I need to bridge a 1 1/2 in. gap at a doorway transition for a pocket door. The high-point is at the doortrim and does a 90 DEG. down to the closet floor. This happened due to a contractors use of thinset to level a bathroom floor. Or really the framers not leveling the floor joists at installation !
I know I’ll need to cut the door bottom at an angle, of course.
My Biggest concern is, will I need to flare the transition strip further than the doorway opening?
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I can't quite picture this. The floor is level but the closet floor is not? Or the 2 floors are at different heights. I guess the transition strip is not level or you wouldn't need to cut the door at an angle, but what does that have to do with different heights.
Why not just raise the closet floor height?
Both floors are level,but not with each other(MT. EVEREST), and finished. . A transition strip placed in the doorway would need to be at an angle, to transition the 1.5in. height difference. This will require, the already installed (!) pocket door bottom to be cut at an angle (aesthetics).So should I flare the transition further into the walk-in closet instead of what normally would be done, at the door jamb ? This would make the angle of the transition strip less.
OK, now I got it.
My first thought would be to raise the height of the closet floor. If that's not feasible, then I think I would install a level transition strip that reached just to the far side of the door (hence, no angle needed on the bottom of the door) and then a 2nd transition strip from that point down to the floor.
You can make that 2nd transition strip as wide as seems reasonable, but since it's a closet and there's no trip hazard (so I assume), it wouldn't need to be very wide. Since it's 1-1/2", maybe you could use a 2 X 4 ripped at an angle.
I'm not a builder, but 1.5" height difference doesn't seem like it would have a "what is normally done" for a "transition" because it is a major trip hazard. You might consider putting an orange 2x4 there to protect yourself. Seriously, I wouldn't put a storebought strip there. I'd 1) fix the floor in the closet. It's lower so you can move it up. Even if it is finished, how much does it cost to finish a closet floor vs the lawsuit you get from prospective buyers who take a header when looking at your house? 2) If you really can't fix the floor, I'd put a level jamb under the pocket extending out into the closet and angle it on the other side of the door. I would cut the pocket door level because otherwise it will look foolish and it will probably chip and break from usage on the skinny side. or 3) I'd put a strip of highly contrasting material along the visible edge of floor in the main room, not angled, just a very low step. You can etch your motto into the side, or maybe the words "Plan Ahead".
It is a walk-in closet. The closet is a prefinished maple hardwood floor over a Warmboard Radiant heat floor. There's no way to do anything but play with the 5 inch space of the door threshold......That sign "PLAN AHEAD" should really be a Bob Marley tune that plays whenever the threshold is passed - "I shot the contractor .....
It is a walk-in closet.
That paints a whole new picture. a 1-1/2" trip hazard, even with a sloped transition, is an awful lot.
I don't think it matters how far into the closet the transition extends. Anything less than about 2' (a veritable ramp) is going to feel unnatural and possibly be unsafe. If it's your own house, do what you gotta do, but if it's for a customer, I would be concerned about liability.
YEP That's the problem!!! Unfortunately there's
another door about 2 ft. away, on the wall adjacent to the one with the door!!! I guess the only thing to do is to build it to the door jamb width and to the 1.5" ht. ??? What if the transition had an easy arch instead of a hard angle?I can only hope the inspector is in a good mood!!
yeesh...this seems like trouble. Too short for a step, but too tall for a simple floor transition.What about a full threshold? Maybe along with a transition step at the end of that?
I'm going to try to put a threshold molding @ an angle. The inspector seems to be OK with it.
We'll see when he comes back!!THANKS ALL FOR YOUR INPUT !!!
Is this a walk-in closet? If not, what's the worry? I may be picturing this wrong, but I would use a threshold that filled in under the door so there's not a gap, but if it drops an inch and a half after that to the closet floor, who cares? No one is walking in and out of the closet, are they?