My boyfriend and I are currently finishing our basement and part of our floor plan includes a 6 foot (built in wall)salt water aquarium. Behind the aquarium will be a small room that will hold supplies, laundry tub, pump, etc.
We currently have framing in place with a "closet sized" door way leading into the room behind aquarium.
We would like to contruct a hidden door. I suggested building a hutch/bookcase that swings in, but my boyfriend doesn't want a bookcase to distract from the aquarium (since it will be the main focal point of our reno)
We are unsure how or if we will be able to contruct a hidden doorway, without disguising as a bookcase etc. We are going to paint the wall a dark blue. Would appreciate any suggestions.
Thanks
Constructing a Hidden Door
Moderator: Moderators
-
honeymonster
- Senior Member
- Posts: 376
- Joined: Sun Jul 17, 2005 11:38 am
- Location: Newcastle
- Has thanked: 0
- Been thanked: 0
Making the door appear as it is not a door will be very difficult especially if you use different material for the door than the wall, because the paint will look different depending on what you are painting. So if the wall is plaster and the door is wood, they will look a lot different because of the way the paint soaks into different materials.
Have you considered cladding the wall with tongue and groove cladding, you could make a door that fits from wall to ceiling and so you will not see any horizontal joints and the vertical joints in the tongue and groove will consel the joints for the door.
It is not going to be easy!
Have you considered cladding the wall with tongue and groove cladding, you could make a door that fits from wall to ceiling and so you will not see any horizontal joints and the vertical joints in the tongue and groove will consel the joints for the door.
It is not going to be easy!
-
dirtydeeds
- Craftsman Carpenter
- Posts: 256
- Joined: Sat Sep 30, 2006 8:45 am
- Has thanked: 0
- Been thanked: 1 time
this is known as a jib door
the tighter you can make the door margins the more hidden it becomes, install the door with margins of say around 2mm and then bevel the closing and hinge stiles of the door by 3 degrees
if you have the time, patience and skill you can cut the margins to 1mm
use soss hinges, they are not visible because they have no knuckle
use a touch latch so there is no handle.
make the door out of MDF it wilkl take paint the same colour as the wall, or you can wallpaper it
attach the skirting to the door, bevel it correctly and it almost wont show, if you are realy good notch the wall to recieve the bevel of the skirting
if you have dado rail do the same thing as the skirting
if the wall is T&G and you are happy to move the door position (and adjust the door width) to suit the vertical joints become invisble
If you get REALLY clever you can hide the horizontal joint of a door in a T&G situation by castlating the door head to match a caselation you deliberatly install into the wall
I could go on and on and on
the tighter you can make the door margins the more hidden it becomes, install the door with margins of say around 2mm and then bevel the closing and hinge stiles of the door by 3 degrees
if you have the time, patience and skill you can cut the margins to 1mm
use soss hinges, they are not visible because they have no knuckle
use a touch latch so there is no handle.
make the door out of MDF it wilkl take paint the same colour as the wall, or you can wallpaper it
attach the skirting to the door, bevel it correctly and it almost wont show, if you are realy good notch the wall to recieve the bevel of the skirting
if you have dado rail do the same thing as the skirting
if the wall is T&G and you are happy to move the door position (and adjust the door width) to suit the vertical joints become invisble
If you get REALLY clever you can hide the horizontal joint of a door in a T&G situation by castlating the door head to match a caselation you deliberatly install into the wall
I could go on and on and on
-
Only-Me
- Senior Member
- Posts: 1141
- Joined: Mon Jul 31, 2006 10:34 pm
- Location: South/West
- Has thanked: 0
- Been thanked: 3 times
dirtydeeds wrote:this is known as a jib door
the tighter you can make the door margins the more hidden it becomes, install the door with margins of say around 2mm and then bevel the closing and hinge stiles of the door by 3 degrees
if you have the time, patience and skill you can cut the margins to 1mm
use soss hinges, they are not visible because they have no knuckle
use a touch latch so there is no handle.
make the door out of MDF it wilkl take paint the same colour as the wall, or you can wallpaper it
attach the skirting to the door, bevel it correctly and it almost wont show, if you are realy good notch the wall to recieve the bevel of the skirting
if you have dado rail do the same thing as the skirting
if the wall is T&G and you are happy to move the door position (and adjust the door width) to suit the vertical joints become invisble
If you get REALLY clever you can hide the horizontal joint of a door in a T&G situation by castlating the door head to match a caselation you deliberatly install into the wall
I could go on and on and on
DD.............I got the impression that YOU have done a door like this
-
dirtydeeds
- Craftsman Carpenter
- Posts: 256
- Joined: Sat Sep 30, 2006 8:45 am
- Has thanked: 0
- Been thanked: 1 time
hi only. yes i have done a door or so like this
where you get the practice is doors under under ordinary stairs, get the job as the right price and instead of doing a number to make a lot of money take the time you have given yourself in the price to do the job right
i just want the oportunity to do a sceret door, but they come once ot twice in a whole lifetime, because only VERY VERY rich people want or can afford them
i presume we know each other from a different forum
where you get the practice is doors under under ordinary stairs, get the job as the right price and instead of doing a number to make a lot of money take the time you have given yourself in the price to do the job right
i just want the oportunity to do a sceret door, but they come once ot twice in a whole lifetime, because only VERY VERY rich people want or can afford them
i presume we know each other from a different forum