bi-fold door

landlord · Posted: Tue Nov 26, 2002 12:50 am Post Subject: bi-fold door

i have several 24" bi-fold doors that have the bottom pivot hole busted out and i need a way to repair these doors they cost too much to replace with new ones

Guest · Location: United Kingdom Thanked: 0 times

Find some dowelling which is bigg enough to fill the hole. Cut to length and coat in PVA glue then tap into the hole until flush. Allow 24hr to set then re-drill the pivot hole into the dowel.

lml2000 · Posted: Sun Mar 12, 2006 11:59 pm Post Subject: protruding bi-fold doors

need assistance to cure protruding bi-fold door -- when shut bifold door, door does not stay flat, has tendency to protrude @ fold. is this problem @ hinge @ fold, or at anchored pivot to which door swings to when opened?

background. had contractor install bifold doors for closet few years ago to replace sliding mirrored doors. job never professionally performed, in part due to uneven framing of closet entry.

doors are top hung. due to uneven frame, doors don't completely line up, which is OK. problem: whenever doors were opened & shut quickly, top of extreme edge, where each bi-fold door is anchored would slip. not bolted or screwed into guide, but rather screw tightens plastic block that slides along teflon-like guide rail. have glued onto top of rail, small wood to prevent plastic block from sliding. this has been successful.

each section of bifold door connected by 3 hinges - top, middle, bottom. recently noticed that bottom hinge was so loose, hinge about to come undone. tightened all hinges. now door will not close all the way @ fold. have loosened hinges . . but no luck. wondering if anchor point is issue.

any advise appreciated. thanks.

tfl9211 · Posted: Mon Mar 13, 2006 4:57 am Post Subject:

Go to www.maintenanceengineeringspecialties.com for parts that are manufactured to repair and protect bi-fold doors at the pivot pin areas. These parts are used by apartment managers and home owners across the U.S. They should solve all your problems on bifolds as to the pivot pin area.

lml2000 · Posted: Mon Mar 13, 2006 6:17 am Post Subject:

Thanks for quick replay. Have reviewed product info @ linked site with interest, but don't know if it address the problem I've described.

Principal problem is getting bi-folds to close completely flat & not protrude out a half inch or so. This may be a problem with how the door is presently hung, or whatever tension exists in the door that is pulling on it, preventing it from extending its full length.

I don't know if the products you kindly referred to address this problem. I don't see how the corner brace installed @ the corner brace addresses the problem. Perhaps u might be able to explain.

Also, while the pivot anchor would address the problem I've experienced, I've resolved that problem by gluing to the track, immediately in front of the polyurethane block a small thin piece of wood that stops the pivot anchor from sliding in the track toward the center.

Bottom line, i'd be interested in this product if I could understand how it will remedy my current problem, slightly protruding doors. But at this point, I don't understand how it will. i'm am looking for someone to explain to me how these doors are to be properly hung, what forces are at play that prevent a bifold door from fully closing. Thank you.

tfl9211 · Posted: Mon Mar 13, 2006 3:19 pm Post Subject:

The only thing that I can think of that would cause that is if the door has been pushed in to far it will bend the hinges slightly, not allowing it to close flush.
Take a look and see if the hinges are perfactly flat.
Jim

lml2000 · Posted: Mon Mar 13, 2006 5:59 pm Post Subject:

Thanks, Jim for another quick reply.

Based upon your recent comments, I now believe that the likely issue is the loose bottom hinge I tightened when adjusting & securing the anchored pivot. The hinge @ the bottom of the bifold was so loose that the bottom edges of each door were not really attached. Likely this was the only way the installer could get the doors to close flat.

Apparently, the door installation was not a very professional. A good reason why I often try to fix things myself, if I have the time & the tools. I can usually figure things out but for some reason I could not figure out what was pulling the doors toward their folding position when in a fully closed flat position.

Larry