09 Aug Maintaining An Investment In A Secret Door
Bookshelves require dusting. Silver requires polishing. Floors require mopping. Regular cleaning and upkeep is part of being a homeowner, or at the very least, an adult.
So, when a secret door comes into the picture, it’s a fair expectation that an investment in upkeep and maintenance would be required. And some may require that, particularly those of lower quality.
Some common issues that develop over time, especially with doors that aren’t designed and built by the experienced team at Creative Home Engineering, include warping, operational challenges and a cracking or splintering frame. Here is what to expect and how to handle it.
Warping. From time to time, secret doors — like regular doors — warp. Over time, their load or their environmental exposure cause the doors to give way and take on a new shape. At Creative Home Engineering, our carpenters handpick every piece of lumber used in our doors, ensuring the highest quality planks go into every door. In addition, every single one of our doors is load rated, which supports our integrated warp control system. Our exclusive system ensures that doors don’t warp when loaded, unlike other doors, which means maintenance for this issue is basically unneeded with a door from Creative Home Engineering.
Operational challenges. Some doors on the market may require homeowners to periodically lubricate its inner workings to ensure proper operations. The engineering that goes into each of our doors greatly minimizes that possibility. Here’s why:
- Our hinges. By utilizing our patented, five-axis pivot hinges, our custom secret doors are fully adjustable in every direction, which keeps gaps tighter and more consistent. In addition, those hinges compensate for changes — such as a foundation settling or wood acclimating to an environment — which would be detrimental to other doors.
- Our design. The doors we design and build do not use rollers or feet, which can leave marks on the floor or create friction with environmental changes. It’s one of the reasons our doors hold up, operationally, over time.
- Our support. Built around steel supports, our custom secret doors hold up over time as compared to doors built solely with wood or paneling. That enhanced support avoids twisting, sagging and rubbing — which can be common problems with doors manufactured elsewhere.
Splintering frame. It isn’t uncommon for a frame to split or crack, due to environmental factors that are both natural and human-caused. From an environmental perspective, our doors rarely experience cracking or splintering frames in part due to the premium lumber we use to build our doors and in part due to the level of precision we employ during the manufacturing process. Nothing is willed into place. Instead, everything fits, flush. Sometimes so flush that inspectors even miss it.
However, even with every precaution taken into account, we understand that there are times when things don’t go as planned. It’s part of the reason we offer a hassle-free, two-year warranty. And, it’s also why we make our engineers available to the homeowners we work with, should problems arise.
To get a better understanding of what sets our doors apart, from a structural and maintenance standpoint, click the link below.
Learn more here.
Creative Home Engineering, a Gilbert, Arizona-based company, is the global leader in designing and manufacturing secret doors. From swinging bookcases to sliding walls to rotating fireplaces and safe rooms, Creative Home Engineering has been an innovative leader in the field of hidden passageway design for more than 20 years. Learn more at www.hiddenpassageway.com.