pocket door install

[Michelle]

Can anyone share their experiences converting an existing doorway to a pocket door? Pros and Cons are welcome. Considering doing this during our bathroom renovation.

Thanks!

[nospambob]

[dadiOH]

My best advice...

1. If at all possible, avoid pocket doors

1. If you can't avoid them, buy the *VERY BEST* pocket you can find (or have it built). Many of them are shoddily built - they need to be solid/straight/rigid because you won't have the normal studs to firm up the wall. (A possible alternative would be to build two stud walls with a pocket between...you'd wind up with a solid but thick wall.) You also need good door hanging hardware - even if it is a light door - because once hung and trimmed it is a PITA to get to the hardware again.

-- dadiOH _____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.0... ...a help file of info about MP3s, recording from LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that. Get it at

[CAStinneford]

You can certainly do it but you'll need to open the wall up where the door will be going to install the hardware for it. If there are any electric, heat, AC or water lines, they'll have to be rerouted. The door will have a tendency to warp because of exposure to bathroom moisture. Other than that, no problems. :-) Good luck.

[Jeff Wisnia]

If your bathroom privacy needs make it likely that folks will be closing and opening it frequently, I can tell you that it's a heck of a lot easier to work a conventional hinged door than any pocket door I've ever used, particularly in the middle of the night when I'm half asleep and the lighting is dim. And, if you'd like a privacy latch on that bathroom door, the options for those on for pocket doors aren't anywhere as easy to use as doors with a regular "doorknob".

If it's gonna be left open 99% of the time, then an open pocket door looks neater will help you avoid unsightly black eyes from walking into the edge of a partially open hinged door under those abovementioned nightime conditions.

I suggest that you try a pocket door and think about it some before you make your decision.

HTH,

Jeff

[Joseph Meehan]

I would not recommend a pocket door for a bath. They have been used sometimes in an effort to save a little space, but frankly I don't like the idea. It is the wrong tool for the job. The heavy use and moisture, will make it a high maintenance door.

[calhoun]

I have done this. People in wheel chairs like it. The door operates easier for them and the opening is wider. I don't know why moisture would effect it more than if hinged they are the same slab. You just need to strip off the plaster/drywall to the studs. Temporarily support ceiling on both sides of wall and remove studs. Install header reframe and install the pocket kit. The ones I use are steel channels with wood inset. Install new drywall.

[Sue]

On a related note, we have a VERY small 1/2 bath (4' x 4'6") in the master and I'd like to replace the conventional door with something else. I don't want to do a pocket door because I'd have to move some of the electrical. I don't like the hinged jobs.

I was thinking of a sliding door that just has the rail at the top, (I believe AKA a barn door, trolley rail attachment). A friend has one on a closet in the house he just bought and it looks great. Anyone have any experience with this? Know where to find such a thing?

[Bill Schnakenberg]

How about a folding door? It's not a security door, but a privacy door, so no one sees your peepee.

[Paul Franklin]

I'll add my .02.

I wasn't too crazy about pocket doors, but on a bath remodel here it was the only way to get the room arrangement we really wanted.

I bought a standard pocket door hardware kit and it was no biggie to install it.

But the best thing I did was to choose a solid core door instead of a cheapy hollow door. It makes all the difference. It slides smoothly and feels substantial, and of course, blocks those "sounds" better as well.

HTH,

Paul

[Jeff Wisnia]

Sue's a guy???

Who woulda thought it?

Jeff

[Bill Schnakenberg]

You're right, women don't have a peepee.

[Sue]

well I ***could**** be the boy named Sue ;). Pee pee (or lack thereof) issues aside, I don't like the folding doors, just personal preference. I guess I didn't make myself clear when I refered to them as hinged instead of folding. sorry.

[Bill Schnakenberg]

No problem Sue. I assumed we all have peepees, whether they are on the outside or inside. If you like that barn door arrangement, then go for it.

[HA HA Budys Here]

Guy or Girl, you *still* won't see the pee ppe.

[Will Niccolls]

"Sue"

Well, look who's remodeling!

Most hardware stores sell "bypass" door hardware parts for closet doors. You could probably rig something up with those parts. A track bolted to the wall and hidden by a valence, rollers on the door, a guide on the floor, I think you'd be set. I'm hoping to do something similar for my laundry closet. Check

also.

Will

[dadiOH]

I think he was talking about doors that fold - they aren't like flat, hinged doors - that fold up in pleats like an accordian. They travel in a straight line like pocket doors, don't swing like hinged doors.

-- dadiOH _____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.0... ...a help file of info about MP3s, recording from LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that. Get it at

[William W. Plummer]

First, be careful about monkeying with a load-bearing wall.

We needed a door to block the entrance to the laundry+bathroom and couldn't use a pocket door without major surgery. A bifold door served for a few years but we never liked it. An advantage was a little hook-and-eye latch was installed to prevent embarrassment, important to women.

Later I removed the door so I could scrape up the old flooring. GF wanted something to block the view and installed a heavy cloth curtain. It works well and if she ever selects our floor tile, we'll be tempted to leave it in place rather than solving the "what kind of door.." puzzle.

[Sue]

You too eh? yeah who knew it was such fun.