I’m doing a refresh of a room, and updating the closet a bit. It has two sliding doors, straight from the 40s. They’re in tough shape, and just plain, boring slabs. So I’m going to get new ones. The closet opening is not one of the standard sizes, so I’ll need to go custom.
I can find plenty of places on line who claim to make them in custom sizes, but most have few or no reviews, and It’s going to be a bit pricey, so I’m looking for anyone who can recommend reputable, quality suppliers. When it comes to stuff for the house, I have a big hangup on quality- that’s way more important to me than price.
But, I believe a drop in re-fit will be nearly impossible to find ready-made. Which I bet most of the places online count on that, to supply themselves.
Have you considered a finish carpenter/cabinet maker and really have it custom made? For quality, thats the way I’d go.
If you don’t have a trusted woodworker, check with the Building inspector in your area for some suggestions.
Most such suppliers are going to be local to you. Or at least you’ll need a local installer. Where are you?
If your openings are just a few inches larger than a standard size you might consider framing the opening down to take standard doors. The opposite applies too, but I’d bet shrinking the opening a few inches is a lot simpler than expanding it.
Custom door slabs are dramatically more expensive than mass produced. Standard sized doors can be resized by a competent carpenter if the difference isnt too big. I have done it myself many times. I have also ordered custom doors when resizing wasn’t viable. I have built a few myself too.
Any region is going to have local door manufacturers. Cabinet doors are often custom and made locally. Those same shops will usually also mill up man doors. Here in Calgary, I know of two cabinet door shops that also will do man doors. There is also at least one other local shop that specializes in man doors only. I have also ordered custom doors from bigger mass manufacturers like Lynden and Masonite.
Its just a construction industry distinction to differentiate doors that are meant for people to walk through. Swing door is also used. There are different kinds of doors that are used in a home; overhead doors, cabinet doors, that are not primarily meant for people to walk through.
How bad are the originals, if not warped or split can they be refurbished, painted?
I second the suggestion to visit architectural salvage places. My house was previously updated with hollow core doors on bedrooms. Shitty flimsy doors. One benefit though they cannot be slammed shut. My kids tried
It took a minute but we managed to find 4 vintage six panel doors with original hardware to replace the hollow core doors.
I’ll look into whether any are around- I’ve never tried one of those places. The opening is 80 x 76, with a dividing wall in the closet that is NOT centered (it’s really odd). So I’m thinking a slab size of something like 42 x 75
When I did the demo, I planned to remove the dividing wall, until I realized a plumbing vent went up through said dividing wall, and I understood why it wasn’t centered.
I’ve retained the hardware for the doors and the track, because it all seemed in good working order.
Well, they went off in the dumpster, so probably pretty rough. The finish on them was really odd. They were hollow slabs, but they had a rough feel like that of T-111 if that means anything to you. I did not like them at all.
I did consider trying making them myself. I’m pretty handy, but my finish carpentry never comes out very good.
Just to reiterate, I am not price sensitive on this. I want nice much more than I want cheap.
If you do check out architectural salvage, there might be old pocket doors that could go on the existing tracks. The only thing is they’re probably going to be narrower and taller than what you need. With all the modifications needed it’d probably be easier to just go custom.
Here we run into the issue of lack of defined language with doors again.
I was referring to the door operation, ie surface mounted sliding doors as opposed to flush mounted. Flush mounted sliding doors result in a very limited functional opening, barn door hardware allows full opening accrss at the sacrifice of wall space. While rustic style barn doors are a style choice, I think the hardware type is here to stay.
Well there is a whole trend of rustic knotty barn doors as well. I think the hardeare type will remain though, its just the best system for certain rooms.
