When it comes to barn door hardware, there are so many different options it can be difficult to know where to start. How do you decide what type is best for your door and your project? How do you know what features to look for? This week we wanted to explain the benefits of one of the most common sliding hardware types: box rail hardware.

What Is Box Rail Hardware?

Box rail hardware has a box-shaped enclosure that covers the moving parts of the track. The top and sides are enclosed, and there’s a space in the bottom of the track where the hangers attach to the door.

The Best Option For Heavy Doors

Box rails have a greater weight capacity compared to other sliding barn door hardware. So they’re the right choice for very heavy doors. If your door is custom made, solid wood, or both, it’s likely pretty heavy. Of course, always check each product’s weight rating before purchasing to make sure that it’s compatible with your door. But in most cases for heavy doors, box rail is the best option.

Remember, while box rails are great for heavy doors, you don’t have to use them only with heavy doors. You can use them with any barn door you want!

Low Maintenance

With exposed hardware kits, the moving parts can get dusty and dirty. The dust makes the track operate less smoothly. But because box rails cover up the moving parts, you don’t have to dust them to keep the track working at peak performance. And it’s much easier to slide a wet cloth over the top of the box rail than it is to dust the moving parts—believe us, we’ve done both. So box rail hardware is a lower maintenance option, and runs very smooth and quiet. Who really wants to dust that often anyway?

Ideal for industrial, modern, and contemporary design schemes

Box rail hardware has an industrial, functional feeling. The design is simple and clean because the box rail hides the moving parts. This makes it perfect for industrial, modern, minimalist, and contemporary design schemes. Other types of sliding hardware kits have exposed hangers and wheels. But if you want something very simple, box rail hardware is the one for you. Choose a stainless steel or galvanized steel finish for an industrial loft. Go for black or white if you’re into monochromatic minimalism. And for a rustic feeling, choose unfinished steel, which will pit and rust with time.

Unless you choose a bypassing system, box rails can be soffit/ceiling mounted or wall mounted. This means you can choose to hang your barn door track on the ceiling, or on the wall or header board.

Because box rails are so simple, they allow the barn door(s) to take center stage. If you want to showcase a unique door, box rails frame the door but won’t compete with it.

What makes our box rails even better

All the benefits we listed above are true for box rails as a category. But we design our box rails with special attention to detail, to make your experience even better. Here’s how we did it:

• We designed the hanger trolleys in stainless steel with high quality polymer wheels that roll super quiet. Have to get up super early in the morning? Our box rails are so quiet they won’t wake up your household.
• Standard box rails are extruded or pulled through roller dies to shape the rail. We have ours individually bent to our specifications on a metal bending brake. The result is super-crisp corners for ultra-smooth operation.
• We include a pair of end stops with every kit, so that your barn door doesn’t roll out of the track. You’d think this would be a no-brainer, but often, other companies expect you to order end stops separately. We include them so you have one less thing on your to-do list.
• We designed our soffit hangers to be easy to install, saving you time and effort during the installation process.

We hope that explains why box rails are an excellent choice for sliding barn door hardware. Interested in adding box rail to your space? Check out our box rail hardware collection page for a variety of configurations, weight ratings, and metal finishes.