Wardrobe into alcove..

andrew241983

How's it going lads just looking for a bit if advice I'm looking to put a wardrobe into an alcove in my sons room coz over the years it's just become a graveyard for broken toys... I'm ok at the woodwork but just wondering what the best way to hang the doors .. I was thinking of building the the shelves straight onto the wall and painting (no lining wood on inside) and just building a frame for the doors., it won't go right to the roof.. The only problem I see is the pipes running along the floor in the wooden box ... Any advice from anyone that has done this before would be much appreciated
Thanks

DublinDilbert

A couple of options here.

Measure the gap and see if you can buy a wardrobe in ikea or similar, that is roughly the correct width. Then fit a "spacer" down the side to make up the gap. This will be the quickest and possibly cheapest approach.

Other option is to make a built in unit, but Formica isn't nessicerly cheap and you'll need hinges, doors etc.

The final option is probably closer to what you were thinking. Get some louvred doors (woodies/b&q), make a frame out of 2x1 for the doors. I'd go for a long door and a small top door. The 2x1 frame is just to hold the doors and fix to the wall. The 2 inch side of the 2x1 faces out. You might consider putting a 2x1 batton on the RHS to affix the front frame to. You can also use the 2x1 for battons to hold the internal shelves. Get the planed 2x1in builder providers in 16ft lengths, dirt cheap.

I've done all 3 approaches, they will all look grand. Definitely go floor to ceiling. Advantage of ikea approach is you can buy the internal storage solutions.

If you want cheap doors check out adverts.ie. I got the doors for the last wardrobe I built from there, came with hinges and handles for €20. Wardrobe turned out perfect.

andrew241983

Thanks for the info mate will prob go with the 2x1 option and stick the door on that way and hopefully it turns out ok

DublinDilbert

Yea it will turn out grand.

The front frame runs down both sides, across the bottom, between the doors and the top. Cut 3 bits of 2x1 the width of the doors + 3mm. Then cut 3 bits the width of the doors + 100mm. These will mount behind the 3 smaller pieces and join them to the 2x1's that run along both edges.

Look up the b&q and woodies website and see what door sizes they have. If im looking at the picture correctly the frame can over hang the wall on the lhs by a few mm or even cm and look fine.G

andrew241983

DublinDilbert wrote: »

Yea it will turn out grand.

The front frame runs down both sides, across the bottom, between the doors and the top. Cut 3 bits of 2x1 the width of the doors + 3mm. Then cut 3 bits the width of the doors + 100mm. These will mount behind the 3 smaller pieces and join them to the 2x1's that run along both edges.

Look up the b&q and woodies website and see what door sizes they have. If im looking at the picture correctly the frame can over hang the wall on the lhs by a few mm or even cm and look fine.G

I don't get what you mean by cut 3 pieces +100mm and 3 pieces + 3mm mate

DublinDilbert

I'll draw a diagram when I'm on the pc. This is just a method to join the cross pieces to the side pieces without using a proper wood work joint or brackets.

The longer bits just go in behind the cross pieces and tuck in behind either side. It's just a way of adding some strength and giving a clean appearance on the front which will be seen.

DublinDilbert

Here's what I was trying to say:-

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/1326656/wardobe_simple.png

chris445

If I was doing this I would buy 3 @8x4 sheets of 18mm MDF, 8 blum hinges and two handles and make it up from that. Make a carcass with shelves and maybe a hanging rail. For the doors, measure the with of the unit. Then half that number and take off 5mm. This will be the width of each door. The height will be 5mm less than the height of the carcass. Cut the doors and add some design with a router if you can get your hands on one. Then 4 blum hinges to hang each door and a handle on each and you have a perfect built in wardrobe. All in all will probably cost less than €100 in materials.

Rough prices

3 Sheets €60
8 Hinges €10
2 Handles €10
Screws 3.5x40 and 4x16 <€10

andrew241983

DublinDilbert wrote: »

Here's what I was trying to say:-

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/1326656/wardobe_simple.png

Ah right I get you now mate cheers

galwaydude18

chris445 wrote: »

If I was doing this I would buy 3 @8x4 sheets of 18mm MDF, 8 blum hinges and two handles and make it up from that. Make a carcass with shelves and maybe a hanging rail. For the doors, measure the with of the unit. Then half that number and take off 5mm. This will be the width of each door. The height will be 5mm less than the height of the carcass. Cut the doors and add some design with a router if you can get your hands on one. Then 4 blum hinges to hang each door and a handle on each and you have a perfect built in wardrobe. All in all will probably cost less than €100 in materials.

Rough prices

3 Sheets €60
8 Hinges €10
2 Handles €10
Screws 3.5x40 and 4x16 <€10

Where are you buying screws for that price? And also MDF sheets? I can't buy a 18mm plain sheet for a third of what you put up for three sheets.

chris445

galwaydude18 wrote: »

Where are you buying screws for that price? And also MDF sheets? I can't buy a 18mm plain sheet for a third of what you put up for three sheets.

18mm Mdf sheets vary depending on the building providers I go to but usually around €20-€22 a sheet. Heres one of the more expensive places http://woodworkers.ie/prices/p_sheet_mdf.shtml

And if you paying more than €10 for those 2 boxes of screws you're being robbed blind.

slpower01

Yeah for sturdiness I would go for the mdf carcass + painted route. And around 20 euro is what I pay for 18mm sheets also... typically 5-10 for a box of screws too.

If you want to go the really cheap / still nice looking route you could always buy one sheet of mdf and a length of 3x2 timber... cut the timber and screw to your walls and ceiling. next cut two rips of mdf same thickness of the 3x2 and fix it to the front of the 3x2's and also to the head of it... then get a few kitchen hinges along with a forstner drill bit for these hinges... and make either a flush door or a door that overlaps (better option as if its a bit off it wont be noticed as much). then hang the door on the 2x3's ... use whatever mdf you have left over for shelves and then maybe get a clothes rail and mount it.

Hope this helps and gives another insight to what can be done,
Steven.

andrew241983

Dont know if anyone is still following this thread but ive done the frame of the wardrobe and i have a bloke that is gonna make and hang the doors for m but i just have one problem, the width of the wardrobe at the bottom is 805mm and its 785mm at the top because the alcove walls obviously get slightly narrower. just wondering will this cause a problem when it comes to hanging the doors??

1865

It shouldn't make a problem as long as the hinges are on the straight side.

andrew241983

1865 wrote: »

It shouldn't make a problem as long as the hinges are on the straight side.

i was gonna put two doors on the wardrobe.. would they not be clashing at the top where it is narrower?

galwaydude18

andrew241983 wrote: »

i was gonna put two doors on the wardrobe.. would they not be clashing at the top where it is narrower?

Yes it will be a problem if your hanging two doors. The distance top and bottom need to be the same to hang up two doors

andrew241983

galwaydude18 wrote: »

Yes it will be a problem if your hanging two doors. The distance top and bottom need to be the same to hang up two doors

Is there anyway way two doors can be hung and look good

galwaydude18

andrew241983 wrote: »

Is there anyway way two doors can be hung and look good

There's only a small bit of adjustment in the hinges. Not enough to make up 15mm. The only way to make it right is to make the measurements the same and use a filler to make up the 15mm gap.

chris445

Are the doors being cut from MDF? If so they could be cut to suit. Once the gap between the doors is the same the whole way up and straight it would be difficult to notice the doors arent square.