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Combining a Small Master Bedroom with an Ajoining Small Bedroom?

12 years ago

In my quest to find a home, I'm coming across many nice homes having very small master bedrooms.

I was thinking possibly going from a 3br home to a 4br home where the master and another small bedroom could possibly be combined to make the large master we want.

Has anyone done this, and if so, were you happy with the outcome? The approx. cost of the project? Pictures maybe?

If this can be done with not a lot of cost, it will open up new possibilties of homes to consider.

Thanks!

Featured Answer

tryinbrian

12 years ago

I did just what you describe and I'm tickled pink with it. In my case it WAS a load-bearing wall, but that just meant I had to header off the opening. I created about a four-foot archway between the two sections of the (now one)room - making one section the bed area and one the sitting/dressing area.

I can't tell you what it costs since I did it myself, but I really don't think it would be that bad, depending on what needs to be done. I had to move a electrical box and add another (to stay up to code) but it was mostly a framing/drywall job.

I would say the most important thing is visualizing the feel/scale of the new room as well as new traffic patterns and usage patterns to come up with a good design. In may case I created a couple of new walk-in closets to keep the scale of the resulting room comfortable. I know I've been in several "de-partition" rooms that feel just like that - two rooms with a wall knocked down.

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Comments (6)

seriousmom
12 years ago
I am doing just that in my vacation home. We are taking down a wall between two bedrooms so we can have a larger one for ourselves. The problem is the finished size. The length will be be about 24 feet long and the width 12 feet wide, but it's what I have to do. We will be moving in permanently in a couple of weeks, after construction is completed. I will be happy to return with the results.
weedyacres
12 years ago
If the wall between the rooms isn't load-bearing, and you just want to open it up, then it's a fairly simple task. You just rip out the sheetrock, remove the framing, and patch the drywall and flooring.
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nkkp
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We aren't finished yet but I did that and am really happy wih the way it it working out. Like seriousmom pointed out you would want to examine the layout of the rooms to make sure it would work efficiently. My master was a large room (14x22) and the next room was 12x16 that attached to the side of my master (think of a "L" shape). It worked wonderfully. Since we just put a door through the wall we didn't have to worry about the issues of completely removing a load bearing wall. (No need for the 19 foot steel beam that we used to remove a wall downstairs - but that's another story).
eldemila
Original Author
12 years ago
Would love to see your pics when it's completed! What exactly do they do with any of the electrical that's in the wall???

If non-load bearing wall, it seems easy to do and definitely opens a whole more possibilities for me. One listing I saw has a MB size of 9x14 - that's crazy small! I wouldn't even look at it, but now, there would be a possibility if the layout was right.

Thanks!
handymac
12 years ago
What everyone says is true, but there may be a glitch.

In most cities and townships in the Kansas City Metro, houses are taxed(sewer and pollution control) by the number of bedrooms. Thewre is a code requirement to call a room a bedroom in those cities/etc. There has to be a built in closet.

So, in looking, be sure you check with the codes folks to see if that is permissable. They may so ok, but there may be issues with taxes and resale.

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