Linen closets are necessary for out-of-view storage.
Bathroom closets are used primarily for linens and they are often small and shallow. If you are adding a closet, it usually will be positioned against an existing corner close to the door. This type of closet is occasionally forgotten by home builders and must be put in by homeowners. The bathroom isn't the best location for a linen closet because of the extra humidity; however, a closet in the bathroom is better than no closet at all. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Measure and mark the location of the two walls that will form the new closet. Use painter's tape on the floor to outline each wall. The framing thickness of a wall is 3 1/2 inches. The finished thickness with drywall is 4 1/2 inches. Measure the outside dimensions of the pre-hung door. Leave a gap in your tape outline to indicate where the door will be. Make sure that you can open the door and that its swing opens into the bathroom from the side with the best doorknob access.
2. Cut 2-by-4 boards to fit inside your floor wall outlines. The boards will lay on their wide side and are called bottom plates. Lay them on the outline. If your floor is tile or concrete, you will need to drill through to the subfloor for tile or use special masonry fasteners for concrete. For a tile floor, use a carbide-tipped drill. Attach the bottom plates to the floor using long wood screws or the fasteners required for your flooring type.
3. Drop a plumb bob from the ceiling to line the top plates up with the bottom plates. Use painter's tape on the ceiling to outline your board placement; you will not have a door opening there. Measure, cut and nail your top plates to the ceiling. When possible, nail into ceiling joists. Add construction adhesive, wall anchors and long wood screws when joists are not available.
4. Measure from the underside of the top plate to the top of the bottom plate next to one wall. Cut a board to this length. Position the board against the wall and toenail its top and bottom ends into the plates using two framing nails at each end. Repeat for the second place where the new wall connects to the existing wall.
5. Measure from the underside of the top plate to the top of the bottom plate at the outside corner. Cut two boards to this length. Position them against each other to form an L shape. Connect them with a nail every 12 inches. Place the corner piece into position and toenail it to the top and bottom plates.
6. Frame the door opening, which is composed of two king studs to the outside and two jack studs to the inside. The king studs run from plate to plate. The jack studs run from the bottom plate to the height of the rough door opening and are used to support the door header. Measure 1 1/2 inches to the left from the door opening on the left side bottom plate. Draw a line on the plate. Measure 1 1/2 inches to the left of that line and draw a second line. Mark an X between your lines. Repeat for the right side of the door opening. The X mark is the location of the king studs.
7. Measure and mark the location of your king studs on your top plate. Cut two boards and toenail them into place between the plates at your X marks. Measure the rough-in height of the pre-hung door. Cut two jack studs to this height, making sure to include the thickness of the bottom plate in your measurement. Place the jack stud on the doorway side of the king stud and nail them together. Repeat for the second side.
8. Measure from the inside of one king stud to the other, above the jack studs. Cut a board to this measurement and position it flat across the top of the jack studs. Nail the board in place with two nails at each end. If your door is less than 18 inches wide, you will not need this short cripple stud above the door. If your entire closet width is less than 32 inches, you will not need additional studs. If your closet is wider, add a stud every 16 inches on center from your king studs to the wall or corner.
9. Install the pre-hung door by sliding the door and framing into the opening. Position wood shims high, low and in the middle of each side to fill the gap between the frame and the stud. Keep the gap around the door and jamb 1/8-inch wide and even. Screw through the frame and shims and into the studs to attach the door. Use three screws on each vertical side and two along the top. With the framing complete, the closet is ready for drywall, primer, paint and trim.
Tags: bottom plate, door opening, jack studs, king studs, bottom plates
