Anyone installed a Pocket Door?

[Scarpozzi]

I've got a 750sq foot room that I'm going to add interior walls to to form a few closets, a bedroom and a bathroom... I began framing the walls for it Monday and after I started, I decided I want to have a pocket door so I don't have to worry about door swing into the bathroom...

What size of door should I put in? I was going to just shoot for a 36" door, but wonder if I should go smaller to keep the weight down. I saw kits from 28"-30"-32"-34"-36"....so I could do anything.

Does anyone have any pointers for installing one?

Here's what I'm working with now. For scale, those framed walls are 10' tall and that's a 60" TV in the box up against the wall..... I'm going to put the pocket where the 2x4 is on the floor and have it slide from the right to the left (so closed it will be right around where the chair closest to the camera is)

 

[highland145]

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=pocket door&sm=3

 

[OCGuy]

Is that like wearing your boxers backwards?

 

[Red Squirrel]

Put two smaller ones on each side of the opening and make it actuated by a button, so it's like a spaceship door.

 

[IronWing]

Check your building code before selecting a door width. 30" minimum is often required.

Check ebay for antique pocket door hardware. There is some pretty cool stuff to be had.

 

[boomerang]

Remember that if you plan to mount a towel bar or anything else for that matter to the wall that contains the pocket, you will not have a lot to fasten to. Installing blocking will be doubly important and remembering not to use fasteners that are too long will be very important. Other than that, being plumb and square will be very important because after the drywall is up, you're stuck with what you framed in. (Installed actually.)

 

[Scarpozzi]

Check your building code before selecting a door width. 30" minimum is often required.

Check ebay for antique pocket door hardware. There is some pretty cool stuff to be had.

Yeah...I was thinking about going with a 32" minimum, but wanted to go with a 36"....just wasn't sure how well those brackets held a heavier door.

My cousin put in a small pocket door in his bathroom, but it was just for a "throne room"...so it was a very small door compared to the entrance/exits to the bathroom.

 

[IronWing]

Remember that if you plan to mount a towel bar or anything else for that matter in the wall that contains the pocket, you will not have a lot to fasten to.

I'm somewhat surprised I haven't yet pounded a nail into the open door. "I think I hit the stud! Oh oh."

 

[sixone]

Go with a 36" door. You'll be hanging an interior door, so the weight won't matter much, once it's installed. A good slider system is mandatory.

 

[boomerang]

I'm somewhat surprised I haven't yet pounded a nail into the open door. "I think I hit the stud! Oh oh."

Or have it in just deep enough to scratch the hell out of the door when you close it. Oh-oh...

 

[rommelrommel]

Pocket doors are hard for door installers to get right, I would not do this one yourself. If you mess up and it jams you're pulling the wall apart to fix it.

 

[mizzou]

ahhh, back in the good ol' days when houses were interesting! Update this with pics OP when you are done.

 

[vi edit]

I've got three pocket doors in my house and hate every single one of them. One so much that I'm trying to figure out how hard it will be to tear out and put in a conventional framed/hinged door.

 

[IronWing]

On the door frame opposite the pocket door do put in a trim piece for the door to snug up against, maybe even two trim pieces to form a "catcher" for the sliding door. Without some sort of trim on that side of the door frame, privacy is less than ideal for a bathroom.

 

[Scarpozzi]

On the door frame opposite the pocket door do put in a trim piece for the door to snug up against, maybe even two trim pieces to form a "catcher" for the sliding door. Without some sort of trim on that side of the door frame, privacy is less than ideal for a bathroom.

That'll be no problem to add. I'm sure I'm going to be doing trim work for years on this addition....

Pocket doors are hard for door installers to get right, I would not do this one yourself. If you mess up and it jams you're pulling the wall apart to fix it.

I'll have the door in before I ever hang drywall so I'll have plenty of room to work on getting it right before it's set in stone. I am just trying to get the framing done, including the door so I can run my electrical and get the inspector in to approve everything. Once he does that, I'll be ready to insulate and start hanging drywall.

 

[sixone]

I'll have the door in before I ever hang drywall so I'll have plenty of room to work on getting it right before it's set in stone. I am just trying to get the framing done, including the door so I can run my electrical and get the inspector in to approve everything. Once he does that, I'll be ready to insulate and start hanging drywall.

What's going to be on the outside of that wall?

You could hang the door on the wall, instead of building a pocket for it. It means that you can't set a piece of furniture there, or that you need to leave space for the door to slide behind it.

 

[RearAdmiral]

What size of door should I put in? I was going to just shoot for a 36" door, but wonder if I should go smaller to keep the weight down. I saw kits from 28"-30"-32"-34"-36"....so I could do anything.

Heh. This made me laugh, construction on the brain!

 

[z1ggy]

I was thinking this would be a flap inside my jean pockets so I can diddle myself and not have anybody notice.

Wait.. Did I just invent something...?

 

[Phoenix86]

I installed a pocket window once when I was younger, sadly I don't think the experience is relevant here.

Good luck!

 

[Scarpozzi]

What's going to be on the outside of that wall?

You could hang the door on the wall, instead of building a pocket for it. It means that you can't set a piece of furniture there, or that you need to leave space for the door to slide behind it.

There's going to be a bed directly across the room @ probably 20 feet away. I thought about running coax and power up that wall past where the door stops and mounting a tv there, but may opt to put one on the wall of one of the shed dormers instead with a sitting area. It just depends on what makes more sense since the tv would be so far away from any sitting area or the bed....plus I worry about it being near moisture in the bathroom. That enclosed space (counting where the bathroom is) is shaped like a plus sign due to the pitch of the roof. I've just not framed the knee walls yet.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Heh. This made me laugh, construction on the brain!

Yeah....I know. I'm just not sure if there's a pocket door standard. I try to keep all my doors at 36" when possible to make moving furniture easier, though the builder of my house didn't follow that rule.

 

[Phoenix86]

There's going to be a bed directly across the room @ probably 20 feet away. I thought about running coax and power up that wall past where the door stops and mounting a tv there, but may opt to put one on the wall of one of the shed dormers instead with a sitting area. It just depends on what makes more sense since the tv would be so far away from any sitting area or the bed....plus I worry about it being near moisture in the bathroom. That enclosed space (counting where the bathroom is) is shaped like a plus sign due to the pitch of the roof. I've just not framed the knee walls yet.

Since you are framing you may want to install a conduit down the wall just past where the door hangs.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Since you are framing you may want to install a conduit down the wall just past where the door hangs.

Definitely...I'm going to add conduit when I get my official low voltage plan together. There's a staircase just below the outside of the room that will have a closet in it....the closet is going to be my new data hub for the house.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Get out a tape measure and get what fits. 30-32" should be fine. Since you are still rough framing, you might need to move the wall closer to the cameras location so that thing in the upper right is not in the way of the slider. No rule that says 4" studs either.

 

[skyking]

send me a PM when you get started, I can help over the phone or whatever. I installed two on our bathroom remodel and one into the master closet. I had to cut one down in height to make it work.
The typical big box doors are pretty flimsy and don't allow much leeway for trimming. I had to put a filler back in after I cut the bottom of the door off.
Plan on furring out the wall a bit if you want a switch in it. I ripped some stuff 2 1/4" and that took care of clearances.
I installed custom steel studs in my bathroom wall to accommodate ADA grab rails.
Plan on 5/8" rock on any bare pocket door wall. It is really necessary to make a firm wall.
Buy some 1 1/4" screws to install that rock. 1 5/8" will stick through and tear up the door at minimum.

Make sure to install the lower guides. Without them the doors will catch on the trim and it will mar the paint. I prepaint the doors before installing, then touch them up.