How to Install a Sliding Recessed Door

Open the existing door and unscrew the screws holding the hinges to the door jamb. Cut around the edges of the door trim with a utility knife. Insert a pry bar under the trim and rotate the bar toward you to pull the trim away from the wall.

Cut through the nails holding the door jamb to the wall studs using a reciprocating saw with a metal cutting blade. Cut out the drywall to the side of the doorway opening using a drywall saw, making the cutout as large as the sliding door you plan to install. Trim any wall studs that sit inside the cutout area using the reciprocating saw.

Cut out the drywall along the top of the doorway up to 6-inches above the doorway. Cut through the nails holding the door’s header board to the studs, then remove the header. Measure and cut a 2-by-4-inch board for the new header that fits along the old doorway and the new cutout you made.

Drive nails through the new header board and into the wall studs to hold the header in place. Place the sliding door’s track on a pair of sawhorses, then use a handsaw to cut the track to the same width as the new door.

Slide the mounting brackets on the ends of the track and position the track along the header board inside the cutout. Drive screws through the mounting brackets and into the wall stud and header. Secure the mounting brackets for the door kit’s split studs in the subfloor inside the wall cutout using wood screws. Space the brackets 6-inches apart.

Insert the bottom of the split studs into the mounting brackets, and then straighten the split studs until they touch the header. Drive nails at an angle through the split studs and into the header. Hold the door vertical at the beginning of the track, then insert the wheels on the top of the door into the track one at a time.

Cut sheets of drywall with a utility knife of adequate size and shape to cover the cutout. Drive screws through the drywall sheets and into the wall studs. Apply drywall tape to the seams between the drywall sheets and the finished drywall.

Spread drywall compound over the drywall tape, smoothing the compound with a putty knife. Allow the compound to dry completely, and then apply two more coats in the same fashion. Sand the edges of the compound patches with fine-grit sandpaper once the compound has dried. Paint the wall to match the rest of the room.