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Design Dilemma Bedrooms Storage

Removing built in wardrobes

5 years ago

Has anyone removed built in wardrobes from bedroom you know the ones that house builders put in? I just wondered if it would give a bit more room to move around in a smallish bedroom. To me they are on the wrong wall as well and I would use another wall for wardrobes. Does this seem pointless??

Comments (2)

Ribena Drinker
5 years ago
I think it's very much a case by case basis. Some fitted wardrobes are absolutely hideous, space devouring monsters, which are way too over bearing for the space or belonging to another age. Others can provide the best possible use of the space and have been intelligently installed.

In my previous house we removed all the built in wardrobes from the master bedroom, because they were old fashioned, took up too much space and were poorly designed. We were then able to re-configure the space and just put in some tall Ikea Pax wardrobes, which made a much better use of the space and gave us much, much more storage.

However, in one of the spare bedrooms, we only removed half of the fitted wardrobes and left what was the equivalent of a small double wardrobe. This was because the room was small and difficult to for furniture placement and the wardrobe we left, just fitted the space.

I think it's pretty much down to whether you think you can get a better solution without them.

Warnings I would offer up, you may find carpets fitted around them, or they have been used to partially disguise lazy plumbing/pipework or certain architectural details - like the boxing in of a staircase. If you decide to remove them, it may be worth double checking what you'd be exposing.
Mrs D thanked Ribena Drinker
Mrs D
Original Author
5 years ago
Thank you for your reply Ribera Drinker very interesting.. Funnily enough I was thinking of Pax to go on the other wall. Would certainly need a new carpet and probably ceiling skim too if I go ahead. They back on to the exact same wardrobes in the master bedroom so shouldn’t find anything too nasty. Thanks again.
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