Make your walk-in large enough to contain all the things you need.
A walk-in closet adds more storage space to your home because it contains room for extra shelving along with clothes-hanging space. It also may provide a dressing area, with a mirror and room for ironing clothes. These closets are larger than normal closets, and some minimum dimensions are required when you design your walk-in. Does this Spark an idea?
Minimum Measurements
At a bare minimum a walk-in closet is at least 5 feet wide and 5 feet long. This minimum size allows just enough room to walk, stand and dress in the closet. It also provides room for the clothing rods, which take up a full 2 feet of space. While this size is not big enough to store a large amount of clothing it does provide enough room for the closet rod and a set of shelves. If you have more to store, consider making your closet larger.
Midsize Walk-In Closets
While a 5-foot by 5-foot walk-in closet provides for 3 square feet of walking room and room for a clothing rod, it only provides enough space for one person's clothes. When the walk-in is 5 feet square, a double stacked set of rods, each 3 feet long, can hang on one wall, with a set of shelves 2 feet wide next to them. Along the adjacent wall another set of shelves can store additional items like sports gear or boxes of odds and ends. Expanding the closet size to 6 feet square allows for 4-foot closet rods and 2-foot wide shelves. This provides more room for additional clothing and is suitable for two people.
Large Walk-In Closets
A large walk-in closet provides more space to hang clothing along with storage space for shoes, sweaters and boxes. Larger walk-in closets are anywhere from 7 feet square to 10 feet square. This is the size of a small room, so the home must be large enough to allow for the additional space. With the larger size, more clothes-hanging space is available, with additional room for several sets of shelves. These shelves can include shoe racks, space for hobby items and additional dressing room. You may even decide to add an ironing board, a hamper and tie racks.
Sizing Up Shelves
Shelves inside a walk-in closet adhere to basic measurements. Each shelf is usually spaced at least 12 inches apart for clothing items and up to 18 inches apart for boxes or sports gear. This means anywhere from five to six shelves are installed in one vertical section of the walk in. If you own larger items, the shelves are spaced to accommodate them. Shelves typically begin at 18 inches from the floor to allow room for floor storage. Shoe racks are usually 8 inches square, allowing for all types of shoes, from high heels to tall boots. Your shelf space is dictated by how many shoes, sweaters and nonclothing items you own and the number of shelves will influence how large the entire walk-in is.
Tags: walk-in closet, feet square, along with, anywhere from, closet provides