10 things you should know before buying sliding doors

The choice and purchase of sliding doors for the interior is always associated with stress - it is an important decision both for the aesthetics of the apartment and for the household budget. We have created this article to bring you closer to the road that you need to go from planning the purchase to enjoying the fully installed sliding doors. We hope that we will be able to make not only the last part enjoyable, but actually the entire route!

We will tell you how to plan the purchase and how to measure sliding doors. You will also find out whether it is possible to install sliding doors on a wall made of plasterboard and how much space will be left between the door and the wall. After reading this article, nothing will be a mystery to you any more. Have a good read!

1. How to plan the purchase of the door? Waiting times

2. Measuring the door opening and the door itself

3. Door: left-handed or right-handed?

4. Choosing the colour of the door

5. Installation of the door on the plasterboard wall

6. Selection of the sliding system

7. Bottom guides and safety kit

8. What will fit behind the sliding door? Socket, skirting board or nothing at all?

9. What tools will you need to assemble the sliding doors?

10. Transport of sliding doors - how they are delivered?

1. How to plan the purchase of the door? Waiting times

Most sliding doors are made to order, they are not available immediately - this is also the case with us in Reno. Since the waiting time for the door is 6 to 8 weeks, we recommend planning the purchase well in advance.

Individual projects

For individual projects, the waiting time is extended to 10 weeks. Is it a lot? Yes, but it's definitely worth it - in personalized orders, every detail will be tailored to you. We will listen to what you need to recreate it in our project as good as possible.

Purchasing process

Remember that making the door by the producer is only one of the steps - you must also include the time to make a decision and order samples. The purchasing process itself usually lasts from 7 to 14 days.

2. Measuring the door opening and the door itself

Measuring the width of the door

Start by determining where you want to mount the door. The standard door opening is 90 cm width (without the door frame) and 206 to 208 cm high. The door should be wider than the door opening. The optimal margin is 10 cm - it will allow you to place the bottom guide and fully cover the door opening.

Remember: The minimum margin is 6 cm and the optimum is 10 cm. We strongly recommend sticking to this upper value.

Measuring the height of the door

Okay, now you know how to calculate the door width, but it's only one of the dimensions - what about the height? How much space should be left for mounting elements?

Remember that the door is mounted 1 cm above the ground. Classic door models should be at least as high as the door opening, while in the case of the Minimalist model, the door should be at least 10 cm taller than the door opening itself.

Minimalist versus classics - what about the different sliding systems?

In Reno shop you will find two types of sliding systems: classic models and the Minimalist model. Classic models, e.g. Simple or Roller, have visible rollers mounted above the door. The Minimalist models, on the other hand, have a system with invisible rollers attached to the back of the door. We write about it in the context of measurements and door selection, because measuring the necessary space for different models will look different.

In classic systems, such as Roller and Simple, more space should be left above the door for the correct installation of the rollers, because they are located above the door.

The standard sliding system protrude above the door from 15 cm (e.g. SIMPLE) to 22 cm (e.g. ROLLER). This is the distance needed above the door for proper door installation. This value should be added to other dimensions, remembering that this is the extra space above the door itself, not the door opening.

In the case of the Minimalist system, the sliding system is located behind the door, so there is no need to leave space for rollers, 2 cm space above the door is enough for their correct installation.

On our website you will find a buying guide in which we thoroughly describe the process of measuring the door and write more about the materials and the specificity of single and double doors.

Tip: Pay attention to the fact that the door must have room to slide, so the width of the door you order should fit on the wall next to the door opening to be able to open it easily to its full extent.

3. Door: left-handed or right-handed?

This information will be useful when installing the system and accessories. You determine it by standing in front of the wall on which the system is to be mounted.

Is my door left-handed or right-handed?

The left-handed door opens by moving to the left, but the handle is on the right. The right-handed door opens by moving to the right side, and the handle should be placed on the left.

At this point, it is also worth considering the installation of door handles. Determine whether you will need one or two handles, i.e. whether you need a handle on one side of the door or both sides. Remember that when choosing protruding models of handles for mounting on the back of the door, you must be prepared that the door will not fully open. Part of the door frame with the handle will remain in the light of the door opening. The solution is to choose the INNER handle for the rear side of the door, which does not protrude from the door surface, and it can move outside the door opening.

In the case of sliding doors, it is important to decide where the handle will be placed. On our website, you can choose the location of the Inner handle in a very simple way.

The other handles are designed for self-assembly.

4. Choosing the colour of the door

How to choose the color of the door? It might seem that this is the simple and pleasant part, but it might not be the case!

The colour of the door is really best seen live to make the right decision. It is worth ordering colour samples to be able to see them in real light. Preview on the Internet is not the same - the issue of lighting, especially in the case of oiled doors, is extremely important. Also, everyone has different screen settings, so colours may incorrectly seem warmer or cooler than they actually are.

Therefore, we encourage you to order samples that will allow you to avoid mistakes. Although samples are payable, we subtract their value from the order amount when you decide to buy sliding doors from us. Also, from time to time, promotional codes appear on our Instagram and Facebook that will allow you to get free samples. Make sure to follow us!

NCS and RAL palettes

Do you have to order samples for NCS and RAL colour palettes as well? In contrary to the colours of oiled doors, these are standardized colours, safer in a way, because in theory they are always the same. Nevertheless, we believe that it is always better to look at the considered shades in the context of a specific interior, so that the decision is 100% conscious and well-thought-out.

5. Installation of the door on the plasterboard wall

Do you think that the wall on which you would like to mount your door prevents you from buying sliding doors? Don't worry - we will show you 3 ways to install sliding doors on a plasterboard wall. These solutions make the installation of sliding doors possible, regardless of whether the plasterboard wall is already standing or is to be built.

6. Selection of the sliding system

How to choose the right system for your dream sliding door? Currently, we offer the following systems for sliding doors:

Where do I choose the system and where not?

Barndoor Style, Rustic Style, Modern Style - for these models you need to choose a sliding system;

Industrial Style, Wardrobe Style, Atelier Style, Loft Style - here the system is integrated with the door frame - there is no need to select a separate system;

Minimalist Style - here the system is attached to the door, you don't have to select anything extra.

7. Bottom guides and safety kit

The bottom guide is a very important element of the sliding door system, it prevents the door from wobbling. When choosing a bottom guide, you need to pay attention to where you can mount it. You have two options: floor or wall.

When to choose a bottom guide mounted to the floor and when to the wall?

The bottom guide cannot be mounted to the floor if you use underfloor heating. In addition, remember that the installation of the bottom guide in the floor requires drilling holes. So if you want to avoid damaging the material of the floor, we recommend a wall-mounted bottom guide.

The wall bottom guide is also recommended if you want to leave a bigger gap between the floor and the door.

Bottom guides mounted to the floor are less visible and come in two variants:

• "T" - T-shaped model, hidden in a special cutter made at the bottom of the door,
• "U" - U-shaped model, encompassing the door on both sides.

In order to ensure that you can best adjust the sliding door to your needs, we currently include both variants of bottom floor guides with all sliding systems.

Safety kit

A very important element of door assembly is a properly functioning safety set that is part of the sliding system.

1. Bottom guide - we have already described this element above. Its main role is to hold the door, preventing it from rocking back and forth. The door should never slide off the bottom guide, so measuring the elements correctly is very important!
2. Door stopper - an element placed at the end of the sliding track, which prevents the door from sliding off the track.
3. Anti-jump - it is part of the safety set mounted on the upper edge of the door. It prevents the door from jumping out of the track if something accidentally blocks it.

What else do you need to know about the safety of sliding doors? Safety glass

You can read more about safety in the article 'Safety of sliding doors - what elements make Reno doors safe', meanwhile let's focus on the last key element in our topic, namely glass.

The glass which we use in sliding glass doors, such as those from the Industrial category, is laminated safety glass (VSG - from German Verbund Sicherheits Glas). What does this mean in practice? It is not tempered glass, because there is no need to use this type of glass in the door, but it is characterized by other extremely important functions. That is, above all, the fact that it does not break into small, sharp pieces.

All thanks to the fact that VSG glass is created as a result of joining two glass panes with a special PVB or EVA film that is resistant to tearing. As a consequence, even if the glass is broken, it will not break into pieces, but will remain in one piece.

Safety of mounting the handles

As you know, handles and locks can also be fitted to sliding doors. Available models can be found on our website in the Handle category. If you want to install protruding handles on both sides of the door, you must remember to adjust the position of the stoppers on the track so that the door stops when the handle comes close to the edge of the door opening. If the stoppers are installed incorrectly, the handle will hit the edge of the opening. This is an undesirable situation, therefore, before buying a sliding door, you should consider the choice of handles, locks and the place of their installation.

8. What will fit behind the sliding door? Socket, skirting board or nothing at all?

When deciding to buy a sliding door, you must be aware of what we wrote on the topic of measuring the door. Not only the door opening is important, but also the same amount of space on the wall next to the opening. Since you must use this space to open the door, it is worth considering whether the sockets, skirting board and other elements of interior design will fit behind the open door?

Much depends on the door model, but usually the answer is yes. Depending on the door model, the distance from the wall varies.

What is the distance between the door and the wall? Sliding doors and skirting boards

The sliding door stands out from the wall by about 1.8 cm. Standard skirting boards with a thickness of 1.4 cm, switches with a thickness of 0.8-1 cm or sockets with a thickness of 0.9-1.2 cm will easily fit on the wall along which the door leaf will move. However, remember to measure all such elements before assembly.

If you want to manipulate the distances a bit, you can use an additional spacer or replace the spacer included in the sliding set with a different one, increasing or decreasing the distance. You can read more about this in the article 'How to change the distance between the door and the wall'.

9. What tools will you need to assemble the sliding doors?

You will need a few tools to install our sliding doors, but remember that assembly is not difficult. However, it is worth having at least one person to help you.

You will need:

• Tape measure
• Pencil
• Drill
• Spirit level
• Ratchet socket wrench
• Wrench

The assembly of the door itself is really very simple - the most difficult part is drilling holes in the wall, otherwise you should not encounter any problems. Why do we suggest having another person with you? It will be useful to help, for example, in lifting the door - it will be more comfortable and safer.

You can find many answers to your questions in the Help section. Take a look at our door installation instructions - we have included the information necessary for self-installation of all models available on the website.

Check out the assembly instructions - it's really easy!

10. Transport of sliding doors - how they are delivered?

Are you wondering how we will deliver the door to you? Don't worry - we have everything planned from A to Z, it is on us to ensure that the package reaches you safe and sound.

Here's everything you need to know:

1. We pack the doors carefully.
2. Orders are delivered by specialized shipping companies.
3. You receive information when the parcel is sent along with the tracking code.
4. The door will be delivered and brought to the indicated address by an experienced, two-person team.
5. Please remember to check in the presence of the driver that the package is not damaged and does not show any signs of damage! Any damage or problems should be visible on the outside of the packaging. We know that couriers like to run away, but for the sake of your complaint process, you better stop them ;)

If you have additional questions related to the purchase of sliding doors, please contact us. We are, with all our knowledge, ready to help.

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