We’re taking on a lofty project as we help a family make their home fit their changing needs.
This home was built 20 years ago by Mike Nance, who at the time was single. A few years later, he married Becky.
There’s a lot to love about the couple’s two-story home, but since Mike’s marriage to Becky brought some grandchildren with it, they can think of a better use for the loft.
The three grandkids only visit once a year, but Mike and Becky want them to be comfortable.
Becky’s solution? Convert the loft into a bedroom — one that’s private when in use, but open when it’s not.
Our plan for Mike and Becky’s loft is to replace the railing with a wall — one with a cased opening in the middle at window height.
For privacy, we’ll add a pair of sliding shutters on the outside and a new door at the top of the stairs.
The Projects
Frame wall
Before we can frame the walls, we have to take down the loft’s railing.
After doing that, we bring in scaffolding that will come in handy when we begin hanging drywall that will cover the frame we’re working on.
The frame includes space for an opening that will match the size of the nearest window.
Near the stairway, we frame an opening for the new bedroom door.
Install drywall
Whenever you work with drywall, you need to cover up all the furniture and rugs to prevent the spread of dust.
After protecting everything, we grab some SoundBreakXP drywall, which is made by National Gypsum. It’s designed to block noise from one area to another, so it’ll help keep the living room sounds out of the bedroom when the grandkids come to visit.
Once we get the drywall installed on one side of the wall, we can add mineral wool insulation between the studs, which also will help with the sound.
Then Becky helps cut a hole for the window out of the drywall with a reciprocating saw.
Build barn doors
We cut V-groove boards to the opening’s exact height, apply Titebond Wood Glue to each piece’s groove and then slide all the V-groove pieces together.
We use pipe clamps to hold all the boards together until we can get everything nailed in place.
Install barn doors
We install the sliding shutters on the side of the living room, because then, when they’re open, they’re a decorative element from below.
We don’t want Mike and Becky to see a gap from below, so we add a window sill.
We want these sliding shutters to cover all of the trim when they’re in the closed position, so we need to trim out the case opening to get the exact measurement.
We also:
- Installed a bedroom door
- Painted the walls and shutters
Post-Production Thoughts
Mike and Becky have a great house, and the loft above the family room was an ideal spot for an office — but it was less than ideal as a guest room for the grandkids.
Now, the new wall we built and the doorway we added gives the space privacy and a little peace and quiet when it’s needed.
But the addition of the sliding shutters and the cased opening allows the couple to keep some of the openness they love about the house when they don’t have guests.
And we did it all for only about $500 in materials.
