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28' Sliding Door in 50' Wall?

BRHMFG

Aluminum
Joined
Oct 9, 2014
Location
South Dakota
Need to close off the end a 50' building to be used for painting large equipment. We want our overhead crane to run full length of building so wall will have to stay below the crane. Possibly we will close that gap above wall with plastic flaps. Need to have a wide door in middle 28' minimum. Cannot have track at the top so crane can carry items thru this doorway.
So I can have 11' stationary wall on either side. That means some kind of double sliding door that covers 7' each section. and since I can't have track at the top I'm thinking of supporting the weight of door on rollers that roll on floor. Then I would need to make some sort of track kinda like a drawer slide has.
Any ideas or is there any type of door on the market that would fit this application?
 
Only thing that comes to mind is large shielding doors that go down into the ground. They go down until flush with the floor then you can walk across them.
Bill D.
 
I built vertical opening sidewalls for a greenhouse. 240’ wall rises as one door 8’. I used Harken sailboat traveler cars which use recirculating Torlon balls. Harken made me 18’ long tracks, I bought about 100 tracks and 200 cars. It has been operating for 25 years now.

Tracks and cars across the top of the doors could do the job for you. I have some large cars and track about 6’ long that I was going to put on Ebay if you want to experiment cheaply.
 
Look to airplane hangars?

Maybe a large bifold between the crane ways and sliders on the outside?

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Seems like any door that rolls in a track is always going to have debris in the track. Wheels hit the debris and stop turning, doors constantly sticking, flat spots on wheels, pita. If you can't have anything on top how do you keep it upright on a windy day?
 
So your going to have manufacturing going on, and on the other end, a fully EE rated paint area ?

Where are the exhaust fans going to be drawing air from ?
 
I would look at the vertical clamshell doors used on dirigible hangers for ideas. But they probably have a central pivot on the top.
Bill D
 
when I worked in a large hanger, the doors were telescoping and ran on tracks at top and bottom. But, in the middle there were a set of vertical doors that would raise up to clear the planes tail. Run your crane there maybe.
 
Seems like the challenge is that for a number of reasons (supporting the load of the doors, keeping debris out of the tracks) you really do want the doors hung off tracks that are supported at the top. And the tracks at the top will need to be supported by framing above that will interfere with your crane.

So what about switching the load from an outside the building section of track to your inside the building crane when you need to transfer a load from out to in?

I'm thinking of an interrupted track sections that bridges the door opening, for instance like the torpedo tracks that go through watertight bulkhead doors on a ship/submarine.
 
Maybe different approach.

Think "training wheels"

Having doors with wheels inside sliding panel to carry weight then additional wheels on outrigger to keep vertical.

Have doors overlap slightly as they retract into open position so leading end has outrigger both sides while trailing edge rides in track on next panel.

Using pneumatic tires with a diverter placed in front like cow catcher on old trains pushes large items clear and pneumatic tire can roll over smaller items.

They make motor in wheel for powered shopping carts so there are off the shelf options for power drive.

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My shop door is 20' wide and 14' tall. Each door is 10' wide and 14' tall. The doors roll on four 20" tall Cat D2 track idlers. The idlers roll in a track built from 5" channel 2" apart set into 30" of reinforced concrete.

The track has drains built into it (keeps water out of the shop too) and I don't even notice the 2" gap walking or forklift. I mocked up several different track designs and decided on the 2" wide gap because I couldn't trip over it and it was almost impossible to get gravel to jamb it up. A lot of debris can go into the track before it becomes an issue. Only thing I am concerned about is freezing. We haven't had a hard freeze since I built it, but I will be out there making sure it's cleared out of before we do.

I just wanted a door that looked really cool and reflected what I do. In no way is building a shop door like that an economical choice. Just getting 40' of track straight and level within .050" and sturdy enough not to move when 30 yards of concrete are poured and vibrated into it is a feat in itself.
 
My shop door is 20' wide and 14' tall. Each door is 10' wide and 14' tall. The doors roll on four 20" tall Cat D2 track idlers. The idlers roll in a track built from 5" channel 2" apart set into 30" of reinforced concrete.

I'd love to see a picture of your door. My home shop is in an old ag pole shed with miserable sliding doors. They desperately need an upgrade and I am debating between conventional garage doors and bi-fold doors.

-Jim
 
We have all been thinking about this wrong. the answer is to simply put the door tracks higher then the roof. Similar to the dog houses on top of theaters to pull the curtain up higher then the roof.
You need a building inside a building with big doors.
Just build the end doors of this hanger outside your existing shop and the craneway can come out all the way.
Bill D.

Hangar One (Mountain View, California) - Wikipedia
 
You might consider a Industrial Curtain with a weighted bottom, trolley rail on top, and a small crane slot for the crane cables near the center.

The whole curtain wall could be opened as required, the crane cables pass through the small rail opening, then the load could be positioned anywhere in the space. Close the curtain, cover the crane slot section and your ready to sand and paint.

These have been used in paint shops for years. The crane slot in the rail is the only thing that needs to be worked out. A second shorter piece of rail on rollers, with curtain attached, could be used to cover the crane slot opening.

Here is a few of the manufacturers to look at.

Economy-Industrial-Curtains-White.jpg

Affordable Stock Industrial Curtains, Panels & Curtain Walls

IC-11-Industrial-Curtain-e1551988859286.jpg


Industrial Curtains | Vinyl Curtain Walls & Dividers

Curtains---BodyShop.png


Bodyshop & Paint Booth Curtains - Curtains

SAF Ω
 
How about a track mounted above the doors, that swings out of the way when needed?
Think of a single post jib crane mounted outside on each side of the opening, acting as hinge. On the horizontal you could mount two tracks for a bypass door configuration, or a single 14' if you have enough swing room outside.
 
How about a track mounted above the doors, that swings out of the way when needed?
Think of a single post jib crane mounted outside on each side of the opening, acting as hinge. On the horizontal you could mount two tracks for a bypass door configuration, or a single 14' if you have enough swing room outside.

Swinging doors have a lot of shortcomings. You lose a bunch of useful space and they are deadly in just a light breeze. The doors on my shop weigh about 2800 lbs each. I thought for about 10 seconds about making them swinging and instantly realized how deadly that would be.

The other big issue is alignment. swinging doors need hinges in excellent alignment and everything has to be adjustable. Buildings move continuously. Bolt a huge swinging door to a building support and you'll probably have repercussions.
 
Great Thots, To clarify, the building will be a 51' x 80' with 22' sidewall height. This dividing wall will give us a 50'x 51' work area and 30' x 51' paint and wash area. So it is all inside one building. Products lifted may be up to 27' wide. We are thinking of two hoists on each bridge to give two lift points.
Thanks for the curtain links, I may need some of them.
I think the simplest design I can come up with, thinking of it today is this: Stationary walls either side of 11'. This leaves a 28' gap. Door will be similar to a bottom rolling hangar door in two sections. If one section is 10' and one is 9' that gives me around 24" overlap with section behind it when fully extended to closed position. Each section will have roller on the floor and then some sort of simple guide track or linear slide type on the section behind it to keep it in place. My biggest concern would be when fully closed that with the short overlap to have tight enough slides that door doesn't swing side to side to much.
When retracted the staggered lengths will give room for the rear roller.
This wall/door be 18' high approx so crane can roll over top. I will then close the peak in down to top of bridge and then use flap curtains to close gap.
Anyone know where to get some narrow roller wheels to carry weight of door? Would like to keep it within the frame of door to keep width down.
 
We have all been thinking about this wrong. the answer is to simply put the door tracks higher then the roof. Similar to the dog houses on top of theaters to pull the curtain up higher then the roof.
You need a building inside a building with big doors.
Just build the end doors of this hanger outside your existing shop and the craneway can come out all the way.
Bill D.

Hangar One (Mountain View, California) - Wikipedia

THIS.... is why folks come to PM, yah?

:D
 
Anyone know where to get some narrow roller wheels to carry weight of door? Would like to keep it within the frame of door to keep width down.

You want elite power wheels. They are steel (not cast iron) with ball bearings to roll on v track. I use 2x3x.120 or 3x3x.120 tube to make some large gates and doors bigger than you are doing and never a problem. The 4" wheel fit inside the 2x3 tube with a window cut into the bottom for the wheel to stick out about 1 1/4" or so. If you use 3" wide tube it will need a thickener piece welded inside each side to give the axle some more support. Wheel is 1 3/4" wide.

Prices in this link are way to high, shop around

Wheels
– Elite Gates


Good prices should be about $20 each for 4" or $57 each if you want heat treated. Also available in 6" dia
 








 
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