What I fix
- Heavy wood pocket doors rehung
- Old track replaced with heavy-duty hardware
- Hangers and wheels replaced
- Doors that drag trimmed or raised
- Edge pulls and mortise latches
- Split jambs and stops refitted
Original pocket doors
With 52.3 percent of homes more than 60 years old, San Gabriel has many original pocket doors between living and dining rooms. Their heavy doors wear out light-duty tracks, and some were nailed shut decades ago.
I can often bring a nailed-shut pocket door back into use.
The original doors are usually five-panel fir or a glass-lite design that weighs well over what a modern hollow-core door does. I size the replacement track and hangers to that weight, and keep the old flush pulls when they still work, cleaning off paint so they sit flat again.
Steps
Open the head
Trim off to reach the track.
Assess
Track, hangers and door checked.
Replace
New hardware sized to the door’s weight.
Rehang
Door adjusted and trim back on.
Inside the wall
If framing inside the pocket is damaged, the wall may need opening; I’ll show you first.
On the same San Gabriel visit, people also tend to ask about sticking door repair, closet door repair or door latch and knob repair.
What to send
Photos of the door and the top of the opening.
Pocket doors: what people ask me
Can an old pocket door be saved?
Usually, with new track and hangers.
My pocket door is nailed shut. Can you free it?
Often, yes.
Why does my pocket door drag on the floor?
The hangers have dropped or worn. Adjusting or replacing them lifts it.
Is it worth fixing an old pocket door?
Nearly always. New hardware costs far less than reframing the wall, and I quote it free from your photos.
Door guides
- Heavy plank doors that sag, drag or will not latchHow we fix heavy plank and arched doors with iron strap hinges in San Gabriel's Mission Revival homes: sagging, dragging and latches that miss.
- Keeping vintage door hardware workingHow we repair, adjust and replace old mortise locks, glass knobs and skeleton-key hardware on the heavy doors in older San Gabriel homes.
We’re a handyman in San Gabriel for small repairs like this one, with an upfront price by text.
This job sits in our doors, cabinets and hardware group. For other repairs, see the services overview, or start with the repair guide for San Gabriel’s older homes.