Sliding Or Hinged Wardrobe Doors? (2)
More frequently asked questions I get asked about the relative merits of hinged or sliding doors on fitted wardrobes:
‘Does it matter how many sliding doors you have’
Well, obviously this will be partly governed by the overall length of the wardrobe installation. The minimum number of doors is two and I certainly discourage my fitted bedroom customers from having sliding doors on any fitted wardrobe under 1200 mm (4ft) wide, because sliding doors of floor to ceiling height but under 600 mm (2ft) width look ungainly, are harder to keep adjusted and may have a tendency to tilt if they hit an obstruction like a shoe on the track. Good quality, modern sliding wardrobe door systems have built in anti-jump devices fitted to the rollers but even these may not be enough to prevent a tall, thin door from coming off the track.
Sliding wardrobe doors are usually available in widths up to 1200 mm wide which means that with a 25 mm overlap and a build at the ends of over 25 mm a two door wardrobe is fine up to 2400 mm (8ft) wide.
A three door installation can then take you to 3600 mm (12ft) but a disadvantage of a three door set up is that with the usual twin track set up and each door representing one third of the overall width; you will have two thirds of the total opening with plus two 25 mm overlaps on one side of the track; thereby limiting the access to the wardrobe interiors at any position to one third less 50 mm. Also, if the wardrobe is shared by two people, one person will have to wait their turn when accessing the wardrobe at the same time. This issue disappears with a four door arrangement as access is available to half the wardrobe (less 75 mm) and that half can be split in two, thereby allowing each party 25% access to use on their half at will. sliding door wardrobes of over four doors in width are unusual but at five or even six door widths the ability to share the access improves.
Only three door wardrobes tend to lead to domestic disharmony in the mornings but it is an issue worth bearing in mind.
More to come on this topic.