How to Install Sliding Doors

There is probably not a single person who is completely happy with the size of their home. No matter how much space there is, for some reason, it is always not enough. The installation of sliding doors, which look very attractive and modern, giving the room a certain zest, will help to free up some space. These doors can be adapted to any style. If their design is well chosen, they can become a chic addition to the interior.

Before proceeding to the installation of sliding doors in Cape Coral, it is necessary to weigh the pros and cons. Like all other designs, sliding doors are not perfect. They have their advantages and disadvantages that will make their installation impractical in some environments.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Sliding Doors

Let's start with the advantages:

• When properly installed, such doors are straightforward to open.

• Sliding doors are an excellent way to disguise the room; they can fit perfectly into the interior.

• Sliding doors will not get damaged by hitting the jamb when there is a draught.

• Most importantly, it takes up almost no space when opening. Such doors can go behind a cabinet, sofa, or any other piece of furniture or a decorative element, but for this, the objects of the interior must be at some distance from the wall.

It would seem that all the good things about sliding doors, but, as usual, the case is not without a few spoons of tar:

• The most significant disadvantage of sliding doors is the impossibility of a tight fit, because of which they almost do not become a barrier to odors, sounds, and light. The movement mechanism does not allow the leaf to rest against the doorway. This is why they are not used as front doors or balcony doors.

• On the wall, which is hidden or on which the door leaf is hiding, you can not hang pictures or install them on the switches, sockets, and other elements of the electrics.

• If you choose a hidden design, you will have to periodically clean the niche, which is very problematic. To make this process a little easier, you can create one of the walls removable, such as plasterboard.

Necessary Tools for Installing Sliding Doors

To avoid being distracted by such small things as searching through the stores for suitable fittings or missing a bar of the right size, it is worth fully prepared in advance. You will need:

1. Of course, the door leaf itself.

2. A wooden bar, the length of which should be not less than double the width of the leaf, and the width and height should be 50 mm each.

3. A set of hardware for sliding doors. It usually includes casters, upper and lower rail, turn limiters, carriages, a decorating strip for masking the casters and rail, two backboards, two platbands, handles, and locks. Two casters should be purchased for each sash, or four if the weight of the door leaf exceeds 75 kg.

4. Anchor bolts.

5. Self-tapping screws.

6. Decorative nails for fixing the architraves.

How to Install Sliding Doors Correctly

Let's divide the whole process into several stages:

1. First, you need to measure the upper boundary of the door leaf, placing it against the wall adjacent to the opening. This is done in the closed and open positions to prevent possible unevenness of the floor. From this line, it is necessary to measure another 70 mm upwards and already at this level to draw a horizontal line. This is where we will place the primary mechanism.

2. Attach a wooden bar to the marked line so that its middle was precisely over the top corner of the opening on the side of the open door. This should be done as tightly as possible, without leaving the slightest gap, even if you have to bend the beam to fit.

3. Let's proceed to fix the upper guiding rail. The location of its outermost hole is calculated as follows: the thickness of the door leaf is divided exactly in half, and 5 mm is added to this value. Now the rail is attached on both sides of the screws without the slightest bends; for this purpose, the distance to the hole found earlier is set aside from the most protruding point of the wall. After that, it is necessary to ensure that the door sash is free to pass on the rail. It should not touch either the wall or the opening.

4. The assembled carriages are inserted into the upper rail. It is not necessary to apply any lubricants inside the rail to facilitate their movement. If the movement of the carriages is complex, then either during their assembly or at the stage of installation of the guide, some mistakes were made; for example, the rail is not laid straight but with a slight curvature. After the ease of movement is achieved, we install the limiters on the edges of the guide.

5. Move on to the bottom groove. To make it, on both sides of the bottom end of the sash at a distance of 15 mm from the edge of the drill holes 6.5 to a depth of 20 mm. Now we choose across the width of the leaf groove, the width of which should be a couple of millimeters more than the width of the guide blade and a depth of 18 mm. Alternatively, attach two slats or a plastic profile at the bottom of the door, with a distance between them a little more than the flag's width.

6. Hanging the door on the rail. First, on the upper end, strictly in the middle of its width, attach the fixing brackets to not be visible after installation. The edge carriage rolls up to the first bracket and connects them by hinging the notch to the adjustment bolt so that the nut and washer are on top of the bracket. Retighten the mount.

7. Slightly tilting the bottom of the door toward you, insert the guide flag into the bottom slot.

As you can see, the technology of sliding door installation is not particularly difficult, and if you have a great desire, this work can be done independently. If you want some extravagant, original design, it is better to turn to professionals who know the intricacies of this process.