cut out coat closet for walkway into dinning room
#1
08-22-02, 12:39 PM
cut out coat closet for walkway into dinning room
The floor plan to my house is a traditional N.E cape. We want to take out the coat closet (that is adjacent to the front door and the bottom of the stairs) and open up our dinning room to the living room.
The wall is not a load bearing all, but I think/know it must be more involved.
Knocking out the back of the closet into the dinning room won't be so difficult (I hope) but, I think the closet door frame has to be cut out to the existing ceiling so it doesn't look like an empty door frame. Plus this would allow the front door to open all the way not just to the closet door frame as it does now.
How difficult from 1 to 10, any gotcha's that I should be aware of and do you think it requires a permit?
Thanks in advance.
The wall is not a load bearing all, but I think/know it must be more involved.
Knocking out the back of the closet into the dinning room won't be so difficult (I hope) but, I think the closet door frame has to be cut out to the existing ceiling so it doesn't look like an empty door frame. Plus this would allow the front door to open all the way not just to the closet door frame as it does now.
How difficult from 1 to 10, any gotcha's that I should be aware of and do you think it requires a permit?
Thanks in advance.
#2
08-23-02, 02:20 AM
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If you're certain that it is not a load-bearing wall, it should not be difficult to remove the wall, door frame, etc.
You might want to rent a reciprocating saw to cut out the framing easier.
Open it back to existing studs, or frame it back out as you choose from floor to ceiling, and then refinish the opening.
Good Luck!
Mike
You might want to rent a reciprocating saw to cut out the framing easier.
Open it back to existing studs, or frame it back out as you choose from floor to ceiling, and then refinish the opening.
Good Luck!
Mike
#3
08-26-02, 09:59 AM
Sounds exactly like what I did 15 years ago in a cape. Come in the front door, and to the right was a coat closet. Just slightly to the right, directly ahead was the stairs to the second story. I took out the wall with the door to the closet completely between the front wall of the house and the nearest stud in the wall along the stairs, floor to ceiling. Had to do some patching because we have plaster walls but I filled the gaps with 1/2 inch drywall and used fiberglass window screen instead of drywall tape. Finished with Drywall compound and you can't tell the wall was vere there.
In the back of the closet, I carefully measured and cut an opening for a 36 in. doorway on both sides of the wall. Some electrical lines had to be rerouted but it wasn't too bad. Since the wall was not load bearing, I was able to slip new studs between the plaster walls and work in a new header with trimmer studs (sometimes 3 inch drywall screws work real well when you can't swing a hammer). I installed a door jamb and casing but you could just as easily drywall the opening.
In the back of the closet, I carefully measured and cut an opening for a 36 in. doorway on both sides of the wall. Some electrical lines had to be rerouted but it wasn't too bad. Since the wall was not load bearing, I was able to slip new studs between the plaster walls and work in a new header with trimmer studs (sometimes 3 inch drywall screws work real well when you can't swing a hammer). I installed a door jamb and casing but you could just as easily drywall the opening.
