Pocket Doors
We just bought a limestone that has two sets of double pocket/sliding doors and one single pocket/sliding door. Two of the doors are completely stuck in their off-the-track position in walls where we weren’t planning on opening up the plaster. Does anyone know if it is possible to put the doors back on their tracks…
We just bought a limestone that has two sets of double pocket/sliding doors and one single pocket/sliding door. Two of the doors are completely stuck in their off-the-track position in walls where we weren’t planning on opening up the plaster.
Does anyone know if it is possible to put the doors back on their tracks without taking out the wall? I assume they run on a bottom track but am not certain.
Also, we would like to strip them of their years of paint. Is this also possible to do in place? I’m skimping here to help pay for the kitchen we need to put in (there isn’t much of an existing one to speak of).
Thanks for any information!
A skilled carpenter should be able to remove the doors without damaging the walls or surroundings moldings. We moved a very large set of pocket doors and reinstalled them in another part of the house without a problem. For the reinstallation, our carpenter hung the doors on hardware designed just for this purpose and available from Simon’s on 3rd Ave in Manhattan. They operate much more smoothly than our other set of pcoket doors than still run on a track on the floor.
Remove the baseboard molding on either side of the wall and you should be able to gain access to the lower track to make a visual inspection and/or work the door free from the pocket.
Once the door is out of the pocket you should be able repair the floor and/or track so that the door can move freely.
The lower “rail” of our top rails simply gave way, leaving our pocket doors resting on the floor; we were told there was no way to repair them without opening up the walls. So there they sit, edges visible (we painted the edges the same color as the moulding to camoflauge them), for 20 years. :{
Rick may be right – hope he is, for your sake! The pocket doors in our 1851 brownstone are on the tracks and kind of work – but not very well. The issue for us isn’t electrical cables, but the “settling” (read: pretty significant sloping) of the whole house over the years. We were told repairing them would be a huge job and cost thousands…though perhaps it was simply a job our contractor didn’t want to do. Anyone else have experience with this?
You need to get the doors pulled out of their pockets. ( Shake, Rattle & Roll may apply here ) Be sure to check and see if an electrical outlet is holding the door in place. I’ve seen electric cables go through pocket doors because of a need for a new outlet and no concern for the door. On double doors be sure to remove the overhead stop. Once you get the door out of the pocket, lift it up and pull the bottom out making sure the wheels clear the track. Get a strong light and a thin broom and clean out the pockets & tracks. I’m sure there will be lots of old plaster, perhaps an old newspaper, or kids toys that made it back there. Strip the doors and you’re ready to put them back. Oil the wheels & track and you should be good to go. Good Luck.