A common misconception is that closet door hardware, especially hardware for sliding closet doors, require a bottom track.  The belief is that the bottom track helps support the weight of the doors as well as keep the doors aligned.

The Johnson Hardware we supply with our closet doors is actually designed to support the entire weight of the doors at the top.  The rollers are all sets of 3 or 4 wheels that have been machine turned and balanced. This means that the optional bottom track is used only to help guide your sliding closet doors and bifold doors.

When should I use a bottom track?

You really only need to use the bottom guide when there is a concern that the doors might be bumped hard enough to swing back and forth.  Some good examples would be if the doors are being be used between rooms or if you have small children or large pets.

Are bottom tracks only for sliding closet doors?

No.  Larger bi-fold doors are also good candidates for a bottom guide track.  Follow the same rule as with your sliding closet doors.  If you think your bi-fold doors are going to be bumped a lot then a bottom guide track might be helpful.

Do I need to cut into my floor to install the bottom track?

No.  Since the bottom guide tracks do not support any weight they can be surface mounted to your floor.  Wood strips can be placed on either side of the track to give the look of a finished threshold.  If you have not installed your floor you can also use a bottom guide track.  In this case you would simply install your flooring on either side of the bottom guide track.  The nice thing about this method is that the track is submerged below the floor level so there is no concern about tripping.

So while a bottom track is not needed to support the weight or your doors, it can help to guide your doors.

When it comes to closet doors, one of the most popular ways to mount them is as bifold doors. Basically this means that the doors are hinged together in pairs and will open and close in pairs.

While there doesn't seem like there would be much variation in the hardware for bifold doors there are a few different factors to consider.

Where will your doors fold open?

The first thing to look at is how you want to have your doors fold open. Traditional bifold doors will fold up in pairs within the closet opening. The doors can be mounted so that they all fold to one side only or split up so that pairs of doors fold to both sides. If you do NOT want the doors to fold up inside the opening then you can choose what is known as "full access" hardware.

Johnson Hardware 1601 series is a full access hardware that folds the doors 180° open and out against the face of the wall. The advantage of this is that you do not have pairs of doors blocking part of your opening. Three of the most practical applications for this are closets that hold a washer and dryer, closets that hold a home office and closets that stow away a Murphy Bed. If you do not have the wall space for your bifold doors to swing out and open then you will need to go with more traditional hardware that keeps the doors within the opening.

Can you mount your bifold doors to the floor?

Some hardware for bifold doors require that you mount a bottom pivot directly on to your floor.  If you have custom flooring this may not be practical or desired. This is one of the reasons that Johnson Hardware 111FD series is so popular. This is a heavy duty track hardware that holds bifold doors up to 50 lbs each but does not require you to touch your floor. Instead the bottom pivot mounts to your jamb to support your bifold doors.

Are your closet doors oversized?

Many of the closet doors we make are oversized and need to have bifold door hardware that has heavier limits. The Johnson Hardware 100FD series will handle bifold doors up to 75 lbs each and the Johnson Hardware 200FD series will handle bifold doors up to 48" wide each and 125 lbs each. These series of bifold track hardware will have a bottom pivot that mounts to the floor to help stabilize the oversized doors.

Closets with more than 4 doors

Sometimes it makes sense to have more than 4 doors within a closet opening. Most often it is because the closet has a very wide opening or it could even be several sets of interior doors to separate two rooms. In cases like this we offer what is referred to as multifold door hardware. The Johnson Hardware 100RD series will handle doors up to 24" wide and 50 lbs each while the Johnson Hardware 200RD series will handle doors up to 36" wide and 75 lbs each. Both of these can handle up to a maximum of 12 individual interior doors, 6 folding to the left and 6 folding to the right.

Bifold Door Hardware - Summary Table