Learning, Sharing, and Teaching > Do it Yourself Discussion!
Fix off-kilter pocket door without taking off wall?
BECABECA:
I’ve got a pocket door in my house that has been acting up. Guests are now frequently getting trapped in the bathroom because the door is off-kilter so it won’t open unless you push the top of the door closed while sliding the door open by the handle. If the parts were exposed, I assume the fix would simply be tightening up the bolt on one side so it hangs straight instead of hanging slightly at angle (when closed, the bottom of the door touches the door frame but the top of the door has about an inch gap from the door frame). But I don’t know of any tools that can fit in the tiny gap at the top of the door where the bolts are, and everything I’ve found online about fixing pocket doors requires removing the molding around the door frame and even cutting into the drywall to access the hardware. Has anybody fixed a similar pocket door issue without doing all that?
robartsd:
Sounds to me like the door is off the track on the side that always stays in the wall. I don't see a way to fix without taking apart the trim and/or cutting drywall.
lthenderson:
You don't have to cut into drywall to remove a pocket door, at least not a properly installed one. To remove, you have to remove the stop trim around the door jam. Once that is off, you should be able to tilt the pocket door in the opening to lift it off the track if it is an older style J-track. If it is a newer one with carriages on top, you just take a screwdriver to pop the release tabs.
The only reason you would ever need to put into the drywall is if you are replacing the entire track which doesn't sound like the case here.
BECABECA:
--- Quote from: robartsd on December 03, 2018, 04:31:04 PM ---Sounds to me like the door is off the track on the side that always stays in the wall. I don't see a way to fix without taking apart the trim and/or cutting drywall.
--- End quote ---
Now that you mention it, I think you’re spot on... Now I’m wondering if I can put a small roller under that side of the door to hold it up without doing the real fix just yet.
BECABECA:
--- Quote from: lthenderson on December 04, 2018, 07:22:22 AM ---You don't have to cut into drywall to remove a pocket door, at least not a properly installed one. To remove, you have to remove the stop trim around the door jam. Once that is off, you should be able to tilt the pocket door in the opening to lift it off the track if it is an older style J-track. If it is a newer one with carriages on top, you just take a screwdriver to pop the release tabs.
The only reason you would ever need to put into the drywall is if you are replacing the entire track which doesn't sound like the case here.
--- End quote ---
Thanks for the advice, it looks like my pocket door style is the newer one with carriages and popping release tabs... with this in mind, exactly which trim pieces would you think I would need to take off? I’m trying to minimize this since the trim is nice natural wood and I will inevitably damage it a bit when I take it off. Thanks!
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