Anybody have an opinion on sliding pocket doors?
We have some in a house in NJ which lead to a formal dining room.... pretty neat, but they stopped working sometime in the last forty years [smiley=undecided.gif]
Looking at the plans for Victoria's Cottage and the amount of swinging room hinged doors need, it seemed like a couple of these might be a good thing.
I have sold a few of the (Stanley) kits, but never installed one. Just wondering how much of a pain they are, especially vs. mortising hinges [smiley=rolleyes.gif], and if they are worth the effort.
Billy bob a few tips on installing trim on pocket doors here:
http://www.countryplans.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1140146374
This was on the home page John must have dropped it for another :'( ;D
Johnson / postman brand is the best I've used metal stud , 4 roller per door .
(http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0006FSRY0.01-A1BI51VSTQQPT0._SS500_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg%20)
They said click for larger image :-/ :-/ ::)
Also new pocket door hardware is avaible that goes in a normal 2 3/8" bored hole , witha normal 7/8" Backset hole as well, avoid the old style latch that needs a knotch cut into the door edge .
(http://www.johnsonhardware.com/images/1521/1521.jpg%20)
Seems most pocket doors have some kind of problem or other after while. That's what I remember most about them.
On a seldom used area like a dining room I wouldn't hesitate to use them again.
On a bathroom I found it annoying. Just the method of closing a pocket door is awkward if you are even slightly in a hurry. With a regular door, you control the closure the whole way, but with a pocket door, you have to pull a lever or latch and then switch your hand around to a small indentation to guide it home. I suppose some folks use them and don't give it a second thought... Not me.
Thanks for the tips, guys.
I like that hardware, PEG. I like the organization, too; ya can never have too many of those smaller plastic tool boxes.
Your thoughts are very telling, Dberry. On the other hand the thread on urinals, especially the "take it outdoors" themes, means possibly less urgency about closing the door.
[smiley=wink.gif]
I was thinking about building the victorias cottage, but my wife upgraded to the universal 2 story. At the time I was researching pocket doors for a similar reason to yours. This website shows some of the best pocket door hardware I could find. It was given top ratings by a number of people I talked to.
http://johnsonhardware.com/
There have been some recent upgrades to hardware as you note above. One of the big problems traditionally with pocket doors is that impact from kids and dogs beat up the interior track and these are very difficult to repair. See if you can anticipate this hardware repair.
We have two pocket doors in a lightly used area and they have worked perfect for 20 years.
Agree with the posts about pocket door "problems," and am in the process of removing a pocket door from one bathroom and re-using it as a standard door. It got stuck in the frame on occasion and is slightly scratched. Guests HATED it! The bath is in the master bedroom, and they always ended up locking the bedroom door and leaving the bathroom door open so they didn't have to deal with it.
But using double pocket doors that open between a living/dining room, den/living room, etc., is still a good idea, especially with the new hardware. Unless you really like bead curtains! ;D
There are always those really nasty-looking accordian doors.
Or Western barroom type swinging doors.
I'm thinking bifold into a bathroom. Only about half the swing.