Q–I am considering pocket doors for an upcoming project. However, neighbors of mine have had several problems with their pocket doors. Their doors routinely jump out of the track and rub the frame. Is it easy to adjust pocket doors?
Are there restrictions as to what kinds of doors we can use? Can I install double pocket doors like the ones in my parents’ old house?
A–Pocket doors are a wise choice because they offer many advantages. Very popular at the turn of the 20th century, they enjoyed renewed success in the 1950s and I believe their time has come again. I have installed nearly a hundred smooth-operating pocket doors in the past 10 years. Every customer has been delighted with them.
Construction costs of new housing and room additions are rising each day, so it’s vital to make use of every square foot of finished living space. A standard pivoting, hinged door can steal nearly 10 square feet of floor space. It requires a wasted area for the storage of the swinging door when it is opened. Paintings or pictures can be hidden behind an open hinged door. Unsightly baseboard- or hinge-doorstops are needed to prevent holes in the walls from banging doorknobs.
Pocket doors eliminate all of these problems. The secret to smooth, trouble-free pocket doors lies in the frame and hardware. A box-shaped track and tricycle hangers with nylon wheels are a must. These items prevent the doors from ever jumping off the track.
Thin studs that create the hidden pocket for the door need to be wrapped with steel on three sides. The steel prevents warping of the thin furring strips. This warping may be one of the reasons your neighbor’s door rubs when it goes in and out of the pocket. The steel also prevents drywall nails or screws from penetrating through the thin studs. Deeply driven fasteners can scratch the door as it opens and closes.
I think your neighbor’s pocket door problems can be traced to inferior hardware and possibly some critical installation errors.
Quality pocket door hardware allows you to easily make adjustments once the door has been installed and trimmed. In many cases, all you have to do is temporarily remove one side of the top door jamb. A good carpenter will install these with small-head trim screws. Once the piece of wood is removed, you can gain easy access to the door suspension parts. Often you simply need to flip a lever to separate the door from the rollers. Adjustments are made quickly and easily with standard tools. It is possible to complete the entire adjustment process in as little as 10 to 15 minutes.
There is virtually no limit to the type of door you can install in a pocket door frame. Flush, 6-panel, partial glass-panel, and even frosted- or hammered-glass full-light doors are possible.
Many standard pocket door frames and hardware will support doors that weigh up to 125 pounds. With an optional kit, you can install a 200-pound door.
Double-acting pocket doors are no problem. You simply install two pocket door frames that point at each other. I intend to install this setup in the study of my next Victorian house.
Pocket doors are excellent choices for people who use canes, walkers or wheelchairs. If you install a 36-inch-wide pocket door frame with a hidden bumper and a U-shaped handicapped door pull, you can achieve a finished opening of just over 32 inches. This will allow easy passage for those individuals who are challenged with swinging doors.
Your painter will need to cooperate during the installation process. All hidden edges and surfaces of the doors must be painted or sealed before the carpenter installs the door into the pocket because high humidity can cause unprotected doors to twist and warp.
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Have questions about the remodeling process? Write to Tim Carter, c/o The Chicago Tribune, P.O. Box 36352, Cincinnati, Ohio 45236-0352. Questions will be answered only in the column.
For step-by-step instructions on pocket door installation, a list of manufacturers of high-quality pocket door frames and hardware and other tips on pocket doors, send $2 and your name and address to Tim Carter at the above address. Ask for Builder Bulletin No. 185.
For a list of past Builder Bulletins and a wide variety of individual job bid sheets, send a business-size, stamped, self-addressed envelope to the same address.
Ask the Contractor can also be accessed via the Internet at http://www.chicago.tribune.com/homes/articles/askcon.
