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- 1). Plan the closet according to your space requirements and specific needs. One option is to make the interior depth 24 inches, and the width 48 inches, to allow room for a standard 30-inch-wide door. Remember to account for the thickness of the studs and drywall in each wall when making your measurements. The typical wall is 4 inches thick, including 3.5 inches for the studs and .5 inches for the interior, 1/2-inch-thick sheet of drywall. Draw the outline for the closet on the floor, in the corner if possible, with a pencil and ruler. If necessary, tear up the carpet with a carpet puller and draw the outline on solid, wood floorboards.
- 2). Frame the new closet by measuring and cutting 2-by-4 boards to fit along your outline with a power saw. Fasten the boards on the floor along the outline using a hammer and nails. Leave the gap for your doorway open -- do not nail down boards here. If you plan on installing a 30-inch-wide door, make your gap 32 inches wide to account for the door jambs.
- 3). Draw a line up the walls at the points where the mounted floor boards intersect them. Use a pencil and carpenter's level to draw the line. Continue the lines along the ceiling with a carpenter's level and pencil, to finish the outline for the top frame boards. Leave no gap on the ceiling for the door. Nail up boards to fit along these lines as well.
- 4). Cut 2-by-4 boards to fit between the boards on the floor and ceiling. These are your closet wall studs. Hammer nails diagonally through these boards to properly hold them in place. Install one board every 16 inches, measured from the center of the board. Install boards on the walls at each end of the closet, and at the edge of the doorway opening.
- 5). Mount the header over the doorway opening, by cutting and mounting a 2-by-4 board 80 inches from the floor between the studs on each side of the opening. Measure, cut and install 2-by-4 boards between the header and the board nailed to the ceiling. These boards act as studs in this header section.
- 6). Measure and cut drywall, using a drywall ruler and razor, to fit the framed wall sections. Mount the drywall on the frame with a power screwdriver and drywall screws. Tape the drywall seams with joint tape and finish the seams with joint compound applied with a scraper.
- 7). Set a pre-hung door in the opening and place shims underneath the jambs until the door is level. Fill in remaining gaps between the door and frame with additional shims and then attach the door with wood screws and a screwdriver.
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