Expanding closets making bedroom entry awkward?

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

We have an awkward primary suite layout that we are trying to resolve. In the primary bedroom we have two reach-in closets that aren’t quite big enough for what we need. We have a walk-in closet in the bathroom, but this closet has the access to the attic, so there’s a large portion of the wall inside the closet that needs to be kept clear. As a result, we are storing some clothes in the bedroom closet and some in the bathroom closet to get the storage we need, but we would obviously rather be able to store all our clothes in one place. We are considering bumping out the bedroom wall with the closets to turn the reach-in closets to walk-ins (or at least deeper closets, thinking 5-6ft or so in depth), but this would make the entry to the bedroom a little more awkward as you’d have to walk around a wall to get into the bedroom. Would this make sense to do? Are there any better ways to gain more closet space?

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Comments (7)

PRO
HALLETT & Co.
5 years ago
I think it is a fair trade off but just access with one or maybe two standard doors- the bifold doors just eat up wall space. The main concern for me with this layout would be access by medial staff in the extent of an emergency- no gurney could make that turn.
PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
5 years ago
IMO there is no advantage to a deeper reach in closet I would remove the wall where the bathroom closet is change the entry to the bedroom to one on the left at the top of the stairs and forget the entry from the stairs to the bathroom . Then do a nice reach in Pax system from Ikea for closet space .
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anj_p
5 years ago
Just extend the wall the door opens to 1'-2' or so. Your MB is huge so make the closet a useable 7' and make it a legit walk in with hanging on 2 sides, with one regular sized door to get in. Done. Your proposed expansion only gives you more space to walk. It doesn't give you more storage.
tartanmeup
5 years ago
but this closet has the access to the attic, so there’s a large portion of the wall inside the closet that needs to be kept clear.

How often does the attic need to be accessed? Could you find things to store there that could be quickly relocated when access is required? To keep a storage area clear for infrequent access makes little sense to me. Are you looking primarily for clothing storage? If so, the bedroom looks large enough to hold storage pieces like dressers and the like, no? A reach-in closet is more efficient use of space than a deep walk-in area. Depending on what you're looking to store, could configuring the closets with customized systems be a solution?
tedbixby1981
5 years ago
What you may want to do is take your proposed closet and play around with adding a closet system to it to see how much you actually gain. I've done 2 homes with this system.

https://www.easyclosets.com/
PRO
User
5 years ago
I would extend the side portions of the closet so you have u-shaped hanging:
anj_p
5 years ago
Hanging clothes take up 2' of space, so extending the closet to 5'4" only gives you 3'-4" more feet of hanging. But at the same time, it makes the 2' of hanging in the corner almost inaccessible; you'll need to move clothes out of the way to get to the stuff in the corner. So really, you don't get much bang for your buck (trading 2' of hanging for 3'-4" hanging - you gain 1'-4" of accessible closet on each side).

If you can't/don't want to get a full 7' width in your MB closet and want more hanging, buy a garment rack (a good one will set you back $100, while a cheap one from IKEA is $20) and put it in your attic closet. Then you have something that can be wheeled out when you need to access your attic, but gives you a lot of closet space.