If you build it, they will come… But, you don’t want to strike out with badly built custom closets. Watch this video for tips on designing a closet that will have you batting a thousand each morning. You want to get dressed, not stressed every day. So, step up to the big leagues and make a closet space that hits it out of the park.
(Click here to watch on YouTube if you can’t see the embedded player. Or watch the video at http://bit.ly/tcdcustom2.)
Transcript:
Hi. I’m Lorie Marrero, creator of the Clutter Diet book and on-line program, and here we are back with part two on my videos on how to choose a custom closet company. So back in part one, we talked about how to approach this and what questions to ask the companies that you’re interviewing on the phone. And now we want to talk about the very specific construction questions you want to ask so that you can judge the quality and the value, and you can make those trade-offs where you want to, to save money.
So, the first thing you want to think about is the shelving materials. Those are the bones of a custom closet. Usually, that’s going to be done with melamine. And so, you want to talk about what colors they have. So, these are white shelves, but obviously, they have all kinds of wood grain colors, and you’re going to want to look at that and think about what you want. They can also do, not just shelving, but cabinetry. They can do glass doors; they can do all kinds of configurations based on your needs.
The other thing you want to ask about with the shelving and the melamine is whether it is thermal-fused or cold-pressed. So thermal-fused melamine is going to be a little bit better quality than cold-pressed, and it’s not a showstopper; it’s just a question you want to know when you’re comparing the different bids and quotes that you’re getting. The other thing you want to know about the particle board that’s on the inside of the melamine, is whether that is furniture grade or industrial grade. Industrial grade is going to be a little thicker; it’s going to hold the screws better, so it is a little higher quality. The other thing you want to understand is the standard shelf depth. So, how far back does the shelf go? A builder’s standard depth is 11½ inches, but often, it’s a great idea to go 14 or 16 inches, and the reason, like you’re going to see here in this photograph, is that you’re going to be able to store larger things, like suitcases, up on the higher shelves and not have things hanging over the edge. It just gives you a lot more options. I highly recommend doing those higher depth shelves.
The next thing you want to talk about with them is the hardware. Is there going to be any plastic hardware involved in this installation, or are you going to have the higher quality metal parts? Here in this picture you’re going to see a picture of an oval hanging clothing rod and the oval rods are similar to the idea that how an oval shaped egg is stronger than a circle. In nature, ovals are stronger, so it’s just a more sturdy rod for you to hang lots more weight on. I prefer having those oval shaped rods and having them in metal. So if you have a wooden rod, that’s okay. Again it’s not a show stopper, but just know that the metal oval ones are going to be stronger.
You also want to take a really strong look at the drawer units. This is a big differentiator in quality when you’re comparing. So you want to look at the hardware of the drawer units, how the handles are installed, and how they’re screwed in. You also want to see if they include full extension glides on the drawers. This supports the drawer as you pull it all the way out, and it’s better than a standard quality glide. So, if those are standard in their installation, that’s a higher quality. They may be an upgrade. So this is a question you want to ask.
And then finally, you’re going to be looking at accessories. And this is the fun part, but it also is where things really add up. So you’re going to see things like valet rod; you’re going to see belt racks like we have here; you’re going to see shoe racks, and hampers, and jewelry trays, and everything you can imagine that will really trick out your closet and make it look great, but you want to judge whether you really need those things, because that’s kind of where they make a little bit of their bonus money there.
So it’s just like buying a car. There are things that are standard, and there are things that are upgrades, so you’ve got to think of it that way and make those decisions based on your budget and based on the quality comparisons.
If you want help making this decision, our experts are in our Member Area seven days a week. You can upload photos of your closet, you can go through that smart process in the beginning, like we talked about in part one, and we can walk you through that so you can make this decision in the best way. You can find out more about that at https://www.clutterdiet.com/learnmore.
See you next time, and may you always be happy and grateful for having more than enough.
You may have been searching for what to look for in a closet remodel or tips on closet organization.
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