How to Make an Easy DIY Sliding Barn Door

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Barn doors may offer a rustic charm to your home while also saving space because they slide instead of swing. However, they can be costly to purchase, which could put you off unless you have the money.

On the other hand, making a homemade version is simple and an excellent way to save cash.
Below are the steps of making an easy DIY sliding barn door.

Assemble the Boards

Seven 16s covered the casing properly for your 30-inch-wide entrance; you may require to rip the wood boards to width.

Measure from the top to the floor of the door frame, then use a miter saw to cut the wood boards 1⁄2 inch shorter.

Position the boards side-by-side, lay the pieces along with the outside corners, and bind them together with long bar clamps.

Extended strapping at the bottom and top edges helps to square up the structure.

Remove the clamps after screwing together the pieces and strapping.

Insert Filler Strips

Cut the 15 filling strips with a miter saw according to the cutting list.

Put the top rail flat along the upper side of the boards with adhesive; attach the upper stiles underneath it, flush towards the outside edges, and the center rail below them.

Add the bottom stiles and rail, allowing a 1-inch gap for the door’s floor guide.

Drive a 1 1/4-inch deck screw throughout every strip and into each of the 16s it traverses.

Remove the Chevrons

Mark a centerline under the door’s two built-in panels with a straightedge.

Cut one edge of each box board using a miter saw set to 45 degrees.

Butt the mitered edges of two pieces of matching color and thickness together at the midline, making an arrow, beginning at the upper rail.

Mark the boards with a combination square approximately 1/8 inch short where they meet the stiles.

Dry-fit the parts after mitering them to length.

Repeat the process, a single chevron at the moment.

Trim the Corners

Use the combo square to identify where the piece crosses the stile and rail on the boards that reach the corners.

On the miter machine, cut the two points.

Fill the remaining pattern with scrap, trimmed to fit, after you’ve installed the longer pieces.

Set up the Pattern

Lift out one set of boards once at a time, add panel glue to the underparts, and push them back in place using the chevrons dry-fit in all panels.

Tack the panels in place using 11/4-inch brads, one around each end of each board, using a pneumatic nail gun.

Resume the procedure, attaching and nailing every pair of boards while you work your way down both panels.

Make Pocket Holes

Cut the cedar using the miter saw per your cut list.

Place the pieces bumpy-faced down, covering all filler strips.

Attach a pocket-hole clamp at the end of the rail with one edge, and make a hole using the kit bit.

Reset the jig and other side and repeat.

Drill two slot holes at every end of the top and middle rails and three at the broader bottom rail.

Construct the Frame

Clamp the framing together after applying wood glue towards the edges of the rails and the adjoining corners of the matching stiles.

Drive the screws included with the kit through the stiles’ edges at every pocket hole.

Take off the bar clamps.

Connect the Face Frame

Remove the face frame gently and lay it aside.

Panel adhesive should be applied in a zigzag manner along the filler sections.

Put the frame to the workbench and position it rough-side upwards, hiding the screws.

Place it in the position provided, then line it along all 4 sides.

Every 8 inches, clip it down with 11/4-inch brads.

Finishing Touches

To remove any splinters, gently sand the whole door with 100-grit sandpaper.

Apply a thick layer of paste wax on the wood with a cotton rag.

Install the Rollers Align the rolling hardware with the width of the wood stiles. It may be necessary to remove the tires first.

Mark the screw positions, then use a 1/8-inch bit to drill two holes into the fluff edge and screw the equipment in place.

Replace the tires and slide the track into position.

Measure the distance between the track and the door to estimate how high to mount it above the casing—3/4 inch for the gear.

The Mounting Board should be attached.

Trim a length of 14 based on the length of the rail with the miter saw.

Locate the frame and mark positions above the head case with a stud finder.

Drill pilot drills through the mounting board and into each screw with a 1/8-inch bit, leveling it above the casing.

Use 3-inch deck screws to keep it in place.

Measure 3/4 inches above the enclosure and mark two positions on the mounting for the track.

Place the track level against the panel, with the lower edge of the track aligned with the markers.

Check if the board is level with a 2-foot level, then mark every lag bolt placement on the board.

Set aside the rail and make 5/16-inch two holes at each of the marks.

Using a 3/8-inch ratchet wrench, thread a lagging screw through one opening and a standoff and torque it but not completely.

Put the remaining lags in place with a ratchet, then tighten them all up.

Open the Door

At one end, place a doorstop.

Lift the door onto the rail and slide it out to the stop.

Set up the second stop.

Place the L-shaped flooring guide as it covers the open and closed locations of the door.

Mark the screw placements, drill pilot holes, then use the provided screws to fasten the guideline to the floor.

Make 1/8-inch pilot holes and install the door handle using the provided hardware on the midline of the stile.