apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Love pocket doors. Have spec'd them for all new doors in our (small) house.

Hello, chair. It's been awhile. You seem well.

I have one pocket door in my home and wish there were more. In so many situations, they make so much sense. They disappear and take up no living space when they are open. They might not work in all situations, but I too would like to see them used more.

We have pocket doors in our current apartment that we almost never close, so when we do, it feels like there's a weird blank space. But otherwise I think they're really nice.

I wish I had pocket doors in my space. I have been tempted many times to take down the doors I have

We need more pocket doors - esp in small spaces like bathrooms and powder rooms where swinging doors just get in the way.

Just curious, that really is a cute chair... any name?

Good point. I wonder why they're not used more often these days.

woodleyparkzoo, it's the Gubi Chair. We got ours on craigslist.

Pocket doors are great. Problem is, the hardware you can buy for them at the local hardware store is really bad, the door doesn't run smoothly no matter how carefully you install it. And to hire a real carpenter to make a good one for you costs a fortune. Maybe if we all keep searching the web for better hardware, someone will notice and start selling it.

How do you replace a pocket door??? My condo has one - a horrible fake veneer thing from the 70's. You can't paint over it either. Nothing sticks to that garbage.

I'd love to replace it with even a generic 6 panel builder door since even that would look orders of magnitude better. Basically I have a pocket door that's too hideously ugly to use.

The only way I can see to replace it is to rip out walls - and if I do that, I sure won't put one back in. There has to be a better way.

OK, I should have googled. I do like pocket doors...it's that mine is so fugly and I'm so embarrassed of it (to have something that ugly in my home). It's in good shape, it's just...well never mind.

Here's what I found on replacing them. If the track is in good shape it's relatively easy. I sense a trip to Lowes is in my near future.

http://www.ronhazelton.com/projects/repairing-pocket-door.htm

Johnson Hardware is a great source for all things pocket door and door hardware.

www.johnsonhardware.com

They even recommend Ron Hazelton's video on their site. You can order new hardware from Johnson's Web site.

BTW, I replaced that pocket door today. It was a lot easier than I thought it would be even with putting new trim on. That Ron Hazelton tutorial is great. The worst part is priming and painting...all the little detail stuff. The new one is just a standard 6 panel door from Lowes but compared to what was there...everybody in these condos hates the original doors.

FYI... pocket doors are an often recommended building or remodeling tip for those who use wheelchairs. It's much easier for someone to push the door to the side then to have to back up to make room for the door, etc.