u/Ry00ki

First of all, thanks to this sub for all the good ideas.

After spending at least two and a half years lurking here and overthinking this setup, I finally used a couple of days off to pull the trigger. Honestly, I should have done it much earlier. This post is mostly an encouragement for anyone in the same situation: just do it. Don’t wait years like I did. Once we had the measurements right, Version 3 took under one hour to make and install.

I included the second picture for reference: it shows Version 1, the old setup I had already been using for a few years with a universal sliding-door fabric kit. I simply reused that setup whenever I installed the AC for summer. Last year, I switched to the Midea mobile split AC to replace an older, louder mobile AC unit, and I really liked it. The main selling point for me was the quieter operation / silent mode, especially when watching TV. I liked it enough that I even bought a second one this year for my office.

At first, I just kept reusing the quick fabric/plastic setup and did not think too much about it. It worked, but visually and sealing-wise it was never ideal for a living room setup with a 2 meter height sliding door. For this summer setup, I finally took the opportunity to make something cleaner.

So we made a DIY insert using a white MDF/composite wood panel, cut to fit the sliding door opening. The goal was to keep it as discreet as possible and match the white interior. It is obviously still visible, but it blends in much better than the fabric solution.

The final result shown in the first picture is actually Version 3 overall: Version 1 was the universal sliding-door fabric kit, Version 2 was the first wood panel attempt, and Version 3 is the finished wood panel shown here.

Version 2 helped us understand what needed to be adjusted: mainly the height tolerance and the size/position of the hose/cable cut-out. For the height, we were too conservative and cut the panel around 3 cm shorter than the measured sliding-door height. That left too much space to compensate for, so the seal was not great and it looked messy once filled with foam.

For Version 3, we bought another panel and cut it only about 1 cm shorter than the measured height, leaving roughly 0.5 cm at the top and 0.5 cm at the bottom. That worked much better because the foam could compress properly and create a clean seal instead of trying to compensate for huge gaps.

For the width, we used foam strips on the side where the sliding door closes against the panel. I reused the foam that came with the Midea unit, but doubled it up. One layer was not enough; two layers gave much better cushioning and helped compensate for small gaps or uneven contact points.

The other big improvement was the hose/cable cut-out. On Version 2, I tried to make it “safe” and oversized the cut-out badly. Technically it worked, but once sealed with foam it looked ugly. For Version 3, we placed the cut-out lower, made it much smaller, and added soft foam around it so the hose/cable can pass through without being damaged. The same foam is used to seal the remaining gaps around the cut-out.

We also added a large white plastic piece on the back side of the sliding door because there was still a gap where cold air, and probably summer heat, could be felt coming through. That part is sealed with foam too, and since everything is white-ish, it does not look too bad.

Overall, the seal is much better, it looks cleaner, and it feels way more permanent than the fabric setup. It is not perfect, but for a DIY living-room setup, I’m really happy with the result. My main advice would be: measure precisely, do not cut too much off the height, and do not be shy with foam. The more controlled cushion you have, the easier it is to get a clean, tight seal. Also, keep the hose/cable cut-out as small as realistically possible. Bigger is not safer here, it just gives you more ugly gap to hide later.