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2018 National Home Improvement Estimator, All Rights Reserved Page 187

You can also make closets more useful by adding or altering shelves and clothes rods. The usual closet
has one rod with a single shelf above. If hanging space is limited, install a second clothes rod about
halfway between the existing rod and the floor. This type of space is good for children’s clothing, shirts
and folded pants. Support a new shelf or rod with 1" x 4" cleats nailed to the closet end walls. Nail
these cleats with three 6d nails at each end of the closet and at the intermediate stud. Shelf ends can
rest directly on these cleats. Attach clothes rods to the same cleats that support the shelf. A long
closet rod may sag in the middle when supported with nothing but end cleats. In that case, add steel
support brackets fastened to studs at the back of the closet.

New Closet Space
A plywood wardrobe cabinet is an economical and practical alternative to building a conventional closet
with studs, drywall and casing. Figure 9-17 shows a simple plywood wardrobe built against a wall. For
extra convenience, install additional shelves, drawers and doors.

Build wardrobe closets from 5/8" or 3/4" plywood or particleboard supported on cleats. Use a 1" x 4" top
rail and back cleat. Fasten the cleat to the back wall. Fasten the sidewalls to a wall stud. Toenail base
shoe molding to the floor to hold the bottoms of the sidewalls in place. Add shelves and closet poles as
needed. Then enclose the space with bi-fold doors.

Plan for a coat closet near both the front and rear entrances. There should be a cleaning closet in the
work area, and a linen closet in the bedroom area. Each bedroom needs a closet. In most real estate
listings, you can’t refer to a room as a “bedroom” unless it has a closet. If bedrooms are large, it’s a
simple matter to build a closet across one end of the room. Build partition walls with 2 x 3 or 2 x 4
framing lumber covered with gypsum board. Provide a cased opening for the closet doors.

In a small house, look for wasted space at the end of a hallway or at a wall offset. If the front door opens
directly into the living room, consider building a coat closet beside or in front of the door to form an entry
(Figure 9-18). In a story-and-a-half house, build closets in attic space where headroom is too limited for
occupancy.

Closets used for hanging clothes should be about 24" deep. Shallower closets can be useful with
appropriate hanging fixtures. Deeper closets need rollout hanging rods. To make the best use of closet
space, plan for a full-front opening.