DIY Modern Built-In Wardrobe Part 5 - Closin' Em Up
The first step to mounting the sliding doors was to mount two lengths of track along the top and bottom of the cabinets. Starting at the top, I quickly realized we wouldn't be using all the hardware Ikea supplied. In the photo to the left, I've clamped the tracks at the joint between the track runs. We wanted to make sure we have a smooth transition for the doors to run across. After this was mocked up I was able to construct half a door with sliding hardware to see just how tight the clearance is at the ceiling.
This is the point of our show where things don't work out as planned. Running the hardware in the track it became unsettling obvious there wasn't quite enough clearance at the ceiling. Queue Ikea hacking skillsets. To the left, a before and after version of the sliding door hardware modification. A plastic lock and steel nub amounting to about 1/8" of height were engaging the ceiling at the lowest point. A few hacksaw cuts & filing sessions later I was able to regain the 1/8" we needed without compromising anything but my Ikea warranty. Not that we didn't void the warranty when I cut off 1-1/2" of the bottom of every cabinet.
The lower track was a cakewalk to mount, we only had to make a couple of custom cuts matching the factory cuts to get it installed. Next we built one of the skinny doors and went for full out mock up. At the very left hand side of the wardrobe we have just enough clearance to allow us to hang the doors per instructions. I did not realize the doors are actually not glass, yet highly polished mellamine or something with substrate backing. All the better, glass doors and kids = bad idea anyhow.
With the mockup giving us the desired results, we went full blast to work building the rest of the doors and mounting them into place. After the doors were hung, we checked all the clearances and then modified the door stops and their factory locations to give us the custom door operation originally planned. To the left the final product is pictured. At last our wall of storage was near completion. Note the small reveal around all 4 sides. I can still hear the folks at Ikea, "You won't be able to do that."
At the floor we had about 1/4" to 3/8" left to spare. It seems most projects around our house introduce unforeseen future projects. Here, we've realized we have Red Oak flooring in our master bedroom and hallway. Considering we ripped our 'Gened Up' carpet a bit, we'll call it character for now. I'm looking forward to getting these floors refinished.
The final step before moving our clothes in was to deck out the cabinets with the Komponent system Ikea offers for the Pax wardrobe system. Using the two wider outer bay for hanging rods we utilized the center bays for drawers and shelving storage pictured to the left. The first phase of master bedroom refinish is complete.
The first step to mounting the sliding doors was to mount two lengths of track along the top and bottom of the cabinets. Starting at the top, I quickly realized we wouldn't be using all the hardware Ikea supplied. In the photo to the left, I've clamped the tracks at the joint between the track runs. We wanted to make sure we have a smooth transition for the doors to run across. After this was mocked up I was able to construct half a door with sliding hardware to see just how tight the clearance is at the ceiling.
This is the point of our show where things don't work out as planned. Running the hardware in the track it became unsettling obvious there wasn't quite enough clearance at the ceiling. Queue Ikea hacking skillsets. To the left, a before and after version of the sliding door hardware modification. A plastic lock and steel nub amounting to about 1/8" of height were engaging the ceiling at the lowest point. A few hacksaw cuts & filing sessions later I was able to regain the 1/8" we needed without compromising anything but my Ikea warranty. Not that we didn't void the warranty when I cut off 1-1/2" of the bottom of every cabinet.
The lower track was a cakewalk to mount, we only had to make a couple of custom cuts matching the factory cuts to get it installed. Next we built one of the skinny doors and went for full out mock up. At the very left hand side of the wardrobe we have just enough clearance to allow us to hang the doors per instructions. I did not realize the doors are actually not glass, yet highly polished mellamine or something with substrate backing. All the better, glass doors and kids = bad idea anyhow.
With the mockup giving us the desired results, we went full blast to work building the rest of the doors and mounting them into place. After the doors were hung, we checked all the clearances and then modified the door stops and their factory locations to give us the custom door operation originally planned. To the left the final product is pictured. At last our wall of storage was near completion. Note the small reveal around all 4 sides. I can still hear the folks at Ikea, "You won't be able to do that."
At the floor we had about 1/4" to 3/8" left to spare. It seems most projects around our house introduce unforeseen future projects. Here, we've realized we have Red Oak flooring in our master bedroom and hallway. Considering we ripped our 'Gened Up' carpet a bit, we'll call it character for now. I'm looking forward to getting these floors refinished.
The final step before moving our clothes in was to deck out the cabinets with the Komponent system Ikea offers for the Pax wardrobe system. Using the two wider outer bay for hanging rods we utilized the center bays for drawers and shelving storage pictured to the left. The first phase of master bedroom refinish is complete.
That turned out great! We've got a similar space and may have to conjure a similar fix. But ours is in the higher area of the vaulted ceiling. 9'-high doors, anyone?
ReplyDeleteJust out of curiosity, what was the cost for all the IKEA components?
Thanks Jen! Are you asking about budget for the whole project or just the interior portion?
ReplyDeleteYour "labor of love" looks awesome!! Looks like there's great storage in those. Thanks for sharing all of these posts. They are definitely inspiring for do it yourselfers.
ReplyDeleteAs for budget, not the whole thing, just the IKEA bits. Ours is an interior wall, and it all abuts the tongue and groove ceiling, so we wouldn't have to do any insulation or a lot of the patching you did. We also have glue-down cork in the bedrooms and the closets, so would just have to piece in where necessary.
ReplyDeleteWow! Looks wonderful! You did a great job!!!
ReplyDeleteJen, the Ikea portion cost a little less than 2 grand.
ReplyDeleteSerry, thanks for the compliment!
Thoroughly impressed -- and a tad jealous of the linear footage!
ReplyDelete