A PAX sliding door that sticks, rubs, or sits crooked right after assembly is almost always caused by an unlevel wardrobe, a misaligned top rail bracket, or a snap-fitting hook on the wrong side — not a defective door. These are the three most common fixes, and all three can usually be corrected without unscrewing the whole unit: re-level the wardrobe against the floor and wall, check the top guide bracket's spacing on both sides, and confirm the inner and outer doors are hung with the correct hook orientation.
This is one of the most common calls we get on furniture assembly jobs across Toronto, Hamilton, and the GTA — a PAX wardrobe goes together fine on paper, but the sliding doors drag, won't close flush, or clunk against each other in the middle. Here's what's actually going on and how to fix it.
Why do PAX sliding doors stick or rub right after assembly?
Most sticking comes down to the wardrobe frame not being perfectly level, which changes how much clearance the doors have in their top and bottom rails. PAX wardrobes rely on gravity and a level frame to let the doors glide freely; even a small lean — from an uneven floor, old baseboards, or carpet underlay — can be enough to make a door drag against the frame or the other door. Older GTA homes with settled floors and newer condos with slightly out-of-level subfloors both run into this. Before touching the doors themselves, check the wardrobe with a level on top and on the side, and adjust the plastic leveling feet at the base until it reads true in both directions.
Why are the two sliding doors hitting each other in the middle?
This usually means the doors are mounted in the wrong order, or one guide bracket is bent slightly inward. PAX sliding doors run on two separate tracks — one closer to the wardrobe interior, one closer to the front — and the instructions specify which door (inner or outer) goes on which track. If they're swapped, the doors ride at nearly the same depth and clip each other when sliding past. Confirm against the paper instructions which door is inner and which is outer, and check that the top guide bracket's two channels are still evenly spaced; a bracket that got bent while unpacking or during the build can pinch one track closer to the other.
Why does one door sit crooked or not flush with the others?
A door that sits visibly out of line with its neighbour is almost always a hook-and-slider issue, not a bent door. Each sliding door hangs from small plastic or metal hooks that clip into a slider running along the top rail, and IKEA's own PAX forum threads and troubleshooting guides point to this hook connection as the most common source of a crooked or uneven door. If a hook isn't fully seated — or is seated one notch off from its matching hook on the other side — the door hangs slightly lower or higher on that side, throwing off the whole alignment. Unhook the door at the top, confirm both hooks are seated the same way, and check that the floor guide at the bottom is tracking the door rather than fighting it.
Can an uneven floor really cause this, and how do you check?
Yes — PAX wardrobes have no separate leveling mechanism beyond their adjustable feet, so the frame follows whatever the floor is doing underneath it. Place a level across the top of the wardrobe from side to side, then front to back, and adjust the feet until both read level rather than just eyeballing it against the wall or baseboard. In older homes with settled hardwood or plaster-era subfloors, and in some newer builds with minor floor variance, this single step resolves more sticking-door complaints than any adjustment to the doors themselves.
Should you take the doors off and start over, or adjust in place?
Start with in-place adjustments — leveling the frame, checking rail spacing, and reseating hooks — before removing anything, since most sticking issues don't require disassembly. If a door is still dragging after the frame is level and the hooks are confirmed correct, then it's worth unclipping just that door, checking the track for any leftover hardware, sawdust, or a stray screw that didn't seat flush, and rehanging it. Full disassembly is rarely needed; it's usually one of these smaller checks that was missed during the original build.
PAX wardrobes are one of the trickiest flat-pack builds precisely because the doors depend on a level, correctly aligned frame to work properly — small errors that don't matter on a bookshelf become a sticking door on a PAX. NorthPros assembles PAX wardrobes, KALLAX units, bed frames, and flat-pack furniture across Toronto, Hamilton, and the GTA, leveling and checking door movement before we call a job done. Fully insured, with a workmanship warranty on every job, and you pay only once it's done — no deposit. Build a free quote, see what's included on the pricing page, or message us at 647-687-4110 if your PAX doors need a proper fix or you'd rather have the whole build done right the first time.
Frequently asked questions
My PAX sliding doors worked fine for months and started sticking recently — why?
This is usually a sign the wardrobe has shifted out of level over time, often from a floor settling slightly or the unit being bumped or moved. Re-check it with a level on top and adjust the feet before assuming a part has failed.
Is it normal for PAX sliding doors to make noise when sliding?
A smooth, quiet glide is normal; a scraping or grinding sound usually means a door is dragging against the frame or the other door, which points back to a leveling or rail-spacing issue rather than normal wear. A quiet rolling or clicking sound from the wheels in the top track is typically fine.
Can I fix a crooked PAX door myself, or do I need to call someone?
Most crooked-door cases are fixable with the leveling and hook checks above and don't require any tools beyond a level and a screwdriver. If the wardrobe was assembled by a professional originally, it's worth asking whether a follow-up adjustment is covered before troubleshooting it yourself.
Does the type of floor — hardwood, carpet, laminate — affect how the doors sit?
Yes. Carpet and underlay compress slightly over time and can tilt a wardrobe a few millimetres, which is enough to affect door clearance, while hardwood and laminate are more stable but can still be uneven in older homes. Whatever the floor type, the fix is the same: level the frame using the adjustable feet.
Will NorthPros assemble a PAX wardrobe I already bought but haven't opened yet?
Yes — flat-pack wardrobe and media unit assembly is part of our furniture assembly service across Toronto, Hamilton, and the GTA, and we level and test door movement as part of the job rather than just bolting the frame together. Get a free quote or message 647-687-4110 to book.