Sliding/Barn door hardware

[avandelay]

Does anyone know of any local sources for sliding door hardware for an interior door. I have found several sources online (see below) but would prefer to use someone local if possible. Thanks very much.

http://www.bartelsusa.com/sliding.php

http://www.barndoorhardware.com/sliding ... rdware.htm

[Steve]

I know you are seeking local sources but just in case, here is a link to a company we recently ordered barn door hardware from. They deal in Coburn hardware which is made in the U.K. and seems to be well engineered stuff. The price was about 2/3 that of comparable systems quoted by barndoorhardware.com

We looked for an AZ dealer for this sort of thing and were not successful. I went so far as to team up with a horse fanatic coworker who was building a stable at the time and she ended up going with mail order as well. I'm sure there is a company out there, we just couldn't find them. Best of luck to you on your search!

http://www.doorhdwe.com/sliding.html

[avandelay]

Thanks Steve. Did you use the hardware for an interior door? If so what material did you use for the sliding panel itself? Any pictures?

Thanks

[Steve]

Kevin,

Unfortunately we have not installed the panels or hardware yet. We are still in the drywall stage. Seems like we've been hanging sheetrock for ever.....

We are installing three sliding systems in our house. The largest will cover a 68" wide by 83" high opening in a wall that divides the main living area of the house. The other two will replace 32" wide traditional hinge doors. All of them are wall mounted systems.

As far as panels go, we are still trying to decide which way to go. Our original plan was to have a carpenter friend build us a custom panel with an interesting birch veneer for the big opening and then we would utilize inexpensive birch door panels for the other two openings. The drawback here is the potential clunky appearance due to the thickness of the two slab doors.

The other options we are considering are shoji panels, metal with translucent fiberglass or possibly a wood and glass design. We have two small children so durability and safety are concerns.

Sorry for running on about this, it's just that this particular topic is probably the primary focus of our project at the moment. What sort of panels are you considering?

Steve

[avandelay]

I appreciate the response. Our sizable remodeling project is mostly done and we are now focused on our bedroom door for which I want the sliding hardware. The dimensions of the opening are about 5 feet by 7 feet. Originally we were thinking about a single piece of tempered glass with a handle inserted.

But this weekend we watched an older tivod episode of the Dwell television show and they featured several sliding panels using panelite or other fiberglass/plastic materials. I am a big fan of translucent plastic type materials and have used it in a couple of places both inside (top of our pantry which was otherwise open to the second floor) and outside (backyard gate). And so right now that is our current plan. But we will probably need some type of a metal frame to place the panels within, which will require additional legwork to source. Have you looked into getting a metal frame with fiberglass?

We also have one small child with another on the way (and a dog) so durability is an issue for us as well.

[jklabar]

Great conversation. We are also interested in a sliding door, but for exterior use and after we finish another couple of jobs. Your resources will come in handy. One of the other jobs is replacing and inserting new side yard gates. We are interested in translucent plastic type materials/panelite for them. Please share where you got the materials, other options for materials, and how you constructed.
Thanks,
James and Janet

[avandelay]

The gate was really quite simple. It consisted of a square welded metal frame with a panel of corrugated plastic attached. The plastic came from Loew's and we had a welder I found on Craigslist put it together. I can't remember exactly how much it cost.

[Steve]

As far as framing a fiberglass panel goes, I was considering two options. Option one is to fabricate somthing using metal drywall studs like the kind shown in the link below. My wife and I saw a door constructed this way in a gallery and it looked pretty cool. Option two is to go to Capitol Metals and grab some square tube stock off of the extras rack and just go from there.

Thanks for the tip on Panelite. I've seen the stuff but didn't know the trade name.

I'll post our final design to the board and take some pictures as well. Should be about 3 weeks.

Cheers all.

[Steve]

Sorry, forgot the link.....

http://www.dietrichindustries.com/products/

[Steve]

Two months after my initial estimate of three weeks lapsed, we finally have a sliding room divider. After much deliberation and at least a dozen design changes, we abandoned the wood design and went with blue Panelite hung from wall mounted barn door hardware.

We framed the material out using aluminum C-channel purchased at Capitol Metals. The whole design and assembly process was pretty straightforward and we are very happy with the results. It took nerves of steel to take a circular saw to the sheets of Panelite though. I must have checked the measurements a half dozen times.

I'll post a couple of pictures tomorrow.