need help installing door sweep! screws won't go in

doitmyself89

My roommate and I have recently purchased a metal door sweep to attach to the bottom of the door. I am unsure what my door is made of (it looks like wood on one side but the other side looks like metal and when I knock on it it sounds hollow). Using the drill, I tried putting the screws in the door (using different amounts of pressure each time) to no avail. The screws just won't go in! They seem to make a very small mark at first and then just stop going in. I've double checked that the drill is set to screw in the right direction, and I've tried using both the screws that came with the door sweep and different screws made to go into metal. What could I be doing wrong? Please help!

rossfingal

If the door sweep is being screwed into metal -
try pre-drilling the metal, with a drill size smaller than the diameter of the
screw -
Don't over-drive the screws.

rossfingal

NHtransplant

If you drill a pilot hole it should work.
If it doesn't or you just want to give up on the screws, you can use some adhesive tape. 3M has some mounting tapes (double sided) that you could find at a hardware store and they are weather proof and permanent. Just make sure you have the height of the sweep right first because you won't be able to move it afterward.

danpik

It is probably a metal door. Try a magnet to verify.

rossfingal

It's probably an aluminum door - magnets won't work.
It could be wood-grain on one side - that's why it looks like wood.

danpik

Yeah, he's probably right. Ignore what I said.

joecaption

Just drill a pilot hole and it will work.
Unless you have self tapping screws you will never get them in without a hole.