Closing up doorway in plaster wall
mhm802
2 years ago
I want to eliminate this door between the living room and the master bedroom in a small prewar (1926) condo. I need the wall space in both rooms, and the bedroom has a second, better located, door off the hallway that leads to two bedrooms and bath. The contractor I’m planning to use thinks it’s a straightforward job, but I want to make sure that we’ve considered any potential problems or issues. Would love feedback from folks here. Thanks!
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Comments (8)
kats737
2 years ago
mhm802
2 years agoRelated Discussions
Covering Up An Unused Doorway
Comments (1)I'd mount 2 horizontal 1x6 boards, the top of the upper where you want the top of the screen, the other a few inches above where you want the bottom. These should be secured into wall studs as your screen is likely to be pretty heavy. There should be studs on each side of the existing door opening, which will make it a bit easier. I'd use blocking behind these horizontals to bring them out far enough to clear the moldings around the door you are closing off, and the basebord, if applicable. I'd remove the doorknob if it interferes, but keep it in a safe place for future re-use. The screen could be mounted to these horzontals any number of ways......See MoreCrazy or brilliant? Closing up the LR/DR opening -- ideas?
Comments (19)French doors will give you the option of a door between the DR and LR, add to the value of your house. A lace curtain over the glass is the traditional way to cover them for privacy. If you wall in the space, please put your 2x4's 16" oc. It will take only a couple more and you will need the extra studs for nailing - sheet rock and trim are designed to be nailed every 16". If you are going to the effort of building a wall, do it right. Many people close in and rename their dining rooms. It's a fine idea to use the space you have to suit your family. But a house that 'goes around' works better - think of small children chasing each other through a house, happy for hours, or a party where people don't get caught in a dead end room but can circulate easily. So even if you close the door most of the time, I would suggest that you leave one, even if it is only a single French door. Yes, if you can only get to the DR through the kitchen, it is not a formal DR. When you have a dinner party and wish to entertain in the LR, you then set the table with your favorite china and silver, etc., and welcome people into your dining room formally - in Victorian days the gentlemen would have offered their arms to the ladies and escorted them into the dining room! However, if you do not entertain like that and do not intend to move in the next 5 years, do what you want! Someone else can change it back....See MoreWall down, should we close it up a little or leave wide open?
Comments (22)I think that small houses can benefit from boundary definition to a greater extent than larger houses can, sometimes. (think of Sarah Susanka) Many people here take out the small vestibules here in their 12-15 foot wide houses, for example, thinking it will make the front room larger. It doesn't, because with a wall there you can back any sort of furniture right up to the wall, where it is technically inches away from the front door, but with the wall gone, people will not put something that close to the front door, and Never something large that would seem to block or crowd it. In a large house it doesn't matter as much. You can leave a 3 foot gap for visual separation and float pieces away from the walls. In this situation I would easily place an end table or the arm of a sofa close to a small wall there, because the wall would indicate that it was "in another room/space". Without the wall there, I would not put it so close because it might visually look like it is straddling between rooms....See MoreHow close to doorway should cabinets go?
Comments (9)Does your doorway have wood trim? Ours do and I like a bit of blank space between the trim and cabinets --to let the trim have some attention, I guess. But I've seen cabinets right up to trim or up to untrimmed doorways in other homes. I don't think there is a 'standard', just personal preference. I also think the style of the home makes a difference. If the home is more traditional, with more architectural detail, I think it's typical to have more space between. More recent, clean-lined homes, usually without trim around doorways, worry less about using space for appearance and fill the space with cabinets. My sister's kitchen has her cabinets right up to the window opening and she thinks it's fine. She'd rather have the extra couple inches in her cabinet than in blank space on the wall. If you feel crowded at the doorway (and if it will always bug you), I think that is the bigger issue....See More
Elizabeth
2 years agokats737
2 years agolast modified: 2 years ago
summersrhythm_z6a
2 years agoUser
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agomhm802
2 years ago
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