Wooden door swollen shut

[Slatterna]

My wooden front door is swollen shut due to water ingress (caused by a neighbour's negligence).

I can't open it. Neighbour has said he'll pay for damage but is generally full of shit and despite him acting all sincere I'll believe it when I see it.

I'm not sure if there's much that can be done? Will it recede in time perhaps or am I going to have to get a new door? which the neighbour will likely avoid paying for

It will probably shrink in hot dry weather.
Could you push it open and plane the bit where it sticks?

No chance of that for a while! I might try pushing from outside, it'll need to be on a weekend though I don't want to risk being unable to shut the door when I've to get to work.

I don't have a plane. Would sandpaper be any good?

If it is so swollen that you can't even force it open then no, sandpaper will be ineffective. Be careful with planing too much off as come summer you will have gaps. If this was a one off then I would be nervous about planing. I would only plane if this was a recurring winter event.

It will probably shrink in drier weather. I would wait to see what happens before you start shaving bits off it.

Then you need to make sure that it is properly sealed all the way round ie paint or varnish it including the sides and top and bottom.

If you've got a fan heater, you could set it up to play on the door, to try and dry it out. I wouldn't leave it unattended, use only when you are in the house.

It was (hopefully) a one off. I'll see how it is doing in a few days. So annoying! The neighbour is a complete twat and totally negligent and ignorant. If he has to pay for a new door I can see him trying to wriggle out of it.

You could try going through your insurance if your neighbour has caused the issue.

My side door does this every time it rains - it always dries out and then fits again.

If you can borrow a dehumidifier for a while, pop it behind the door and see if it helps. We had an unknown (for a while) flood in our bathroom under the wood flooring and it took a dehumidifier a week to draw out enough water to make it shrink back so we could close the door again.