How to Install: Top and Bottom Tracks
The tracks are the final structural stage of your project. It is helpful to think of the wardrobe in two parts: the internals, and the doors and tracks. The track system sits separately in front of your internal uprights to create the finished enclosure.
1. The 600mm Depth Standard
The standard set-out for a myDIY wardrobe is 600mm from the back wall.
- Why 600mm? This depth ensures that coat hangers have enough clearance so they do not hit the doors when sliding.
2. Leveling the Bottom Track (Three-Step Process)
Because sliding doors will "roll" on an unlevel surface, the floor plate must be perfectly flat.
- Step 1: Leveling the Floor Plate: Position the MDF floor plate and use a spirit level to check the floor. Use packers to lift the low side until the plate is perfectly level, across multiple increments.
- Step 2: Securing the Plate: Screw through the floor plate and the packers into the floor to fix the base securely.
- Step 3: The Aluminium Track: Place the aluminium bottom track on top of your leveled floor plate with the long lip at the front.
- Important Fixing Tip: When screwing the aluminium track into the floor plate, offset your screws so you do not hit the existing fixings used to secure the floor plate to the ground.
3. Top Track Installation
The method for fixing the top track depends on your ceiling:
- Level Ceilings (Simple Installation): If your ceiling is level and no pelmet is required, the aluminium top track is fixed directly to the ceiling using appropriate fixings for your ceiling type.
- Unlevel Ceilings (Head Plate & Pelmet): If the ceiling "runs out," you will need to install a head plate, pack it out to level, and scribe a pelmet to cover the gap. This specific process is covered in our Pelmet Installation guide.
