‘So that’s why it’s called a door stop!’: People stunned to discover extra ‘use’ for coiled door spring… but not everyone is convinced

Like a wasp attracted to a slice of jam on toast… Nothing can be more attractive to a bored child than a springy door stop.

Often in an older relative’s home, these rolled-up treats are a source of instant pleasure, as long as the youngster is allowed to “cuff” them before being dragged away by his parents.

But could all those uncles and aunts have been using their doorstops incorrectly all these years? A TikToker has made a controversial claim about a little-known additional use – and it’s seriously dividing opinion.

Some have labeled the added utility genius while responding to the ‘hack’ claiming it could cause ‘damage’.

An eight-second video, reposted to

The post – captioned: ‘Oh, so that’s why it’s called a door stopper???’ – has been viewed 5 million times since August 16, prompting hundreds of X users to respond with both disbelief and doubt.

In the footage, a person suggestively swings a door back and forth in his home, before placing his foot firmly on the attachment to hold it down.

In the footage, a person suggestively swings a door back and forth in his home, with the caption: “And you need it to stay open.”

The person then points the camera at the coiled metal spring attached to the bottom wall behind the door, before placing their foot firmly on the attachment to hold it down.

While standing on the doorstop, the person then pulls the door inward, over both the base and the spring, so that the door is held firmly in place by the attachment.

Ending the video with ‘You’re welcome’, the door was shown to be held in place by the spring, prompting many to express their displeasure in the comments section.

One person wrote: “Look at this lol,” while another said: “Every post from @todayyearsoldig makes me feel more like an idiot.”

A perplexed

However, the video was widely criticized by cynical viewers who claimed that the hack was counterproductive and that going against Doorstop’s intended purpose could “damage” the wall behind the door.

One person wrote: ‘This clip just shows how to manipulate a door stop to make it a door holder. They are two different pieces of hardware.”

While standing on the door stop, the person then pulls the door inward, over both the base and the spring, so that the door is held firmly in place by the attachment

The footage prompted hundreds of

Another said of the door stopper: ‘It’s to prevent the doorknob from damaging the wall. The reason it is a coil spring is to prevent the screw from ripping out of the wall when you step on it. The end.

A third unfazed viewer wrote: ‘This guy is just using the spring design for a different purpose than intended. He runs the risk of damaging his wall, exactly the damage a door stop is designed to prevent.’

One person, unfazed by the divisiveness in the comments, expressed a desire to continue his childhood pastime, writing, “No, I’ll keep bouncing my door off the well. Good times.’

MailOnline has contacted a construction and carpentry company for further comment.

In 2013, a council tenant botched the job on his rental property so badly that he had to pay £5,000 because his work was deemed ‘dangerous’.

George Brassington, 71, from Manchester, installed new doors and a sink, built a shed and demolished a kitchen cupboard to make room for a tumble dryer in the three-bedroom council house he shared with his wife Ivy of 20 years.

But after he moved out, housing association officials ruled his DIY work would be ‘dangerous’ to future tenants and sent Mr Brassington a bill for £5,000 to cover the cost of repairing it.