Pocket doors that are 4 feet wide would require a header that spans the opening of 8 feet, plus another 4 feet on each side where the doors tuck away. It's 16 feet long, heavy, unwieldy and often constructed of two 2-by-10s or more depending on the load above.
You need an oversized header to install a pocket door in a load-bearing wall. One of the prerequisites for a pocket door is enough wall space for the pocket. When measuring, mark the point on the wall where you want the door to meet the jamb when it's closed, then measure from that point to the corner of the wall.
The minimum rough opening height from the finished floor to the header should be 84-1/2” (214.63 cm) for a 6'-8” (203.2 cm) door, 88-1/2” (224.79 cm) for a 7'-0” (213.36 cm) door, 100-1/2” (255.27 cm) for an 8'-0” (243.84 cm) door, or 112-1/2” (285.75 cm) for a 9'-0” (274.32 cm) door.
A pocket door requires a “sleeve” inside the wall to retract into. For a traditional 32-inch-wide interior door, you'll need at least 66 inches of linear wall space: 32 inches for the door and the rest for the housing.
Installing a pocket door in a load-bearing wall requires replacing the old header with a longer one. Creating the opening for the new header may require temporary ceiling support while the header goes in (you may want to consult a pro for this). Check to see if the wall contains wiring or plumbing.
Installing the door into the pocket is also fairly easy to do. As with many home improvement jobs, much of the trick is having the proper attitude, taking the time to do the job right and reading the instructions before you get started.
The reasoning is a 2x4 wall really has no room for framing other than a 1x2 or 1x4. These thin framing members just don't have enough rigidity so the opening can be flimsy. This is most noticeable around the pocket opening where the door sits.
If you simply want to replace a pocket door or remove it in order to repair it, you don't have to tear into the drywall! That's great news. All you have to do is lift the door off the sliding track. In order to do that, you have to remove the trim around the door.
Many people falsely believe that you cannot have any wiring, electrical outlets, or electrical switches in the pocket wall – but we have a nifty trick! We just build the wall a little thicker so that there's room for electrical wiring, switches, and outlets.
The width of the rough opening is two times the door's width plus one inch—for example, if your door is 34″ wide, the opening should be 69″ wide. Additionally, because our pocket door was paneled, we realized that it needed to look centered in the closed position.
A: Hi Lucky, the rough opening for this pocket door frame is approximately: RO Width: 58 in. RO Height: 84.75 in.
The open doorframe should be twice the width of the intended door slab, plus 1 inch. So, the rough opening for a 30-inch door slab should be 61 inches. Height should be the vertical length of the door slab, plus the thickness of the door track and desired clearance (about 1 inch, though product dimensions vary).
At the very least, pocket doors do require thicker walls. This means an offset of more than 4 inches (100mm) to accommodate doors that have a usual thickness of 2 inches, with a bigger gap required for thicker door choices.
The Importance of Header Size
The process of installing a door in an exterior wall always requires that you remove the existing framing inside the door opening and replace it with a horizontal header, or beam, that will hold the weight that was previously supported by the removed wall studs.
Pocket doors are a great solution for smaller spaces that lack the wall space for a full swing door. This makes them perfect for small bathrooms, closets and connecting those two areas, for example between a master bath and the walk-in closet.
Removing a pocket door without removing the trim may seem hard to do but it's not that difficult if you follow these simple options: The first option is to open the door all the way and tilt it off the track. You can then remove the roller and the door might slide out. Or cut the door in half and lift it off the track.
While pocket doors slide into the wall completely out of sight barn doors slide along the outside of the wall so they are constantly visible.
As long as the measurement is correct for the pocket opening, the door is the right thickness, and the door hasn't been pre-drilled for a standard door lockset or hinges, you can use any kind of door for a pocket door.
Pocket doors are there when you need privacy and gone when you don't; they slide into the wall when opened they do not take up space that could be used for something else. This is why pocket doors are perfect for bathrooms, en-suites and toilets.
Pocket doors are more expensive to install because they usually require construction to a home's structure. Both doors have a nominal cost of $400 for an average 30-inch solid wood door. However, the installation cost of a new barn door is anywhere from $100 to $300 per existing wall.
Double the width of the desired door, or pair of doors, to determine the wall space that's needed to install the pocket door frame. For example, 48 inches is needed to install the frame for a 24-inch pocket door, and 64 inches is need to install the frame for a 32-inch pocket door.
Rough opening for a 34 inch door:- for a 34″ door, you will need rough opening to 2 inches wider & 2-1/2″ taller than the actual door size, so, if you are installing a 34″ wide and 80″ tall or 34″×80″ interior, or exterior, barn, bifold & pocket bedroom door, the rough opening will be 36″ wide and 82-1/2″ tall or 36″× ...