DIY partition wall

missmoxy86

Hi all,
Just looking for a bit of advice; have decided to put up a partition wall in spare room to take some space for a walk in wardrobe for master bedroom. Have asked d local carpenter to come down and price it for us (no sign of him yet!) so have been toying with the idea of doing it ourselves (husband's against this but I think it'll be a bit of craic) so to get to the point-
Has anyone got any advice re equipment i would need or should I just leave it to the professionals? I've done some googling and it looks fairly straight forward (famous last words!) :-)
I should say, we would also have to knock through a doorway in the existing wall, wouldn't be putting in an actual door though, however there would be electrics in the wall so not sure how that works?
Sorry for being completely clueless but any advice would be welcome!

no1murray

Sholdnt be too expensive. Should leave it to the pro unless you are a very competent DIYer. Knocking through a wall is definitely best left to the pros. Could be load bearing.

Calibos

No matter how handy you are or how enthusiastic you are about getting your hands dirty and getting the satisfaction of doing something yourself, you have to ask yourself one question.

How much are all the tools going to cost to do this myself and thus will I save enough to make it worth my time and effort.

Made the mistake a few years ago of knocking through a wall to make a door and put up a stud wall and by the time I bought the tools required I didn't save a huge amount at all....and they were crap Woodies DIY quality tools to boot so they didn't last too many DIY jobs thereafter.

I actually have a large amount of DIY work planned to finish the renovations of our Victorian house. I'm only considering DIY because of the fact that I have so much planned and the time to do it. I can afford to buy some of the best tools (Festool in most cases) available and despite the tool budget being over €4,000, because that cost is being amortized over so many jobs they will end up saving me a fortune and at the end I'll still have quality tools that will last a lifetime.

EG. I want a bookshelf and cabinet built in the alcove beside the fireplace. For the finish I want I'd need a track-saw, router, finish sander, jigsaw, impact drill, HVLP sprayer. All that'd add up to close to or above the cost of paying someone to build it for me so it would make no sense to do it myself. However, its small change when it'll also be used for laying floors, building wainscoting and radiator cabinets, building a 4 custom beds, 4 sets of custom wardrobes,several display cabinets,a small set of stairs, building stud walls,fitting 2 new bathrooms etc.

dodzy

@op. What you are proposing and what calibos intends to do over the coming months are worlds apart, and you will not need to spend €'000s on tools ( far from it ) so don't be put off just yet.

Firstly, you will need to establish if the wall you want to knock is load bearing or not. Punch a small hole through it with a long narrow screwdriver, or remove skirting and if you hit block work (unlikely) you won't be proceeding as a DIY project.

If you pass right through, then that's a different story. Far from rocket science, and if you guys are anyway handy, with a little online help, this is very do-able, and will not cost the stars. It's probably the cheapest structural change that you can carry out within the home.

missmoxy86

Thanks for the advice, the wall is definately not load bearing. Would a nail gun be enough to use or would screws be a better option?
I didn't foresee tools being a problem as I planned to borrow them, are there any specific tools I would need?
We are trying to save for an extension at the moment so any cash that can be saved would be great.

Carpenter

Fair play to you will you be putting up pics as you go along .

dodzy

missmoxy86 wrote: »

Thanks for the advice, the wall is definately not load bearing. Would a nail gun be enough to use or would screws be a better option?
I didn't foresee tools being a problem as I planned to borrow them, are there any specific tools I would need?
We are trying to save for an extension at the moment so any cash that can be saved would be great.

The trickiest part for you will be the door cutout and frame fitting.

Tools:
1. chopsaw (borrow) - for cutting your stud partition & door frame
2. nailgun 1st & 2nd fix (borrow) - 1st fix for the framing, 2nd fix for skirting
& architrave. Not vital, but will make your life a lot easier.
3. Nail-bar
4. Hammer
5. Handsaw
6. Nails
7. Plasterboard saw
8. Stanley knife
9. Screwgun / cordless drill

That'll kick you off.

Watch for electrics / alarm cables / plumbing work, all potentially buried in the wall cavity

Just seen Carpenter is in the area. I'm sure he will tip in with any advice you need.

dodzy

If you are flexible as to the door position (i.e. it does not absolutely have to be dead centre of the Master bedroom wall), I would suggest using one of the existing studs as this will give you one solid side to start your frame. These studs vary in distance but are usually somewhere between 450-600mm apart.

Calibos

dodzy wrote: »

@op. What you are proposing and what calibos intends to do over the coming months are worlds apart, and you will not need to spend €'000s on tools ( far from it ) so don't be put off just yet.

Sorry, didn't mean to imply that. However if one needed to buy €400 in tools say, then even if the job was €900 I'd think twice about doing it myself is what I meant.

missmoxy86

Thanks for all the replies, door would be going to the extreme left of the existing wall, not sure how this would work with studs etc but figure if I get that far ill be doing great!!
Tools should not be a problem calibros but thanks for the advice, I figure between 2 brothers and dad they should have anything I need.
Thanks for the list of tools dodzy, much appreciated! Husband is sh1tt1ng himself that he will come home from work one day to find the spare room under construction, stranger things could happen!

dodzy

missmoxy86 wrote: »

Husband is sh1tt1ng himself that he will come home from work one day to find the spare room under construction!

very refreshing to hear, as it's normally the other way round best of luck with the project.

Calibos

An Aunt of mine approaching 60 has been an inspiration in that regard. DIY Goddess who just lately renovated her Kitchen with new cabinets and island, tiling and touch-up plastering and painting by herself and did a damn fine job too.

GreeBo

Just bear in mind that while it might not be a load bearing wall, it may well be bearing a load.
Check the joists in the attic to see if they are crossing or meeting over this wall. It might also be a good idea to see whats in the attic above the wall and move it if possible. Most people put far too much weight in the attic when its unsupported, especially if your house was a recent (20 years) build and was not designed to have a converted attic.

Other than that its not especially hard, i did the same myself.

You'll also need a plumb bob, a level, I'd use screws myself (incase of mistakes with measuring and also with nailing self to something)
Remember you will need to space the studs to suit plasterboard and also figure out what size door you want (after door frame, moulding etc, etc) check all this before you start.

Finally, I took the opportunity to add support for hanging a flat screen TV and running cables within the cavity (and sound insulating the cavity) if you are already in there it makes sense to do whatever you can.