RTTPYO #10: Stop the Door Dance—Solve the Problem by Installing a Barn Door
- nvilu7
- Jun 30
- 8 min read
Updated: Aug 12
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About the RTTPYO Series
RTTPYO stands for Removing Things That Piss You Off — the small home problems we tolerate for years before finally fixing them.
In this series, I tackle one everyday annoyance and show how a simple design change can make a space work better.
After performing the Door Dance over 6,000 times, I finally did something about it.
My condo had one of the most complex Door Dance scenarios I had ever seen. The bathroom door opened to the left into the bathroom. The open door blocked access to the storage cabinets located inside the bathroom on the left. It also made it difficult to get laundry in and out of the washer and dryer, just inside the bathroom on the right, especially if I was using a laundry basket (as one does when doing laundry).
If I wanted to get something out of the bathroom storage cabinet, I had to open the bathroom door, walk into the bathroom, close the bathroom door, then open the storage cabinet door and get what I needed. If I needed to get something that was stored on the top shelf of the storage cabinet, my trusty stepstool would be my dance partner.
When I retrieved the item I wanted from the cabinet, I would close the storage cabinet door, drag the stepstool and the item away from the storage cabinet, open the bathroom door, and depart the bathroom with the item and the stepstool.
If I was doing laundry, I would open the bathroom door, sidle into the bathroom with the laundry basket, and close the bathroom door to free up the space to access the washer and/or dryer. To leave the bathroom, laundry basket in hand, I would back into the bathroom, open the door, and edge out sideways with the laundry basket.
There are, of course, other versions of the Door Dance:
The pantry door that prevents you from opening the dishwasher (and vice versa)
The bedroom door and the linen closet door that clang into each other when opened
The closet door that cuts off access to your dresser when it’s open
The bifold closet doors that block shelving space
The laundry room door that, when open, prevents the hamper from being used
I figured that I did the Door Dance on average 12 times per week, which meant that over the ten years I lived in the condo, I had done it roughly 6,240 times.
Most Door Dances aren’t caused by multiple doors ganging up on your patience. They’re usually caused by one Bad Actor. When you identify and deal with the Bad Actor, you end that particular Door Dance. Forever.
RTTPYO Tip
If you're repeating the same awkward motion every, look for the "Bad Actor" creating the problem.
Read about how I identified another Bad Actor in this post.
In this case, the Bad Actor was the bathroom door. If I got rid of it, I would be able to freely access both the storage cabinet and the washer and dryer, and my life would involve far less cursing.
I still needed a bathroom door, just not the current troublemaker. What were the alternatives?
I could change the door swing, but a new door that swung into the hallway would block access to both bedrooms and would bang into the laundry room door across the hall, creating a new Door Dance.
A curtain over the doorway provided no privacy when I had guests over.
A bifold door would create the same issues I had now.
Stymied, I decided to do what I always do when tackling a difficult problem: I slept on it.
In the morning, my subconscious had flipped the problem on its head.
Rather than focus on the door, I needed to focus on how I wanted to navigate in that space.
If I could just move the bathroom door out of the way, say along the wall…
And then it came to me.
Remove the conventional interior door and install a barn door.
A barn door is a sliding door that hangs from an exposed track mounted above the doorway. Because a barn door slides horizontally across a door opening, it eliminates the need for a door jamb and door swing clearance—the root cause of many Door Dance scenarios.
Barn doors were originally used in barns (duh), where a traditional swinging door could hamper access to equipment or livestock, or simply be too large and heavy to move easily. Interior barn doors became popular two decades ago because they solved similar problems inside homes.
I Googled “modern interior barn doors” and was relieved to see some gorgeous, modern, sleek, minimal-design interior barn doors pop up in the results.
I texted my handyman to get his advice. While I waited, I went online to find out a bit more about barn doors and how they work.
Before You Buy a Barn Door
Here are the basics you need to know before even considering door style (because planning well is essential to successful renovation):
Wall space: Super-important! When the barn door is completely open, is there room on the wall next to the doorway for the barn door? If not, you won’t be able to get the door completely open, and you’ll have to perform a different flavor of Door Dance, i.e., dodging around the barn door to enter and exit the room. Note that your barn door can slide open to either the right or left of the door opening depending on where the track system is installed.
Wall Height: the taller the door, the higher on the wall the track will need to be installed. Measure the wall height from the floor to the ceiling and from the top of the doorway to the ceiling. The door track must fit on the wall above the door opening with clearance at the top and bottom to allow the door to move on its track.
Wall construction: The wall on which the track is installed must have standard interior wall studs (either 2x4s or 2x6s) on which to install the track, even for the lightest interior barn doors. Otherwise, with use, your door track will literally fall off the wall and you will be very sad.
Track System Length: barn door track systems’ length is usually fixed, so either choose a system that fits the wall’s measurements or be prepared to adjust it yourself with a hacksaw. Since most barn door models are available in several width and height configurations, you should be able to find a door and track system that fits your space.
Door measurements: unlike traditional interior doors, your barn door must be wider and taller than the door opening to fully cover the doorway (there should be an overlap of 1-2” on each side and the top). Depending on construction, some doors can be trimmed a few inches at the bottom if necessary.
Privacy and Sound-Proofing: If privacy is mission-critical, stick with a conventional door. If eliminating the Door Dance is paramount, buy a solid-core barn door, 1 ¾ inches or more, made from a dense material like MDF, engineered wood, or solid wood to maximize privacy. Note that the more sound-proof the door, the heavier it will be.
Measure Twice, Order Once
Before shopping for a barn door, verify measurements for wall studs, wall space, wall height, doorway measurements, & privacy requirements.
Installing a Barn Door
Remove the conventional door: Before installing the barn door, you’ll need to remove the existing conventional door, remove the hinges and strike plate installed in the doorframe, and fill the ridges and opening left on the frame by the hinges and strike plate. You’ll also need to figure out what to do with the interior door.
Remove doorframe trim: If you want to maximize privacy in the room that’s getting the barn door, remove the doorframe trim on the side of the wall where the barn door will be installed. Removing the trim will allow the barn door to be installed almost flush with the doorway opening for better sound-proofing and light-blocking. After the trim is removed and before the barn door is installed, you’ll need to repair the unfinished space around the door opening. If you decide to keep your trim, make sure that your barn door track system includes spacers or brackets to create clearance so your barn door clears the existing door trim.
Floor Guides: Floor guides attach to the floor near the door opening directly under the door to keep it steady when it’s opened and closed. Most floor guides consist of a plate and a blade that aligns with a groove cut in the lower edge of the barn door. If the floor is carpeted, the floor guide plate is screwed through the carpet and padding to the subfloor underneath; if the floor is hardwood, the floor guide plate is screwed directly into the hardwood and the subfloor. The guide plate is installed after the door is hung for optimal placement.
End stops: end stops are part of the barn door track system and determine where the door stops when fully open or fully closed. The end stops are adjustable, and most come with rubber bumpers for soft stops.
Door handle: while most barn doors are sold with a hardware kit/track system, most do not include a door handle. Read the item description and the parts list before ordering so you know what you’re getting. If your barn door comes with a hardware kit that includes a handle, you will need to attach it to the door as part of the install.
Selecting My Barn Door
My handyman’s instructions were brief:
“Just make sure the door will cover the opening and there’s enough wall space for the door when it’s open.”
Got it.
After confirming my measurements with him, I went online. Like any interior door, barn doors come in a wide variety of materials and designs.
I didn’t have stringent sound or privacy restrictions with my bathroom door. I wanted the door to have frosted glass panels to let light into the bathroom from the hallway and break up the solid expanse of wall in the hallway.
This is the door I chose:
I chose a simple door pull with the same brushed steel finish as the door hardware:
I texted my handyman my door opening and hall measurements and a link to the door I chose. He texted back a thumbs-up emoji and I clicked the BUY button.
The door was shipped from the factory in Italy—and arrived 7 weeks later.
A week later, my handyman installed it.
I had decided to not remove the door trim on the hallway side. It would have added an additional handyman visit to remove the trim and repair the wall before installing the door, and I just wasn’t up for it. My handyman tweaked the bracket spacing so the door came within 3/8” of the trim, which was plenty private for me.
Installation took a few hours. After installation, my handyman took my conventional door to use it in another project. I entertained myself the rest of the evening by doing laundry and getting random items out of the storage closet without doing the Door Dance.
Over the next week, I repaired the doorframe myself using wood filler applied in thin layers, sanded it when completely dry, and repainted.
I loved my new door, but what I loved more was not being forced to do the Door Dance 12 times a week. In the end, this project wasn’t really about replacing a door. It was about removing an irritation that had stolen time and peace of mind from me at least 6,240 times.
Those are exactly the kinds of problems worth fixing.
Shopping List
These are the products I used for this project or currently use in my own projects.
Planning
Stud finder — I’ve tried magnetic stud finders but they never worked for me. This is spendy, but cheaper than the aftermath when your barn door falls off the wall.
Installation
Drill/driver — one of my favorite things
Level — super sturdy
Finishing
Paint (I use Benjamin Moore Semi-Gloss in Super White for doors and trim)
Small paintbrush — quality paintbrushes are so much less annoying to use
Next Up
I get a real bathtub and bid farewell to cold knees.
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