There are many reasons homeowners would want to hide a door, from having a secret study with all of their books to creating a safe room for emergencies. Regardless of the reason, it is important that the door is hidden in an effective way. For example, if there’s a doorway behind your bookcase and you don’t install it properly, your entire bookcase could come tumbling down when you open the door too quickly! In this blog post, I’ll walk you through how to build a hidden door in drywall. See how easy it is.
Make a similar door in your house
The first thing you’ll need is a door. This can be any kind of door, but you should consider how large your wall is before buying one. If it’s small, then a hollow core door will work better than something solid like an exterior door or even french doors. In some cases, you may want to install two doors for added security—one that opens outward and one that swings inward (for example).
When it comes time to install the door frame into your drywall, use drywall screws instead of nails or adhesive because they’re stronger and won’t leave holes in the wall. Make sure there’s at least 2 inches between each side of the frame so that there’s enough room for hinges later on; this will also help prevent potential issues with installing trim later on down the line if your walls aren’t perfectly flat surfaces (which probably isn’t likely). Also note: even though most people choose white paint because it matches most rooms best (and makes them look clean), black might be a better choice if yours is small enough since it creates more contrast once installed.
Now let’s talk about trimming around this new opening–you can either do this yourself using miter saws/chisels/nail guns etc., or hire someone else who knows what they’re doing professionally if necessary.”
Put materials together
You’ll need the following materials for your hidden door:
- Drywall. You’ll need drywall to cover the opening, and you should buy enough to have plenty of extra just in case. The drywall needs to be cut into pieces that are wide enough to cover each side of your opening, plus a little extra on either end so they overlap when they’re installed (this will make it easier for you).
- Screws. These will help keep everything together when you’re done building your hidden door. They come in packs with varying amounts based on their size and length—you can choose whichever works best for what you want to do here.
- Paint or primer/sealer if there is any exposed drywall left after installing all those panels; again, this depends largely on whether or not any surfaces were damaged during construction since we had no issues with ours being bare wood by default so we didn’t bother with painting over top–but if yours has been patched up before then consider doing so now while working above ground level where possible
Measure and cut wall
To make the hidden door, measure and cut the wall. Make sure you cut the drywall with a saw.
Place your materials together, making sure they fit. Cut out a drywall sheet and use a saw to cut it down to size. Install studs and frame of doorway with screws or nails as required by local building codes for your region (or just use glue). Make sure that your new door will fit in its frame before nailing any boards into place
Cut out the drywall sheet
- Using a drywall saw, cut out the drywall sheet so that it’s the same size as the door frame. Be sure to cut your drywall at an angle so that it fits flush with the floor and ceiling.
- Attach two hinges to either side of each edge of your new doorway with screws or nails; one hinge should be attached directly to the door frame with screws, while the other should be attached directly to the jamb above or below with nails or screws—whichever is easier for you (it probably depends on what type of door you’re installing).
- Use a pneumatic nail gun (or hammer and nails) to attach either side of your new doorway onto its respective wall framing members—that way no one has any idea there’s even an opening
Install the studs and frame of the doorway
You will need to install the studs and frame of the doorway. To do this:
- Use a stud finder to locate where your studs are in your wall, then use framing square and a level to make sure they are straight and level with each other.
- Hammer nails into the studs.
- Mark where you want to cut with a pencil, then use tape measurer to measure exactly how long each piece should be before cutting them with saw or nail gun (unless you have access to one). Make sure cuts are accurate by using levelers on both sides as well as working slowly so no mistakes happen
Put door in place and add wood to it
With the door in place, you can add trim and paint it to match the rest of your home. A hidden door is a great way to keep your home secure, but make sure that you choose an area of your house that’s sturdy enough to support the weight of a new door. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a wall that looks more like Swiss cheese than drywall
Complete the door by adding trim and paint
After you’ve cut your door and installed it in the wall, complete the hidden door by adding trim. The trim will cover up any gaps left by your hollow-core door, and it can be painted to match your room’s color scheme. You can use either wood or plastic for your trim—both are relatively inexpensive materials that are easy to work with. If you’re using a wooden frame around your door, then you’ll need 1x4s for each side of the frame (one at each corner) and 1x2s for each end of the frame (one behind where all four corners meet).
If you’re using plastic instead of wood for your trimming needs, then look for trim designed specifically for hollow-core doors—it should have an edge on one side that matches up nicely with the wall behind where all four corners meet (in other words: make sure there aren’t any gaps between those two surfaces).
Follow these steps to make a hidden door in your home that’s easy to open.
- Find the studs in your wall with a stud finder
- Place a piece of 1/2 inch plywood on top of the studs (if you don’t want to see where it’s going to go, you can just put it against the wall and mark out where it will be)
- Use a level or straight edge to make sure that your piece of plywood is straight and level before screwing into place
Conclusion
Good luck and have fun. If you need any help with this project, don’t hesitate to leave a comment on the blog post. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
