Pocket Doors, the Ideal Solution for Small Spaces

If you consider the whole philosophy behind pocket doors, you will understand why they are perfect for small spaces. Since they are inserted in a shallow slot in the wall, they completely disappear when they are in their opening position. This way, you save space and create space for other usages.

Yes, you could always install swing doors but what if there is no space to open them? It’s no wonder pocket doors have traveled from the Victorian period to the present day with only a few intervals and still are some of the best options for interior door installation.

The main benefit of pocket doors

Due to their main quality of disappearing into the wall, they are often used as patio doors too. And so, if we wanted to point out the main benefits of pocket doors, we would say the following.

Pocket doors allow you to use the space as you wish without the interference of a door.
Since pocket doors go into the wall, you don’t worry about the door standing in the way or bumping on furniture.

Now, these benefits seem grandiose when the home is small and so there’s no other choice for someone who wants to install interior doors but no other style will fit.

The anatomy of the pocket door – the rest of the benefits

Since pocket doors hang from a ceiling-mounted track, there’s no floor track to block the flow between rooms. And so, the eye can travel without disturbances. And no one can stumble and fall because of the floor track.

Since they disappear in the wall pocket, there’s an opening that fools the eye into believing that there’s no door at all – when there is, only hidden.

Small homes and apartments already have limited space and so planning the layout to fit everything a household wants without making traffic difficult is often challenging. Pocket doors play a dual role in this direction.

a. First, they untie your hands since they can take their place in the wall’s pocket, leaving the whole space intact for all sorts of interior design ideas.

b. Second, the opening left when they are open facilitates traffic in everyday living and makes the space looks bigger.

Pocket doors are not statement doors – after all, they are hidden most of the time. But this doesn’t mean that they cannot be painted yellow, orange, turquoise, black, or any other color matching your interior style. In their closing position, they will make a statement.

Most pocket doors are single. But they can be double doors as well. In this case, each panel goes into the pocket on each side of the wall. They are usually solid panels but they can be glass doors too.

Now, if you can fit sliding doors why go for pocket, you may wonder? Because sometimes, even the typical slide doors may stand in the way. Regular sliding doors still need space to slide on the side and so they may limit your interior décor choices by forcing you to make the kitchen countertop, for example, shorter.

The considerations of pocket slide doors

The main advantage of pocket doors – that of getting inserted into the wall, may become a problem. That’s because the ceiling track system and hardware extend all the way in the wall’s pocket and so it’s hard – if possible, to reach them should there be a door problem. It’s often necessary to break drywall on one side of a room to get access to the problem and fix it.

Since the sliding door goes all the way into the pocket of the wall, it’s hard to reach its hardware to operate it, especially if the person is old or has hand-related health problems.

Pocket doors cannot be locked. Even if they have a latch, they cannot protect.

There’s a tiny gap inside the wall and so the pocket doors are not sealed and thus, cannot provide sound isolation. They cannot hide light or odors either.

Like all good things, pocket doors give functional and aesthetic choices to those living in small homes but come with some drawbacks too. And if you are considering a pocket door installation for your small apartment or house, it’s best to know all things about them.