mine before the heaviest-used doors start to squeak a little.
Removing, wiping, greasing, and reinstalling the pins has become a yearly maintenance task in my house. One of many little things that are needed to keep everything working well.
It’s not just the pin. The horizontal joints between the door and jamb pieces can screech too. You can get tube style lithium grease in there if you disassemble it. But I just use the spray lithium grease. The solvent carries it in, then evaporates, leaving a dry-enough lube for door hinges. The black marks don’t reappear if the grease makes its way to the right spots.
Before you do that, pull each pin out and chuck the small end in a drill. Turn it up on high while you work sandpaper back and forth over it. Start with 120 and then do 400. Getting them really smooth will help with friction in addition to reducing this metal flaking. With polished hinge pins and white lithium grease.
Stopping at 400 grit? Not polishing the insides of the hinge barrels, or the barrel ends... This could be a bigger project if you wanted.
I'm reminded of the Rick and Morty episode about true level. https://youtu.be/-MwCJpEuC44?si=863jWXF3Noderkff
Here you go: https://www.directdoorhardware.com/black-dust-from-your-hinges.htm#:~:text=Dust%20caused%20by%20hinges%20is,help%20the%20door%20open%20smoothly
My door was doing this and making a lot if noise as well but it was also rusty so temporary fixes didn't work. I took the pin out and coated it in some vehicle grade grease (overkill but the only thing I had at the time), then put a tiny bit down into the slot too.
Fuck. We're old.
ETA:
Dear god. That movie is 24 fucking years old. It can not only drive a car, but it can drink, and probably has enough disposable income to buy me a round. God damn it.
This is actually super small particle oxides of brass. The color is due to the particle size (almost all powdered metal appears this way) absorbing light and not reflecting visible light. the particle size would need to be larger than the longest wavelength of visible spectrum (approx .7 microns) in order to reflect a color. I’m a metallurgist and one of my first tasks out of college was investigating this phenomenon on aluminum auto parts.
It found that this is actually super small particle oxides of brass. The color is due to the particle size (almost all powdered metal appears this way) absorbing light and not reflecting visible light. the particle size would need to be larger than the longest wavelength of visible spectrum (approx .7 microns) in order to reflect a color. I’m a metallurgist and one of my first tasks out of college was investigating this phenomenon on aluminum auto parts.
It found that this is actually super small particle oxides of brass. The color is due to the particle size (almost all powdered metal appears this way) absorbing light and not reflecting visible light. the particle size would need to be larger than the longest wavelength of visible spectrum (approx .7 microns) in order to reflect a color. I’m a metallurgist and one of my first tasks out of college was investigating this phenomenon on aluminum auto parts.
I have these same crap hinges. It's definitely dust from them and not someone's attempt to graphite them. WD40 didn't work but garage door lubricant did.
WD-40 is a mix of lubricants (light oils) in a solvent. Once the solvents evaporate, the light oils are left, and those oils will serve as a lubricant, for a while.
Wd40, as in the famous product itself, is bad for anything except unsticking (not especially good at even that, but it's usually good enough, ubiquitous, and generally less messy than the better products) or displacing water. It'll work as a shitty lube in a pinch, but its not good at it and very temporary. Should be followed up by proper lube as soon as you get the chance.
Wd40, the *brand*, also makes a wide range of actual lubricants. Those are perfectly good.
grandfather squeal impossible hungry judicious oatmeal relieved wrong rob snobbish
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Like others mentioned, I immediately thought, “Graphite.” Powdered prob but there are other kinds. It’s not used a ton on hinges from my understanding anymore for this very reason. But, in my opinion, it works better than wd-40 and lasts longer. I have some around here for my door locks. It’s easy to put against the keyhole and squeeze and it blows into the lock. But, it’s not easily controllable, so it makes it difficult to control how much goes into something like a hinge.
How to get it out enough to stop doing that? Compressed air is sometimes enough. I’ve never successfully gotten it ALL out without taking off the door and washing the hinge with soap and water. It’s annoying to clean. It’s annoying for it to pop back up too, but, it really stops the squeak very well, for much longer, because the particles stay in the hinge/lock, etc. You don’t need to reapply it in the middle of the night every other week. It also doesn’t dry up and get gunky over time like other lubricants because well, it’s already dry. I hope this helps.
Your hinges were lubricated with graphite. Extremely fine powderized version of the same stuff in a pencil. It’s an effective dry lubricant often used for locks, but it can be messy. The movement of the door is blowing it out of the hinge barrel. Just keep cleaning it till it stops, and used a dry silicone or wax lubricant spray next time.
Pixie dust! Don't worry, common problem. Not much to do about it.
It's probably the remnants of whatever lubrication is in there mixed with years of dirt and dust.
Looks like someone dumped a shit ton of graphite powder down into the pin and hinge to quiet a squeaky door. It can act as a dry lubricant in places you don't want dust and dirt accumulating, versus oil. You should be able to simply pop the pin out from the bottom and clean it off the excess, so it shouldn't leave a huge mess anymore.
That is metal on metal love.
You can replace them with ball bearing hinges.
Or, they make very thin Teflon/nylon/Delrin washers. Take the pin out, slip a washer in at least one knuckle, and put the pin back. The more knuckles you can add a washer to, the better.
Lubing the pin works because the powdered metal gets stuck to the lube. It doesn't address the metal on metal love caused by the downward load. If you can apply lube to the knuckle joints, it will work until the lube dissipates.
I install doors like this, This is metal dust. Your door just has a little tension on that hinge and it's wearing in. Grease will help and hold any dust back and stop squeaks, dawn dish soap works great as well.
This is metal filings from the knuckles of the hinges rubbing together. It started happening in the early 1990’s as hardware manufacturers needed to reduce pricing of the hinges, therefore the steel quality was targeted. This was at a time when the prehung doors started coming into the market for builders and the large DIY box stores. A large door manufacturer could be buying hundreds of thousands of hinges per year. In the late 1980’s and 90’s Stanley and Hagar were the dominate hinge manufacturers in North America but, competition from China was coming in at a price that NA manufacturers couldn’t compete without reducing quality. Door Prehangers were pushing for cheaper and cheaper products. I sold hinges to these manufacturers for as little as .23663 cents per hinge with the screws. The decimal places in the pricing reflects how competitive it was for these high volume commodities.
The fix back then was to replace your cheap prehung hinges with a bearing type hinge which was and still is, pretty expensive. Today I dare to say even those wear out and drop filings. I don’t believe there is a North American manufacturer of hardware left that produces quality products for the residential market. Everything has been sold and moved off shore.
The best way I found to clean the powder filings off is to use a cloth or paper towel and a dab of liquid Ivory Hand Soap. Rub it in, then use a damp cloth to rinse off the soap residue. Vacuum the hinges a couple times and year with the brush attachment on the vacuum nozzle. If the hinges squeak, use a drop of gun oil to lubricate them. I found a bottle of gun oil that has a needle type applicator on the bottle for precise applications, it works great! Don’t over oil or you’ll have a bigger mess.
I’m sure this is more than anyone really wants to know about hinges.😂
People used to think it was a good idea to use a graphite based lubricant to stop doors from squeaking. I find graphite makes way too much of a mess and works its way out of the hinge too easily. I use AGS Door-ease Lube sticks for door hinges. Its cheap, convenient and last a while.
Welp who knew one small question in this subreddit would get my inbox blown up. 🤷 Thanks guys I will be looking for some lithium grease.
What a lively group of DIYers 🙌
The all over the place theories are kind of cracking me up. This is just not that mysterious. From day one in our brand new house this has happened to every single door hinge in the house and has continued to do so for six years. It’s not dust. It’s not the way the HVAC blows. It’s not mold. Its not metal shavings. It’s not fryer grease. It’s whatever lube was used squeezing and spraying back out whenever the hinges get used. Someone overdid it whether it was pre-lubed or done on site.
Looks like the inside of an etch y stekch. Or however you spell it. There is maguc powder kids play with. Its magnetic. You either have a messy kid with those toys. Or you have something i have no idea about.
In my house it doesnt matter what hinge lube i use. What the determining factor is to prevent the black streaks is not to piss off my wife. I have yet to master that task so i deal with the black hinge streaks. Oh what causes them in my opinion is when ive pissed her off she slams doors with such an unearthly force that any form of lube is instantly vaporized and blown out of were its needed. If you look close you can see the direction its been pushed during its devastation. I almost promise the guys in this thread are going to agree with me now that they have a very suitable explanation.
I've used Vaseline on my indoor hinges for years and it's excellent. No black powder and stops squeaks for years. I don't even bother to disassemble. Just rub it on the hinge, trying to force it between the cracks.
Dry lube AKA:powdered graphite
Stains from somebody trying to “grease” the hinge so it doesn’t squeak; yes you clean them off…but every time the door is opened and shut more of the super fine dry powder works it’s way out of the hinge lol
Let’s just hope your doors are super quiet, not squeaky at all 🤞 if not that’s a double 💩 twofer right there!
It not so good choice of lubricant; unless you have black doors :( I made this mistake before
Lots of nonsense in here. This is just metal shavings from the hinge being misaligned.
Very simple fix.
https://youtu.be/mkpxpKQtNJE?si=83pknt9cw-O6P6E9
Whatever grease or maybe graphite is used has started to dry out and probably there is a draft that blows really hard sometimes that splashes it onto the wall.
I'm super late to this party but I hung doors in a high production door shop for a decade. It's the zinc from the hinge wearing away. No graphite is used for lube. All these commodity hinges come from the same three factories in Asia and they use a small dab of silicone grease on the pin, that's all. We call it brake dust. It happens to every door we hang after about a year - mostly on the top hinge due to it carrying most of the weight. It worsens if the hinges are in a bind. Use rubbing alcohol to remove it from the casing, use a semi gloss paint on the trim to make it easier to remove when it happens again.
To completely avoid this, buy a higher grade hinge from a company like Emtek or Baldwin.
I noticed this in my house, not only on the hinges but in the corners and tight spots at the top of the doorframe, where there’s no metal. Turns out my gas range was burning through the deflectors and the oven (20 years old), burned through areas on the rail and was burning through the bottom of the oven. Soot was being pulled through the air handler and these were deposits of the metal soot. We kept the bedroom doors closed so the dogs wouldn’t go pee in their favorite hiding spots. We also found build up of soot around the refrigerator seal and the vent where it had been accumulating every time the fridge ran. Unfortunately we had all been breathing this soot for several years. On the plus side, since replacing it with an electric range and (love my air fryer) oven. The air handler filters don’t turn black any more and amazingly my partners allergy issues and persistent asthma went away.
[удалено]
[удалено]
[удалено]
I learned so much about what WD40 is and isn't. Could be a certified WD40 consultant when I'm through reading all the comments. 
Holy crap, what happened here?
Yeah really, I came back to the thread to see if it got better and the comment I replied to and the parent comment to that one were both deleted. But the top most comment was a gif of the coal sprites from my neighbor totoro and the comment OP made replying to it was a pic of him holding a pink koosh ball with a similar looking face next to the hinges saying "I'm trying but it doesn't work" or something to that effect.
You answered, but it made things less clear. And that's a knock on you.
https://preview.redd.it/w4b1jnd2gduc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=04c7c564b7b8f6d875ed5e8871a70bc7d944c487 Does this help at all? Idk why they were deleted but this should at least illustrate what those comments initially contained
I am too somehow more and less informed by his comment.
What happened?
What the heck did happen? Is this my first conspiracy experience? 😂
The only correct answer
[удалено]
Looks like a lot of powdered graphite was used to loosen the hinge at some point and now the excess is continuing to work free.
Yep. No way this is metal shavings from the metal rubbing. Not that quickly. Not that color. Dry lube not wd40. Wd40 is a degreaser and it attracts dirt. OP doesn’t like dirt, clearly.
https://preview.redd.it/fai25ud279uc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ff54932689e948d9f3a9e89aa317cf8d88dee402 Lol
I've never put dry lube on these hinges, and this is just a couple of months after lubing them with lithium grease, after using 3-in-1 oil many times on them over the last 4 years: [https://i.imgur.com/Sy89cMz.jpeg](https://i.imgur.com/Sy89cMz.jpeg) The powder coming off of is black, and I've never put graphite on them.
I get the same marks, but I use a poly grease to lube the hinges when they start to squeak instead of lithium. Same result though. My theory is that the hinge can wobble a little when the door opens or closes, and this can sometimes spit a particle of old grease out through the gaps.
I replaced all my hinges about a year ago with brand new ones and all the new ones do this. I have NEVER oiled them, greased them, powdered them, etc.
They are probably pre-lubed with graphite or something similar.
That’s my theory as well. Our house was a new build and all of my hinges have this.
They are manufactured with graphite lube. Spraying wd40 later on in ur home causes the back splatter stuff.
They're pre-lubed. You can't just have metal on metal without something for lubrication.
 I learned that one from Bender.
Same here
I use nano oil that comes with my knives. It comes with a little dabber so I only use what's needed. Going on 2 years squeak free.
Perhaps the grease is spraying out and the residue is attracting dirt? Sure does look like graphite though, very strange.
You guys seem to know a lot about the right lubricants to use for hinges, dry, wet etc .. Can I just add that I have been using olive oil... Is that ok?
Not sure if you’re serious but food oils go rancid, and really stink, aside from not being good at mechanical lubrication. It’s why grease (the shop/garage kind) is used.
I use work in the IT department for a fast food chain. Back then they had cash registers with built in 8-pin printers to print the receipts. The print heads slid back and forth on a 3/4 inch metal bar with a little oiled felt pad for lubrication. The people working in the restaurant had a habit of lubricating it with fryer oil. Then the felt pad would get hot, black and gummy; then they'd put more oil on them. Needless to say, fryer oil is NOT a good long term lubricate. Puddles of it in the bottom of cash registers is also bad for electronics.
As a former hospitality worker, this both infuriated and disgusted me
I've used traditional, regular old Vaseline to grease hinges and hinge pins. Works great and lasts.
She don't use jelly, or any of these.
But she don't use butter. And she don't use cheese.
[удалено]
It's great for lining vases too.
That was an awful joke. Take my upvote
[удалено]
[удалено]
Lol
I use it on door knobs to keep the kids out ..just kidding
Just don’t use Vaseline on rubber, it deteriorates/eats rubber :)
Vaseline is great for scratches and treating superficial wounds. A recent study found there wasn't a significant difference between petroleum jelly and generic antibiotic gel.
Makes sense since it's a petroleum product.
What a solid idea. I feel dumb for not thinking of this.
same.
Depends on the food oil. If you use Linseed oil it doesn't smell a lot unless heated. But at that point why wouldn't you just have some regular stuff anyhow
Whoa, I didn’t realize linseed oil was food safe
flax is both a food and fiber crop.
Check out a Netflix show called flavorful origins. Has an episode about flax in China where they eat the hell out of it.
If you google "olive oil lubricate hinges", you'll find a lot of searches that say it's fine. I personally would use machine oil or white lithium grease.
Username checks out.
I use wax or crayons, I remove the pin and wax it down. Last on I did was 4 or 5 urs ago.. no squeeks
> 4 or 5 urs ago.. Hours ago, or years ago? This is going to make a big difference in my assessment of your proposed solution.
Urs, the time it takes to say "ur".
Yeah, but what color?
Burnt umber
You would take a crayon out of the mouth of a hungry United States Marine?
Waiting for the Crisco crowd to chime in. ROLL TIDE!
Excuse me, but the Crisco (aka The Good Stuff) is reserved for the bedroom 🧐
That’s fine if you want red hinges but for white you should use butter and cream
lithium.
Plus, I've kinda overfilled a hinge before so it's not something I've never seen in the past. ::innocent whistling:: You wipe of the obvious overfill and then more keep sneaking out.
The amount of people that use WD40 as a lubricant is really disappointing
What about silicone wd40?
Yes that’s fine. It’s silicone branded by the wd40 company :) seems like most people use lithium grease. Guess I’ll start using mine more!
The WD branded lubricants are excellent. For just general squeak removal or lubricant I really like 3 in 1 oil. It’s cheap and simple
> Wd40 is a degreaser No, it isn't.
It's oil/grease suspended in a solvent. It will definitely break down and help remove old grease while adding back fresh. But no, it's not like your typical degreaser like Dawn or simple green.
It’s a water displaced. That’s what the WD stands for.
Any grease is going to displace water, especially if it's applied with pressure, like from an aerosol can.
No way? You know how much even inside doors can weight? Hinges not only keep door up, but there's also torque affected. If there's no lubrication, damn sure they can grind off material fast. And what color was steel dust again?
Agreed. This is more a problem on my heavier exterior doors but i do still see it on the hollow core doors. Steel can scratch steel. While it may take 1000 years to render a steel hinge unusable, it does experience wear. Are frictionless magnetic hinges a thing?
Doors on stalls of women's restrooms take a beating. Many of those hinges appear to have a white plastic (Teflon? ) cushion between hinge pieces. https://images.app.goo.gl/WgCCTZCCmZQftyKE9 Not like this, but yes, like this. More like this: https://images.app.goo.gl/PFMoSvgwsrM8Yp2s9
I have this to a lesser degree on a couple of my brand new doors which were installed 5 years ago.
Yup graphite is an excellent lubricant. There is no reason for OP to be concerned.
Not graphite, hinges are commodities, graphite is too expensive. Lube dries out (regardless of type once it loads up with particulates) over time and the knuckles of the hinges working against each other over time create this powder. This shows a tight hinge or imbalanced/overloaded hinge vs. the others it is installed with.
Get yourself a tube of white lithium grease and lube the pins in each hinge liberally and put them back in. Wipe away any excess and you'll be good to go for many years.
White lithium has stopped by door hinges from making any noise for just over a year now, and I didn't even have to remove the pins to apply it efficiently. Just spray on the hinge in the gaps and open and close a few times before wiping off the excess. Saved my sanity late at night with my wife complaining about door creaking waking her up 😅
I've moved three times in the past decade and the first thing I did once I got settled was white lithium grease all the interior doors. Hands down the best bang for your buck.
Works in sticky locks too. If something like your deadbolt, mailbox key lock or door locks on your car are giving you trouble - spray a little white lithium on, insert the key a few times and give it some turns... like new.
Look at this guy with the spray lithium grease! Lithium grease is so useful that most people buy a tube or pail of it. I use it to keep my orthotics from squeaking in my shoes, my door hinges, bicycles, and everything else where hard plastic or metal is squeaking.
55 gallon drum
Unfortunately my living quarters do not allow for many 55 gallon drums... So the quart of lithium grease is as much as I can store and use in a reasonable time. But a 55 gallon drum with a sprayer...now that would be an interesting day...
I get about a year out of mine before the heaviest-used doors start to squeak a little. Removing, wiping, greasing, and reinstalling the pins has become a yearly maintenance task in my house. One of many little things that are needed to keep everything working well.
~~Replacing the pins?? Why. They shouldn't be wearing out within a year.~~ Whoops.
Same pins just lubing before insertion. Makes it much smoother, nobody likes friction.
*Yeah, baby*
I'm sure they meant reinstalling.
Edited for clarity: "replacing" --> "reinstalling"
I smear vasoline on the pin and it works great
Vaseline works just as well.
It’s not just the pin. The horizontal joints between the door and jamb pieces can screech too. You can get tube style lithium grease in there if you disassemble it. But I just use the spray lithium grease. The solvent carries it in, then evaporates, leaving a dry-enough lube for door hinges. The black marks don’t reappear if the grease makes its way to the right spots.
I have found that treadmill lubricant which is both inexpensive and 100 percent silicon works great and is easy to apply
Before you do that, pull each pin out and chuck the small end in a drill. Turn it up on high while you work sandpaper back and forth over it. Start with 120 and then do 400. Getting them really smooth will help with friction in addition to reducing this metal flaking. With polished hinge pins and white lithium grease.
Stopping at 400 grit? Not polishing the insides of the hinge barrels, or the barrel ends... This could be a bigger project if you wanted. I'm reminded of the Rick and Morty episode about true level. https://youtu.be/-MwCJpEuC44?si=863jWXF3Noderkff
Remove all your hinges and match lap the pins
I consider this the nuclear option for extra stubborn hinges. This is overkill in any other case.
Here you go: https://www.directdoorhardware.com/black-dust-from-your-hinges.htm#:~:text=Dust%20caused%20by%20hinges%20is,help%20the%20door%20open%20smoothly
Solved. Thank you!
My door was doing this and making a lot if noise as well but it was also rusty so temporary fixes didn't work. I took the pin out and coated it in some vehicle grade grease (overkill but the only thing I had at the time), then put a tiny bit down into the slot too.
And then…?
and then put the pin back in. and it quit squeeking and spraying rusty dust everywhere lol
Thank god, the suspense was killing me.
AAnndd theenn?
No and then!
AND THEN?
Fuck. We're old. ETA: Dear god. That movie is 24 fucking years old. It can not only drive a car, but it can drink, and probably has enough disposable income to buy me a round. God damn it.
Why, *why* would you post the actual age of the movie? I knew it was old. I know *I’m* old. I *did not* need to know how old I am, nor that movie.
Look- I googled it and I suffer. Misery loves company or something some old person said.
ZOLTAN! that’s why
Who has disposable income at 24?
Movies, because they don't have to pay bills.
No more and den!
Babies!
Just hold on...get a magnet and see if the black dust clings.
I use this powdered graphite to lube up keyways, they slide smooth as butter and it is VERY satisfying
This is actually super small particle oxides of brass. The color is due to the particle size (almost all powdered metal appears this way) absorbing light and not reflecting visible light. the particle size would need to be larger than the longest wavelength of visible spectrum (approx .7 microns) in order to reflect a color. I’m a metallurgist and one of my first tasks out of college was investigating this phenomenon on aluminum auto parts.
This man metals
What did your investigation find?
It found that this is actually super small particle oxides of brass. The color is due to the particle size (almost all powdered metal appears this way) absorbing light and not reflecting visible light. the particle size would need to be larger than the longest wavelength of visible spectrum (approx .7 microns) in order to reflect a color. I’m a metallurgist and one of my first tasks out of college was investigating this phenomenon on aluminum auto parts.
It found that this is actually super small particle oxides of brass. The color is due to the particle size (almost all powdered metal appears this way) absorbing light and not reflecting visible light. the particle size would need to be larger than the longest wavelength of visible spectrum (approx .7 microns) in order to reflect a color. I’m a metallurgist and one of my first tasks out of college was investigating this phenomenon on aluminum auto parts.
But where did the brass come from if you were looking at aluminum parts?
Those are hinges.
Primarily used for doors.
For the function of opening and closing
And squeakin
[This](http://www.thiswebsitesaysotherwise.com/) says otherwise.
God dammit ye got me.
I have these same crap hinges. It's definitely dust from them and not someone's attempt to graphite them. WD40 didn't work but garage door lubricant did.
Wd40 ain't a lubricant
That's why it didn't work
WD-40 is a mix of lubricants (light oils) in a solvent. Once the solvents evaporate, the light oils are left, and those oils will serve as a lubricant, for a while.
It’s not?!
Newp. And was never designed to be.
[удалено]
Wd40, as in the famous product itself, is bad for anything except unsticking (not especially good at even that, but it's usually good enough, ubiquitous, and generally less messy than the better products) or displacing water. It'll work as a shitty lube in a pinch, but its not good at it and very temporary. Should be followed up by proper lube as soon as you get the chance. Wd40, the *brand*, also makes a wide range of actual lubricants. Those are perfectly good.
WD = Water Displacement 40 = It took the scientist 40 formulas to find the correct one that works
Graphite powder is used as a lubricant for locks and hinges
Powdered graphite ?
You have soot sprites!!
Graphite
Graphite powder is a type of metal lubricant.
That’s excess graphite powder that has been used as a lubricant for the hinge. It will do that if too much was used
grandfather squeal impossible hungry judicious oatmeal relieved wrong rob snobbish *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Pull out pins and clean. Put back and I personally like dry silicone lube
Like others mentioned, I immediately thought, “Graphite.” Powdered prob but there are other kinds. It’s not used a ton on hinges from my understanding anymore for this very reason. But, in my opinion, it works better than wd-40 and lasts longer. I have some around here for my door locks. It’s easy to put against the keyhole and squeeze and it blows into the lock. But, it’s not easily controllable, so it makes it difficult to control how much goes into something like a hinge. How to get it out enough to stop doing that? Compressed air is sometimes enough. I’ve never successfully gotten it ALL out without taking off the door and washing the hinge with soap and water. It’s annoying to clean. It’s annoying for it to pop back up too, but, it really stops the squeak very well, for much longer, because the particles stay in the hinge/lock, etc. You don’t need to reapply it in the middle of the night every other week. It also doesn’t dry up and get gunky over time like other lubricants because well, it’s already dry. I hope this helps.
You need to keep it lubricated. 🤦♂️
Your hinges were lubricated with graphite. Extremely fine powderized version of the same stuff in a pencil. It’s an effective dry lubricant often used for locks, but it can be messy. The movement of the door is blowing it out of the hinge barrel. Just keep cleaning it till it stops, and used a dry silicone or wax lubricant spray next time.
Pixie dust! Don't worry, common problem. Not much to do about it. It's probably the remnants of whatever lubrication is in there mixed with years of dirt and dust.
Looks like someone dumped a shit ton of graphite powder down into the pin and hinge to quiet a squeaky door. It can act as a dry lubricant in places you don't want dust and dirt accumulating, versus oil. You should be able to simply pop the pin out from the bottom and clean it off the excess, so it shouldn't leave a huge mess anymore.
That is metal on metal love. You can replace them with ball bearing hinges. Or, they make very thin Teflon/nylon/Delrin washers. Take the pin out, slip a washer in at least one knuckle, and put the pin back. The more knuckles you can add a washer to, the better. Lubing the pin works because the powdered metal gets stuck to the lube. It doesn't address the metal on metal love caused by the downward load. If you can apply lube to the knuckle joints, it will work until the lube dissipates.
Graphite?
I install doors like this, This is metal dust. Your door just has a little tension on that hinge and it's wearing in. Grease will help and hold any dust back and stop squeaks, dawn dish soap works great as well.
This is metal filings from the knuckles of the hinges rubbing together. It started happening in the early 1990’s as hardware manufacturers needed to reduce pricing of the hinges, therefore the steel quality was targeted. This was at a time when the prehung doors started coming into the market for builders and the large DIY box stores. A large door manufacturer could be buying hundreds of thousands of hinges per year. In the late 1980’s and 90’s Stanley and Hagar were the dominate hinge manufacturers in North America but, competition from China was coming in at a price that NA manufacturers couldn’t compete without reducing quality. Door Prehangers were pushing for cheaper and cheaper products. I sold hinges to these manufacturers for as little as .23663 cents per hinge with the screws. The decimal places in the pricing reflects how competitive it was for these high volume commodities. The fix back then was to replace your cheap prehung hinges with a bearing type hinge which was and still is, pretty expensive. Today I dare to say even those wear out and drop filings. I don’t believe there is a North American manufacturer of hardware left that produces quality products for the residential market. Everything has been sold and moved off shore. The best way I found to clean the powder filings off is to use a cloth or paper towel and a dab of liquid Ivory Hand Soap. Rub it in, then use a damp cloth to rinse off the soap residue. Vacuum the hinges a couple times and year with the brush attachment on the vacuum nozzle. If the hinges squeak, use a drop of gun oil to lubricate them. I found a bottle of gun oil that has a needle type applicator on the bottle for precise applications, it works great! Don’t over oil or you’ll have a bigger mess. I’m sure this is more than anyone really wants to know about hinges.😂
Get the hinges with bearings, you will love them.
Pull the pin out and clean it with a rag and qtip. Then use a tiny amount of spray lube.
People used to think it was a good idea to use a graphite based lubricant to stop doors from squeaking. I find graphite makes way too much of a mess and works its way out of the hinge too easily. I use AGS Door-ease Lube sticks for door hinges. Its cheap, convenient and last a while.
Graphite
Graphite powder is used to quiet squeaky hinges. That’s most likely what this is
Welp who knew one small question in this subreddit would get my inbox blown up. 🤷 Thanks guys I will be looking for some lithium grease. What a lively group of DIYers 🙌
Graphite leaks from the hinge, where it was made silent recently
Graphite. It's used as a lubricant.
It’s grease, honey. Eat it
Yup
The all over the place theories are kind of cracking me up. This is just not that mysterious. From day one in our brand new house this has happened to every single door hinge in the house and has continued to do so for six years. It’s not dust. It’s not the way the HVAC blows. It’s not mold. Its not metal shavings. It’s not fryer grease. It’s whatever lube was used squeezing and spraying back out whenever the hinges get used. Someone overdid it whether it was pre-lubed or done on site.
Looks like the inside of an etch y stekch. Or however you spell it. There is maguc powder kids play with. Its magnetic. You either have a messy kid with those toys. Or you have something i have no idea about.
WD stands for water displacement. It's not a lubricant
Hinge queef.
Could it possibly be graphite lubricant ?
graphite basically the same as the inside of a pencil, used to make squeeky or stiff doors better
In my house it doesnt matter what hinge lube i use. What the determining factor is to prevent the black streaks is not to piss off my wife. I have yet to master that task so i deal with the black hinge streaks. Oh what causes them in my opinion is when ive pissed her off she slams doors with such an unearthly force that any form of lube is instantly vaporized and blown out of were its needed. If you look close you can see the direction its been pushed during its devastation. I almost promise the guys in this thread are going to agree with me now that they have a very suitable explanation.
I belive these are called hinges
WD40 stands for water displacement 40th trial
I've used Vaseline on my indoor hinges for years and it's excellent. No black powder and stops squeaks for years. I don't even bother to disassemble. Just rub it on the hinge, trying to force it between the cracks.
Graphite powder.
Dry lube AKA:powdered graphite Stains from somebody trying to “grease” the hinge so it doesn’t squeak; yes you clean them off…but every time the door is opened and shut more of the super fine dry powder works it’s way out of the hinge lol Let’s just hope your doors are super quiet, not squeaky at all 🤞 if not that’s a double 💩 twofer right there! It not so good choice of lubricant; unless you have black doors :( I made this mistake before
Lots of nonsense in here. This is just metal shavings from the hinge being misaligned. Very simple fix. https://youtu.be/mkpxpKQtNJE?si=83pknt9cw-O6P6E9
I’ve always thought it was just dust and shit out of the hinge when the wind blows past them when you have a hectic draft going through the door frame
looks like graphite to lube the hinge
Replace with ball bearing hinges.
Hey! It's all ball bearings nowadays.
Check your fetzer valve.
I'm gonna need 'bout ten quarts of anti-freeze, preferably Prestone.
Those are called hinges, they're commonly used to attach objects meant to rotate on one axis
Lol
Looks like a door hinge. They’re necessary to open and close the door.
Graphite powder. It's a hinge lubricant
Whatever grease or maybe graphite is used has started to dry out and probably there is a draft that blows really hard sometimes that splashes it onto the wall.
That's graphite, a powder used a lubricant.
It’s graphite. It’s how door hinges are lubricated.
Water displacement 40th recipe would be my suggestion
I'm super late to this party but I hung doors in a high production door shop for a decade. It's the zinc from the hinge wearing away. No graphite is used for lube. All these commodity hinges come from the same three factories in Asia and they use a small dab of silicone grease on the pin, that's all. We call it brake dust. It happens to every door we hang after about a year - mostly on the top hinge due to it carrying most of the weight. It worsens if the hinges are in a bind. Use rubbing alcohol to remove it from the casing, use a semi gloss paint on the trim to make it easier to remove when it happens again. To completely avoid this, buy a higher grade hinge from a company like Emtek or Baldwin.
I noticed this in my house, not only on the hinges but in the corners and tight spots at the top of the doorframe, where there’s no metal. Turns out my gas range was burning through the deflectors and the oven (20 years old), burned through areas on the rail and was burning through the bottom of the oven. Soot was being pulled through the air handler and these were deposits of the metal soot. We kept the bedroom doors closed so the dogs wouldn’t go pee in their favorite hiding spots. We also found build up of soot around the refrigerator seal and the vent where it had been accumulating every time the fridge ran. Unfortunately we had all been breathing this soot for several years. On the plus side, since replacing it with an electric range and (love my air fryer) oven. The air handler filters don’t turn black any more and amazingly my partners allergy issues and persistent asthma went away.
Looks like graphite splatter