Most households possess bifold closet doors as they offer something special to users. It is quite hard for closet doors to be operational for a long time without the need for some maintenance work or need to be replaced. I am here to show you the easiest way to remove old bifold closet doors.
Bifold closet doors can be opened fully or partially and closed easily. Since they utilize the smallest space possible, they save space, provide natural lighting to areas, and are easy to maintain.
However, removing old bifold closet doors can sometimes be challenging. Because for that you have to know the exact procedures of it. And this article will share this with you. Let’s get started.
5 Steps Should Be Followed To Remove Old Bifold Closet Doors: Do It Own
I have designed the following 5 steps that you can follow to successfully remove old bifold closet doors. This replacement is done when doors get damaged, or the bifold doors may not work as they should. This procedure is straightforward to follow.
Step 1. Locate The Bifold Door Pivot
Start by having both sides of the doors wide open. This is done to enable the doors to face each other. However, you will need another person to help because they have to lift both sides to get the doors up. The weight of the doors may be too much for one person to handle, especially for closets with high doors.
The door is lifted so you can access the top pivot spring, where one will have to push the spring at the very top. This spring is what allows the door to get off and be lifted.
Step 2. Release Locking Levels On The Pivot Bracket
Some bifold doors, especially the new ones, don’t have the top pivot locking levers. If this is not the case for your closet, proceed to get the pivot out. This is done by pulling it out and turning the pin several times. Turning the pin is done when it becomes challenging to get the pivot out.
The turning is repeatedly done because removing something stuck there for a long time can be challenging. These pins are also removed when someone suspects one or both of the pins are spoiled and needs to be replaced afresh.
Step 3. Adjust The Bottom Pivots
Here, you will lift the door slightly off the floor or bottom track. This is so that the door can be released from the bottom and be free. Your extra helper is instrumental at this stage. This is because someone has to be there to remove the bottom pivot when the old bifold door is lifted. Unscrewing makes this possible.
This is, however, not the case with most bi-fold closet doors, as not all of them are screwed to the bottom bracket. After the unscrewing, it should be easy to detach from the bifold closet door because nothing holds it in place.
Step 4. Move The Door
After the unscrewing, get the door out, so the bottom pin gets away from the bracket. Be extra cautious not to drag the doors across the floors or carpets. This is because it will destroy the floor using the pin it has at the bottom. The old bifold closet doors should then be leaned against a wall.
With the open doors out, someone can examine the condition of the doors. This is to determine whether they will need to do some repainting to them or whether they want to make some repairs on them. One can also decide to get other doors altogether if they are too spoiled.
Step 5. Unscrew And Remove The Guide And Pivots
After evaluating the condition of the doors, hinges, and brackets, decide whether you will use them again or if you are going to change them. If the set of doors is different by make or design from the old ones, then there might be a need to replace them.
Someone should unscrew the pivots and hinges, open the brackets and get the new ones in place. However, if the old ones are still operational, one can test the new doors first with the brackets before getting them out.
9 Tips That Will Help You To Remove Old Bifold Closet Doors Quickly And Safely
When the bifold closet doors develop problems either by failing to open or by getting stuck. It may mean that they should get replaced. I have come up with a few tips to help guide you in making these adjustments.
Tip-1. Inspect The Bottom Pivot Bracket
Inspection is done to know whether the door can be easily lifted out. It is done to determine whether the top bracket requires the bottom pivot bracket to be free before anything else. This is because bi-fold doors operate under different mechanisms.
In most cases, it cannot be free before the bracket is removed first. This means that it would be futile to remove the bracket. It would be a waste of time when there is no other option other than removing brackets first.
Tip-2. Get An Extra Person
This is because the doors can be pretty heavy and it may be difficult for one person to hold them. Extra help will also be required to unscrew the doors from the pivot where they are held. The additional person will also assist in getting the doors out of the bracket and will assist in laying the doors up somewhere safe.
Having someone hand you the tools as you unscrew the bifold doors is also essential. The extra person will also be instrumental in advising you in the case that you skip a step in the bifold removal process.
Tip-3. Confirm You Have The Appropriate Tools
Ensure to check the type of screws used in the bifold doors. The screws can either be flat shaped or can be Philips screws. This is important because it will determine the type of screwdriver to be used, either a flat screwdriver or a star-shaped screwdriver.
If someone forgets to check the type of screw, they will start removing the bi-fold doors and get stuck. They will get stuck because they have the wrong screwdriver for the job. One, therefore, needs to be well prepared with the right tools.
Tip-4. To Lower, The Door, Screw In A Clockwise Direction
This is particularly necessary when you are having a lot of trouble with a bifold door that is quite tall. The height can be quite stressful because it interferes with your workspace and increases the weight load you have to hold.
By screwing in a clockwise direction, the door will lower itself in height, giving it an advantage over the way it was before. When you need to raise the door, screw it in an anticlockwise direction. This will help get the extra space and save significant energy.
Tip-5. Try The New Door On The Old Tracks
When one is replacing old bifold closet doors, one has to wait before they unscrew the hinges, pivots, and tracks as they may still be helpful for you. This is because the ways may still be in perfect condition and can be reused. This will, in turn, save you the costs of buying the extra hinges, pivots, and tracks.
This will also help save time that would have been used to remove the old tracks and the time that would have been used to put the new tracks back in again. Before you get them out, test the old tracks first with the new bi-fold door.
Tip-6. Tilt The Doors At Different Angles
It is important to note that one may have to tilt the old bifold closet doors at different angles. This is because the top pivot may fail to slide out of the top bracket. Try this at different angles to jolt it out. Jolt it till the pilot gets out of the brackets. When the pivot is off, then the doors get out as well.
It is an important point because it happens in many instances, and many people get stuck. People become afraid because they are unsure whether moving the door will lead to the old bifold closet doors getting more damaged. It’s therefore important to place the doors at angles that make it easy to get them off.
Tip-7. Rotate The Pin Repeatedly
This is done when the pivot refuses to come out even after pulling it at the top, especially when there is no lever at the top. You need to use either your hand or a pair of pliers, if one is available, to tilt the pin until it turns. The pin usually gets stuck because it may have been there for a long time, or one of the two pins is damaged and needs replacing.
However, rotate it repeatedly. After a short period, it will come off. Most people get stuck at this point in the removal of the old bi-fold closet doors process because they think it will break. Just do it repeatedly, and everything will be okay.
Tip-8. Carry The Door Off The Closet
After removing them carefully from the closet, there is a need to carry the old bifold closet doors. This is done so that the doors are not dragged across the floor and carpets of the house. Ensure to carry them off so that the bottom pin of the door has no contact with the floor.
The closet is also carried so that it does not damage the house’s walls by scraping off the paint. Ensure their door is taken somewhere it will not fall on something breakable or something that can be damaged easily. And most importantly, keep it away from children because the bifold doors can easily slip on them.
Tip-9. Hold The Door At All Times
When you remove the bifold closet doors, someone should ensure that they have held onto the doors from the beginning because it will mean they cannot suddenly fall. Holding the doors is crucial because the weight will be balanced all through.
Lack of this balance may lead to the destruction of the doors because they are wooden and thus are prone to breakages. It may also lead to damage to the hinges, the pivot pins, the snigglers, and the brackets that hold the closet doors in place. It’s therefore essential to be extra cautious when dealing with the doors.
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Related Questions:
How Do You Remove an Old Bifold Door From Its Track?
The process begins by lifting the old bifold closet doors slightly off the bottom track. Both of you raise the doors after making sure that they face each other to make it easier for the removal. After lifting the old bifold closet doors, ensure that the doors are tilted at an angle that makes the doors face each other.
At the same time, try to pull the bottom of the door carefully on both sides. When the bottom of the doors is removed, the door will come off the top track. Repeat the procedure for both doors to get them off the track. Remember to press the full spring indoors that contains the spring. This gets them off the track immediately.
How Do You Remove Old Bifold Closet Doors From The Bottom Track?
The process begins when someone lifts the old bifold closet door slightly off the floor bottom track. This is done so that the door can be released from the bottom and be free. Get the extra helper to lift the door, and then you can remove the bottom pivot and carefully unscrew it using a screwdriver.
If one comes across a door that’s not screwed, all there is to do is pull it towards your direction. Proceed to then slide it off from the bottom pin, and this will get it out immediately. In addition, press the lower pivot pins when trying to raise the door to get it out of the bottom track.
How Do You Remove A Pivot Pin From An Old Bifold Closet Door?
Begin by having both sides of the old bifold closet doors wide open and make the doors face each other. Get the other person to help lift both sides of the door. This is done to easily gain access to the top pivot springs, where you will have to push the spring at the very top.
Some doors do not have a locking lever on the top; with these, just push it down, and it will come off. When pulling out the pivot and it’s stubborn to get out, try to turn the pin a few times for it to come off.
How Long Does It Take To Remove Old Bifold Closet Doors?
With proper technical know-how, you should get the old bifold closet doors out within 5 minutes. It depends on whether you’re familiar with the bifold mechanisms’ operations. You are expected to follow the steps carefully if you do not know how to remove the doors well.
Saving time is only possible when there is someone to help lift the heavy doors as this will also save you some time. Ensure you have the right tools ready because this will save time. Otherwise, having the wrong tools will only make the work harder for you and increase the time spent.
Can You Remove Old Bifold Closet Doors On Your Own?
You cannot remove old closet bifold doors by yourself. This is because a lot of heavy lifting is involved in the process. When you attempt to remove the closet doors alone, you might damage the bifold doors or get hurt. It is better to get someone who will assist in lifting the doors and thus reduce the weight you have to lift.
An extra person will also unscrew the bottom track as you lift the door when removing the bottom bracket. It is tough to lift the door and unscrew the bottom track yourself. Having someone else hand over the tools minimizes the risk of unexpected accidents.
Final Verdict:
This is a straightforward procedure to follow, especially now that you have understood how to remove old bifold closet doors and their replacement. Correctly doing the task is crucial because you will damage the bifold doors, hinges, pivots, and brackets if you don’t follow the steps.
It’s also important to know the correct procedure. This is because the bifold closet doors come in with a lot of maintenance which may mean you will have to change the pivot pins or brackets with time, or you may need to paint them afresh.
