Many homeowners buy modern doors to enhance the aesthetic quality of their interior design, but one surprising entry into the foray is actually not modern at all – the pocket door. Not only is this addition to an entry or exit path often stylish, adding charm to a room, but it is also efficient and can save an estimated 10 percent of the space that is used by swing doors. Pocket doors are not only space savers, they also add an aesthetic appeal for homeowners who are going for a more Victorian style, especially when the doors match the overall décor of the home. However, many homeowners find highly useful applications for pocket doors, such as for laundry rooms, a home office, partial bathrooms, and even for closet space.
Pocket doors are generally used when there isn’t enough space for a swinging door, since they slide across a space and, when opened, slide neatly into a niche within the wall. Though pocket doors are often decorative, their increasing popularity has much to do with their efficiency in saving space while allowing for extra privacy in an enclosed room.
Pocket doors can be installed between walls that are able to support the structure of the hardware used, particularly in the adjacent wall. Since a pocket door slides into the adjacent wall, it must be able to contain the complementary compartment and be free from electrical wiring, plumbing, duct work, and anything else that may disallow the installation of the pocket door compartment.
Pocket doors offer homeowners a nice, clean, and sophisticated look to their living space, and are also often more convenient for people with disabilities than swinging doors, since they are easier to open, close, and move through for people who, for instance, use wheelchairs for mobility.
Pocket doors have been in use for hundreds of years and were particularly popular in the Victorian era. Used today, they can add to the sophistication of a room through connotations that appeal to a more rustic time. The doors fell into disfavor in the 1900s due to the poor quality of the doors and compartments that were being produced at the time, coupled with a recurring problem of the doors coming off the tracks inside the wall – a situation not easy to fix once broken. Contemporary pocket doors, however, are of very high quality and often heavier weight and do not have the same kinds of problems the doors had in the past.
Thanks to innovative design by The Sliding Door Co., today’s sliding doors and pocket doors come in clear, frosted, laminated, or linen glass with clean, contemporary frames in a variety of finishes and a number of striking designs. We’ve set a new standard, and in the process we are changing the way people design and decorate their homes and offices. When upgrading your home, condo, loft or office, visit http://www.slidingdoorco.com/ to find a showroom near you, or email contact@slidingdoorco.com