pocket door off runner?


  #1  
Old 07-30-09, 06:23 AM
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pocket door off runner?

I had a new full bath built in the basement last fall and chose to have a pocket door for it. We had had a similar door installed for a half bath upstairs a few years ago. The newer one (different carpenter) has become really difficult to open and close, and it's apparent that it's no longer plumb in its opening, leading me to think that it might be off its track. I'm really ticked, since the older one, which gets far more frequent use, was installed by a carpenter who had said he was "dying to install one", meaning he never had before. The newer one was at the suggestion of the carpenter, who said he did the "all the time". The angle of the space left when I try to fully close the door leads me to believe that it's the "leading" side of the door that has fallen, but so far my blind lifting and jostling hasn't been able to right it, and I think I can see and pretty much feel that the rolling hardware hasn't come loose from the door itself. Any thoughts on what might be wrong and how to fix?
 

Last edited by eddieo45; 07-30-09 at 07:48 AM.
  #2  
Old 07-30-09, 01:37 PM
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Properly installed, one of the top molding pieces hiding the mechanism is screwed up with trim screws. Second place it is nailed in place. Regardless, the small 1x1 piece of molding should be removed, and it is usually on the inside of the bathroom. This will give you both visual and adjustment access to the trolleys.
See what you can find out by removing this molding piece and let us know. It may just be needing an adjustment with a pocket door wrench.
 
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Old 07-30-09, 03:37 PM
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What Chandler said, assuming the guy installed it as it should be, one side of the trim should be easily removable. But sometimes you can pop things back into place with a push/shove. If the door won't go back in, it could be a simple adjustment, or it could be cheap hardware. I will never do a pocket door without Johnson hardware. You install it and forget it.
 
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Old 07-30-09, 04:03 PM
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yeah, neither of my pocket doors has any "easily removable" trim. I will say that the problem door has a lot more "play" in it within the track; the other is firmly on the rails. Some pics:

inside the bathroom:

outside the bathroom:

a view of the track:

My guess is I'll have to somehow adjust that nut:
 
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Old 07-30-09, 05:55 PM
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One of those trim pieces where the door slides needs to be removed. I'd cut the caulking and remove it, but I bet you will have to remove one of the side pieces in order to get it free.
BUT, I can't help looking at the last two pic's. The right wheel of the trolley doesn't appear to be settled in the track properly.
You are correct in needing to adjust the nut, but if you can't gain access to the side you won't be able to do it. Actually that is a jamb nut and it needs to be loosened (which it looks as if it is already loose) and the post itself needs tightening and the jamb nut jammed down to keep the adjustment. A loose jamb nut may be the reason the door is getting out of adjustment.
 
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Old 07-31-09, 07:10 AM
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Originally Posted by chandler
The right wheel of the trolley doesn't appear to be settled in the track properly.
Originally Posted by Just Bill
...sometimes you can pop things back into place with a push/shove....
....by that, are you saying I might be able to tap that right wheel back into the trolley without removing the door trim? Admittedly, it was a lot easier for my camera to see what's going on up there than it would be to get my eyeball up there. I know you pro's always recommend the right way to fix something, but for a DIYer like me, it may be worth trying the mickey-mouse approach first, no?
 
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Old 07-31-09, 01:32 PM
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You may be able to pop the roller back down in the track by pulling down on the door itself. BUT, you will still need to adjust the height of that trolley so it will close properly. I am not advocating anything but the right way to do it, but you can trial and error it until it comes down to having to pull that trim and use the wrench.
 
 

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