First, you may ask- what is a pocket door? Pocket doors have been used in homes for centuries in order to help separate two rooms and to create privacy. It is perfect especially for rooms where having a swinging door will take up too much space in your home, according to the Dummies website.
A pocket door is made in a space where there is already a wall; the door simply slides into the wall. When you want the room to be opened up, you simply slide the doors open and they will disappear within the wall.
When you would rather have some privacy, you slide the doors closed. Installing pocket doors is surprisingly easy and can be done on your own. Let’s discuss what you’re going to need, how much installing a pocket door costs, and finally, how you install a pocket door.
Video Guide: DIY Installation
If you want to install one yourself- check out the DIY installation video below for a super-easy process:
Pocket Door Kits
You’re going to need to take a trip to your hardware store to purchase a pocket door kit.
You can also purchase one online- scroll down for our top five picks. A pocket door kit will have the essentials that you will need in order to install a pocket door. This includes: the door itself, door hardware, steel studs to help the door go into the wall, and the track.
The kits will be according to the size of the door you want.
Bob Villa Loves Them!
Pocket doors are a cool choice in tight spaces. Would you consider installing a pocket door? https://t.co/MP8hVIiQ8W pic.twitter.com/Pmk27MqWOi
— Bob Vila (@BobVila) May 11, 2016
Most of these kits will be suitable for whatever material the wall is that you want to put the pocket door into. The kit will also include wheel hangers which will allow the door to slide open and closed easily. You will also need a hand saw, screws, drill, and tape for when you remove the drywall.
Pocket Door Costs
Pocket doors are surprisingly not that expensive for such a huge project. Most kits can be purchased for under $100, according to Wikihow.
However, according to Home Advisor, the prices can be a little steeper. It says that do-it-yourself pocket doors kits can range anywhere from $60 to $400, but sometimes it can go even into the thousands.
It depends on if you are remodeling or building an entirely new home, and it depends on the kit you want. Go shop around and look on the Internet to find a kit that is suitable for you.
How to Install a Pocket Door
Now let’s get to actually installing the door. First, you are going to want to check out the wall that you intend to install the pocket door into.
You have to see if the wall has enough room, meaning that the wall should be twice as wide as the door you want to install. This is so that the door can slide easily into the wall. Then see whether the wall is load-bearing, or if there’s wiring and plumbing in the wall. It’s not a good idea to install a pocket door into a wall with wiring or plumbing, according to WikiHow.
After you have checked everything out and made sure that you can put a pocket door where you intended, you can now remove the drywall on one side, but making sure that you don’t remove it all the way up to the ceiling.
Then you will want to use a hand saw to cut the studs that have been exposed so that you can have room for the frame. If you need to, you can now make a new header, because some doors may need to have a header that is of a different height.
Now, put the slider track down which was included in the kit. Read the instructions that also came with the kit carefully as they will tell you step-by-step what you need to do, making sure that you also keep the track level. Then, install the door, put the hangers in on top of the door, and install the wheel carriages into the track. Make sure that the door is sliding smoothly.
Once the door has been installed, you can now take new drywall and put it where you removed the drywall in the beginning. Then, you will want to install the latch that came with the pocket door kit onto the door. Tape and mud the drywall, let this dry, sand it, and continue as necessary.
Once you are done decorating the wall as you see fit, you can now install the door trim as per the instructions that came with the kit. You will want to decorate the drywall before you install the trim to avoid getting any paint on the trim.
Then you’re done! You will have saved yourself a lot of money in doing the project yourself, and now you have a professional-looking pocket door that saves you a lot of space but gives you the privacy you need.
Hi, my name’s Elena Coolidge. I’m a DIY enthusiast who loves building fun woodworking plans. These DIY plans are fun hobby projects for enthusiasts or even more advanced builders that want to build things like bunk beds, end tables or even a duck box!
