Before The Architect - Accessible Pocket Doors

Accessible Pockets

BEFORE THE ARCHITECT – DREAM HOME DESIGNING BACKGROUND – UNIQUE HOME DESIGNING ARTICLES

Handicap Accessible Home Design

ACCESSIBLE POCKET DOORS

Whose home is this, anyway? Well, for the time-being it's ours — yours and mine. You can have it back free and clear when our work together is done.

Before The Architect

ACCESSIBLE SYSTEM OF POCKET DOORS

INTRODUCTION

This e-article is about interiors' design of accessible systems in a dream home; namely, home plans design and construction of accessible pocket doors

BACKGROUND

Before The Architect's (BTA's) majority custom dream home design market involves mature couples planning their ‘forever' home, and attends to matters of home design and home building construction more easily adaptable in later years of potential, physical challenge.

---Pocket door accessibility is only one signature of such design and construction attention, e.g. among others, home light design for aging eyes, home fire safety in a home elevator and home stairway, special layouts for electrical switch safety light control, more convenient layouts of electrical receptacles, daylight analyses and designed-in remediation, extended application of safety glazes, specified coefficients of friction for certain flooring, floor transition limits, modifiable bath layouts, etc.

---Two-walled handrails on wider staircases

---Modified metrics for designing-in adequacy of kitchen function and storage, ibid.

---Limits to floor elevation transitions, ibid.

---Modified and modifiable bath layouts in plan view and elevation

SO WHASSUP WITH POCKET DOORS ANYWAY?

Efficient use of space

space-gobbling swing; therefore, nearly zero intrusion to interiors space, most notably in baths

Comment: Noteworthy, some clients love pocket doors, some hate ‘em. There is a general tendency among clients to disallow them in community-personal passages, ok them in community-community passages, and think it over in personal-personal passages.

Comment: Once upon a time, an architect allowed in rant-wracked writing to this custom dream home designer about how dare he (yours truly) think that federal government satraps' rules on the hallowed 5 linear feet of diameter to an unobstructed circle within an accessible bathroom should not include avoidance of a single-swing's travel.
Reply: You're free to lower your design standards to codified levels and proudly stand in your own pitiable and eristic defense; would that it were ever not thusly so with thee and thine one might suppose. If thoughtful designing can improve functionality of space – in this instance – not ever obstructing the big circle with a door traveling through it – this old boy's going to do it, no matter the inconvenience foregone to clients or its highlights on your for-pay incapacities, insensitivities, and disinterests.

THE WAY THINGS WERE

Used to be that the subject of accessible pocket doors involved handles for grasping that protruded into the pathway from a leading stile. Several types of handles were made back then for just such purposes. And it looks like they're all gone. Poof.

	concerns for the hard metal protrusions?
	difficulties in mounting or operating?
	methods and materials came to pass by way of a labile, open market?

Old way's no more

there is a better way, albeit with baggage

WHAT'S NOT UP WITH AN ACCESSIBLE POCKET DOOR?

Any pocket door in an already, fully-framed partition is physically disruptive [read: mucho messo] and fraught with structural considerations

Anew still requires about twice door width of wall space – not always available outrightly

always available without careful crafting

Hardware yields poor performance for all time, and will make you sorry for what you've done, as in another good deed's punishment

ACCESSIBLE POCKET DOOR SYSTEM

Only manufacturer presentation of an accessible system of design and construction for pocket doors known to this custom home designer is by L. E. Johnson Hardware in a one-pager of text and illustration (see http://www.johnsonhardware.com/install.htm: left click on "Pocket" (top of webpage), left click on "Install Instructions" (second line from top of page), scroll down to "Pocket Door" within which listing you left click on "Handicapped Accessible Opening")

author refers to this webpage during most every custom home design enterprise, adapting it to specific applications

Will be no attempt herewith at repeating all the contents of L. E. Johnson's seminal work; rather, hereunder there'll be conceived home design of it and home building construction adaptations to it involving

	stops
	and weak corners
	pockets
	design modifications
	electrical devices cheek-by-jowl

Comment: Note well, please, that each of these accessible pocket door design and construction aspects involves adaptive framing.

FIRST, A BRIEF OVERVIEW

E. Johnson's prescription for an accessible system for a pocket door involves -

a pocket door frame wider than the end-desired clearspan opening such that

3 ½ linear inches are subtracted from that opening, the opening is not less than 32 linear inches wide (ADA/ADAAG minimum for accessibility)

subtraction is a 2x buck at the trailing rough jamb, which forces the 30XX door 3 ½ linear inches into the 3 linear feet wide pocket door framed opening, still letting over minimum accessibility in clearspan

Minimum Accessible Passage Opening Applying Pocket Door, Plan View

Comment: Note well, please, that partitions in this presentation are assumed to extend in a straight line and considerably past the two pairs of studs in section.

SHORED STOPS

Shores up pocket doors in two aspects, in order to enhance partition and door stability and durability

framing

framed opening at 4 linear feet or greater clearspan shall be framed with double jack studs and double king studs at each terminus of the header

Comment: In the world according to this dream home designer, fastening jack and king studs to headers shall involve the following as minimums:

Headers to Jack Studs. (Toe-nailed), number of nails at each end. 2 nails: 2.50"x 0.131" (8d common); 3" x 0.128" (10d box). 4 nails: 2"x 0.113"; 2"x 0.113"; 3 nails: 3"x 0.120"; 3.25"x 0.120".

King Studs to Headers. (Face-nailed), number of nails at each face/ King Stud. 2 nails: 2.50"x 0.131" (8d common); 3" x 0.128" (10d box). 4 nails: 2"x 0.113"; 2"x 0.113"; 3 nails: 3"x 0.120"; 3.25"x 0.120".

OPEN AND WEAK CORNERS

Walls soon "T" with a passage immediately up-coming axially or "L" where walls take a new, one-way direction close to a door jamb, top plates at either intersection shall be fastened to ceiling structure, in order to dampen wibble-wobble ho-hum-ho instability and lessen opportunity for wall and door finishes - especially at joints - to fail from lots of little mo over time.

for hand-framed ceiling structure, fasten either to joists or bridges between joists directly and variously and firmly.

for truss ceiling frames, that is, for bottom chords of floor or roof trusses, annotate the site and nature of framing fastening for advice of the truss manufacturer (for example, as presented in the next pic) and don't fasten otherwise to structure on your own. No amendment shall ever be made to manufactured trusses without the express consent of the engineer of record – so make your design intentions clear right on the floor plans.

Beefed-up home framing structure and fastening are noted in the pic to follow

Minimum Accessible Passage Opening Applying Pocket Door, Noting Doubled Stud Structure and Open Corner Fastening, Plan View

Key: CLG=ceiling; DBL=double; FSN=fasten; STRC=structure; TYP=typical

Comment: Usually, it's the leading jamb that gets the open corner, but not always. If either jamb is nearby an opening in the axial, or in-line, home framing, then design-in fastening the top plates thereabouts to ceiling structure.

DOUBLE POCKETS

accessible system designing for double pocket doors is literally the mirror-image mating of two single pocket doors

	need to be more substantial
	jacks and double kings all over again
	corners get treated similarly
	beefier version of a pocket door frame will be required and available again from Johnson Hardware.
	stile reveals will be at opposing jambs
	floor rail may be applied (as it may be even for a single pocket door)

QUADRUPLE POCKETS

This custom dream home design author has observed this application just once – in a New Orleans home interiors, so he calls it "New Orleans Style"

this is about a pair of bifold slabs meeting on clearspan centerline, which passage, when open, lets the slabs to in-wall pockets flush leading stile-finish jamb on both sides

this is about mobile window walls

there's a time for beveled, leaded, in-style, and art glass and high relief, it is now

Notion is similar to the oh-so-California, humongo, exterior doors popular in locales such as Rancho Mirage.

difference herewith?

doors must be accessibly revealed at their leading stiles when the passage is fully open

Can get more complicated with quadruple pockets rather than single or double pockets, accessible or not; nevertheless, accessibility takes it up another notch, as well.

	spans are potentially beyond BTA's maximum, sawn lumber headers
	ceiling height thereabouts is uncommonly high, any headers – engineered or not - can pose fitting problems
	overhead slopes
	to floor structure above
	lengths beg for hanging and floor rails
	interest in transoms puts added pressure on shortening door heights below 80XX (possibly unwelcomed as not consonant with other door heights at same level), customizing transoms to fit (can get pricey), adapting structure to most importantly stabilize the hanging rail (requires close, creative attention to detail).

Comment: In the example to follow, BTA relies on ‘eng. lat.' to achieve salutary structure and function with a continuous, steel flitch plate and reduced-depth lumber – engineered or not.

Accessible Passage Opening Applying Pocket Door, Noting Quadruple Doubled Doors Paired in By-Pass, Plan View over Section in Elevation

Key: APX=approximately; BM=beam; DBL=double; CONT=continuous; D=depth; GLV=galvanized; H=height; LI=linear inch; MAX=maximum; OC=on center; R=rod; STL=steel; TRNSM=transom; T&B=top & bottom; TYP=typical; W=width

Comment:

	Clearspan is 6'-11"
	And floor rail variously extend at lower right
	Framing to interiors' jacks and flanking jacks and kings
	Wall studs to hold down wall thickness thereabouts
	Solid, full-depth bracing
	Bottom and top plates

Comment: This annotated and dimensioned drawing was accompanied by 433 words of both design and construction guidance (excluded herewith for lack of direct relevance and for proprietary motive)

DERIVATIVE DESIGN MODIFICATIONS

Modifications to date regarding accessible systems of the interiors' pocket doors have embraced –

	rail to further stabilize the travel vector
	flitch plate to majorly lessen header depth with in-lieu, sufficient structure
	uncommon finish jamb width dimensions to avoid in-wall obstacles or to let for casing and proximate wall reveal by adapting Johnson Hardware pocket door packages
	pocket door packages from Johnson Hardware to handle 80XX doors significantly glazed
	to the trailing, rough jamb blocks on the horizontal depth, in order to get about 3 ½ linear inches to oddly-sized passage widths
	materials for framing, in order to be assured of exactitude in both dimension and stability in square and true
	to conform same-level or same-position wall depth
	taken to nearby corner for added stability to partition and amendment

Comment: The same-level reference is common sensical (unless the design style is English Manor or a countrified cousin), that is, same living level = same depth walls.

The same-position reference is not as readily recognizable. It is an every-project matter to vary constructed wall depth hereabouts. Usually, unobservable wall depth, as in a continuous partition to abutting spaces, gets x4 linear inch dimension rough frame. Observable wall depth, as in a wall amended by a door or window or more, gets x6 linear dimension or bigger rough frame.

It's a look. For example, at 10000 square feet of home, x4 walls look dinky; thereat, x6 depth is de minimus for observable wall depths, or thicknesses.

Please note that there are other reasons to ‘thicken' walls than just this one, but they're not relevant hereunder.

In pocketing doors, it'd be devoutly to be wished that wall thickness at the jambs was the same as observed elsewhere. So, in a situation involving both a pocket door and a sufficient let for wiring an electrical outlet box in the same partition, design carefully.

IN-WALL ELECTRICAL DEVICES CHEEK-BY-JOWL

And home light rules of the home design road can stir up some creativity

	are publicly codified requirements for spacing receptacles only so far from passage jambs, which requirements might possibly oblige an electric box in the area of a pocket – an intolerable intrusion to pocket door travel in common framing practices
	has its own rules about siting of home electrical light control switches, which rules can create similarly intolerable intrusion on pocket door travel, op. cit. ". . . Home Switch"

That is, unless there is designed-in relief in wall depth to let for electric boxes outside the door travel footprint and still within flush-to-finish wall

	Maintain 5 ½ linear inch rough wall thickness plus ½ linear gypsum wallboard on each face, while installing a pocket door frame and electrical devices on one face of wall such that there's no physical obstacle to door travel
	Math: pocket door frame for x4 wall over and under x6 plates with true x2 studs sistered on electrical device-resident side under sheetrock planes = 3 ½ linear inches frame + 2 linear inches sisters + ½ linear inch rock = + ½ linear inch rock = 5 ½ linear inch rough frame & 6 ½ linear inch finish wall thickness
	Result: wiring a standard electrical switch or electrical receptacle outlet box is 2 3/4 linear inches deep; 2 linear inch sisters plus ½ linear inch rock = 2 ½ linear inches, or ¼ linear inch shy as inset to pocket door frame and still outside the traveling doors footprint

Comment: Keep a close eye on fill count – better to wire to than through for such applications of electrical devices. In extremis, please consider partial blank decorative plates, using lacuna(e), or empty electrical device bay(s), to offset overfill . . . or a j-box with plaster ring.

Accessible Passage Opening Applying Pocket Door, Noting Sistered Studs to Permit Observable Wall Depth in Conformance to Same-Level and Application of Electrical Devices to Guest Hall Face, Plan View

Key: CNRS=corners; CONT=continuous; GLV=galvanized; LI=linear inch; R=rod; STL=steel; T&B=top & bottom, TYP=typical

Comment: This dream home drawing in plan view was in the original accompanied by a section in elevation as unique as the quadruple door pic above, and not especially relevant herewith. Additional to the annotations, further text of home design and home building construction guidance ran to 395 words.

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