How to Measure for a Barn Sliding Door Track

Before ordering a new barn sliding door track, you'll need to understand how to measure for it. A barn door sliding track needs plenty of space on a wall above the door opening to work efficiently, so it's crucial to get the right measurements. Grab a partner, gather your materials, and learn how to measure for your new barn door hardware kit.

Choose the Right Type of Sliding Door Hardware Kit
Get a Partner to Help
Assess Your Space
Gather Materials
Check the Product's Specifications
Measure the Door Width
Double the Width of Doors
Measure Door Opening Height
Double Check for Accuracy

There's no need to hire a professional to install a barn sliding door track in your home. This can absolutely be a DIY project. But you'll need to know the basics of measuring for your sliding doors and barn door kit to make sure everything looks and works the way you want it to.

The most important part of the process is calculating the measurements for your barn door hardware kit track, which is what the sliding door set rolls along to open and close over the door opening. You can choose a custom track size from BarnDoorHardware.com, but you should spend time ensuring accurate measurements for your track first.

How to Measure for a Barn Sliding Door Track

Follow the steps below to install a barn sliding door track yourself. These instructions are generalized for most DIY installations. However, you'll want to refer to your door kit's installation guide for more specific instructions for your door and track.

1. Choose the Right Type of Sliding Door Hardware Kit

Depending on your door setup, you'll need to choose a single sliding barn door hardware kit or a bypass barn door hardware kit. This must-do step is crucial to making sure you have all the hardware and the right type of track and roller system for your DIY project.

Bypass doors can pass each other when opened, allowing you to clear a door opening when needed, but also close it off with two or more doors. However, a smaller door opening will only need a single door, and these track systems are generally less complicated than tracks for multiple doors that bypass one another.

You'll also have the option to choose which type of barn sliding door track you'd like. A popular barn door option is the flat track hardware kit. Flat tracks have rollers that sit atop the track and slide back and forth.
The openness allows you to see everything in action. Other types of tracks conceal the mechanism more, like a box track, which contains the rollers inside a box system.

Finally, make sure your rolling barn door hardware kit includes everything you need to finish the job, like a barn door latch, screws, a floor guide, and handles. This way, there won’t be anything slowing down your project.

2. Get a Partner to Help

Before measuring for your barn door track, ask someone to help you. While measuring for a door system isn't usually a complicated process, it does help to have an extra set of hands and eyes to make sure your measurements are accurate.

Sliding door hardware kits come in several sizes, and BarnDoorHardware.com even lets you pick your size to the inch, depending on the kit you choose. Therefore, it's crucial to have the exact measurements you need before ordering. After taking each measurement yourself, have your partner do the same and compare the measurements.

3. Assess Your Space

Next, you should take inventory of the space you have where you'd like to install your single or double door system. Some areas aren't the best for sliding doors, as you'll need plenty of wall space on either side of the door opening for the door and track to hang. Openings with only a few inches of wall space on one or both sides aren't the best spots for sliding doors.

For the best results, make sure you have enough wall space on each side of the door. If one side has just a small amount of space, it should be enough to hold at least a few inches of the track. Then, the other side of the wall should be larger to allow room for the door to move past the door opening. Generally, you'll want your wall to hold a track that's about double the width of the door opening.

4. Gather Materials

Now, gather what you'll need to measure: your helper, a measuring tape, a pencil, and a piece of paper. If you have a very wide door opening, you might also want to get the help of one more person to hold the measuring tape steady in the center while you measure the width.

5. Check the Product's Specifications

Before getting the exact measurements for your single, bypass, or bi-parting doors, check the specifications of the products you're considering. Each product has its own needs and measurements, so it's important to look at the installation guide if one is available online. Taking this step can help ensure that you can fit the hardware kit you want into the space once you take your measurements.

Check how long the track is or what lengths are available. Then, see how much space you need on either side of the door opening for proper installation. You should also check the height of the barn sliding door track to determine if you have enough space over the door for the track to fit.

6. Measure the Door Width

Unlike a traditional hinged door that needs to fit within the space of the door opening, a barn door should be slightly wider than the door opening to fully cover it when closed. If you don't yet have a door picked out, you'll need to start with the door opening measurement.

Hold a measuring tape across the width of the door opening from end to end and record that measurement. If the door opening has molding around it, include that in your measurement as well. Your door should be about two inches wider on each side, or about four inches wider total.

If you already have your door or double door system picked out, take the measurement of the single door or double doors together to get the width.

7. Double the Width of Doors

Now, you'll take the measurement you just wrote down for your door or double doors and multiply it by two. This will be the measurement for your track. Remember to add your extra inches if you measured the door opening rather than the door.

For example:

A single door measures 38 inches. Your track length will be 38 x 2, or 76 inches.
A set of double doors measures 80 inches. Your track length will be 80 x 2, or 160 inches.
A door opening measures 36 inches. Your width is 36 x 2, or 72 inches. Now, add the four extra inches of cushion, giving you a 76-inch measurement for the track.

8. Measure Height Above the Door Opening

Next, measure how much space is above the door opening. For high ceilings with an obvious amount of space, you can skip this step. However, smaller areas above doors may not accommodate certain tracks. This important measurement ensures that you have enough height to add the track you want, as some systems have larger rollers than others.

For this measurement, you might need a step stool or ladder. Start with your measuring tape at the top of the door opening and measure all the way to the ceiling, bending the measuring tape where the wall and ceiling meet for an accurate measurement.

9. Double Check for Accuracy

Finally, take a few minutes to go over each measurement again to check for accuracy. This is a good time to have your helper measure everything so that you can compare your measurements and recheck anything that doesn't match.

You might also compare your measurements to the specifications found on the sliding barn door hardware kit's product page. You might notice a measurement that seems much farther off than what it should be, and can recheck before placing an order.

How to Install Sliding Barn Door Track

While all BarnDoorHardware.com hardware kits come with detailed instructions to help you install your hardware successfully, it's still helpful to have an idea of what you will need to do. This way, you can prepare ahead of time for a smoother installation process.

The following instructions are simple, general instructions for installing a barn sliding door track. If possible, remember to get the help of another person, especially for very long tracks that are difficult for one person to manage.

Install a header board, if necessary. This is needed if your studs don't align with the predrilled holes of your track. It offers sturdy support for the track and barn doors to hang. Measure the wall studs and mark those measurements on your header board. Then, use screws to drill the board into the studs.
Secure the track onto the header board or the wall. If not using a header board, you'll need to align the holes of the track with your wall studs. Then, drill the included screws into the studs to secure the track in place.
Install the stoppers on the metal track. Place your stoppers where you need them based on where you'd like your doors to stop along the track.
Finally, install your door's hardware, like the door pull, hanger set, and locking mechanism, if they are not already pre-installed. Then, hang the doors by placing the hangers and rollers into the track.

Measuring and Installing a Barn Sliding Door Track

With a few steps and minutes of preparation, you can measure and install barn doors and their hardware yourself. Refer to the guidelines above for barn interior or exterior sliding doors as basic instructions for measuring and installing. However, be sure to check your product's instruction manual for more specific steps that align with your hardware kit and doors.

BarnDoorHardware.com offers an array of barn sliding door track kits, doors, and more—many of which you can customize to fit your space and style. Find flat track hardware, box track hardware, frameless hardware, and other popular types of kits for barn and sliding doors. Then, choose your track length to ensure a perfect fit.

Most of our kits include several other customization options, too, like soft-close features, the number of hangers, included handles, finishes, and track styles. You can also choose your wheel style on some kits, allowing you to lean more rustic, industrial, or any style in between.

Visit BarnDoorHardware.com today to browse our products and choose the best barn door hardware for your project. Our hardware kits include a 30-day return policy to ensure your satisfaction.