| There are perfectly sensible reasons to want a room | | | | as multiple units in custom sizes to stand across the |
| in your home concealed behind a secret door. The | | | | face of a wall. |
| justifications range from whimsy to physical safety, | | | | Some of the bookcase-doors are hinged to drop |
| from protecting valuable personal items to creating a | | | | back into the concealed room. Others fold on piano |
| retreat for undisturbed work. | | | | hinges and jut forward when they open, their |
| The popularity of the rooms is increasing in both new | | | | bottoms sliding on a concealed track. A third option is |
| construction and remodeled residences. Manufacturers | | | | a door that slides sideways like a pocket door, either |
| and home contractors have tools to make it happen. | | | | disappearing behind a wall or moving in front of the |
| The most common concealment method is a | | | | adjacent wall. And some units pivot on top and |
| bookcase. It has all the attributes necessary for a | | | | bottom rods, part of the bookshelf moving forward, |
| door: (1) It stands against a wall or is built into a wall; | | | | the other part receding into the concealed space. |
| (2) It can be hinged to move as a single piece, or a | | | | The depth of the hidden space sometimes will dictate |
| section of it can be hinged to move independently of | | | | the most suitable type of door. |
| the rest of the unit; (3) It can be adapted to just | | | | The door function of a moving bookcase is more |
| about any room in the house – as towel shelves | | | | artfully concealed in some models than in others. |
| in a bathroom or pantry, as book shelving in a home | | | | "Built-in bookcases" that fit in an existing doorway |
| library, living room or hallway, or as a utensil rack in a | | | | perhaps least successfully disguise their true function. |
| kitchen. | | | | However, if interior decoration is a higher priority than |
| The variety of prefabricated bookcase units available | | | | secrecy, any of the moveable bookcases will do the |
| is large enough to satisfy most anyone's taste in | | | | job. |
| interior decoration. They are constructed of | | | | Other doorway disguisers include a pull-up flight of |
| hardwoods, including cherry, for staining or of pine | | | | stairs, a china cabinet or a pivoting wall section. They |
| for painting. They come in standard sizes to fit | | | | all are doors without the appearance of doors, and |
| existing doorways to pass as built-in bookcases, or | | | | that's the whole point. |