Q&A for How to Install Sliding Closet Doors

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  • Question
    Do sliding closet doors need a bottom track?
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    Not necessarily. The bottom track can be useful for guiding the doors when you slide them and for keeping them from swinging back and forth if someone or something bumps into the door. However, bottom tracks don’t actually support the weight of the doors and aren’t necessary for them to function.
  • Question
    How much should sliding closet doors overlap?
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    They should overlap in the middle by 2-3 inches (5.1-7.6 cm). Without any overlap, you’ll see a gap between the doors and they won’t stay on the track properly.
  • Question
    What is a standard sliding closet door size?
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    Some standard widths are 24, 28, 30, or 32 inches wide (60.96, 71.12, 76.2, or 81.28 cm). Most closet doors are 80 inches (203.2 cm) tall.
  • Question
    How do I level an existing sliding closet door?
    Community Answer
    Rollers either top or bottom are usually adjustable. Lower types usually have a screw on top that raises the roller when turned clockwise. Upper rollers are sometimes adjustable, but with wooden doors, it depends on how they are mounted and you may have to reinstall them a little to one side while holding the door in position. Pick one door to be the left or right and adjust it to as flush as possible to that side jamb, then the other to the opposite side.
  • Question
    I have a 96-inch wide opening and need to hang three doors. Will a standard 96-inch track accommodate 3 doors?
    Community Answer
    Yes. But a door on the left and right side of the back track and one door in the middle of the front track means you can open a little less than 1/3 of the closet at a time. Home Depot told me that getting a triple track (for one door per track so you can access 2/3 of a closet at a time) would cost about $190 more than the standard double track and requires more wall depth (a little more than 5 inches) than I have. If you want to stay with 2 doors like I do, consider what I am doing. The installer is adding a few more inches of trim to the sides of the closet -- just enough to let 2 48 inch doors overlap. If you can't lower the bridge, raise the river!
  • Question
    How do I install three doors so that they can all slide past each other and all three stack on one side?
    Community Answer
    You would need to get a triple track and put one door on each track. As mentioned in a previous question, these tracks can be a bit pricey and require a bit more wall depth than the standard double track.
  • Question
    Can I use the molded hollow 6-panel door as a sliding bypass closet door?
    Community Answer
    Yes, we have 6 panel doors for all our closets. But ours are not hollow core and as a result, are very heavy, hard to move and generally inconvenient. Beautiful, but not practical. Hollow core should work better.
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