Fitting a carpet around non-fitted wardrobes

[GoldenMalicious]

We have made some internal changes to bedroom layout which mean that we now have a walk in wardrobe as an adjoining room to one of the bedrooms. The WIW is under the sloping roof of the loft extension with limited head height. We have managed to squeeze in two IKEA Pax wardrobes - however we cannot put carpet underneath them as there simply isn’t the height to raise them up. Instead we would like to get the carpets fitted up to the wardrobes, effectively leaving a gap which has no carpet underneath the wardrobes. Can we do this?

The wardrobes will be attached to the wall for security but are not true fitted wardrobes - there are gaps between the wardrobes and the walls (where the wardrobes are pushed up against the skirting boards rather than the walls) and these gaps won’t be filled.

The wardrobes will not come back out as they would have to be dismantled in situ to get back out of the room. Once the carpet goes down they wouldn’t be able to squeeze out over the carpet and will be effectively fixed in place.

Photo attached shows the wardrobes in situ - they just fit under the horizontal steel that runs above the door.

Can we get away with carpeting to the wardrobes even though they aren’t truly fitted?

It looks from that photos as thought there would be room to carpet underneath them...?

I’m sure you could - personally I wouldn’t. As PP says it looks like you could carpet underneath without issues

I don't see why not, but if you're going to fix them in place with the carpet why not just remove the skirting boards from behind them? As long as the carpet is tacked down it shouldn't move.

Previous owners of our house did this. They left the wardrobes behind for us. We only realised the carpet didn't go underneath when we tried to move them. It's a pain because we can't change the wardrobes without changing the carpet, so are doomed to a particular room layout for ever 😂

There is room to put carpet underneath but that is not your issue. Your issue is that you erected the wardrobes and now cannot or do not wish to dismantle them assuming that they are double pax wardrobes and you have two of them. So getting them through the door is problematic.

My advice is to put a wooden batten across the front of the bottom of the pax as pax wardrobes have the plinth sitting back a little from the front edge of the sides meaning cutting carpet round that would be tricky. Far easier to have a straight line to cut. Plus much less likely to fray and become an issue later on.

In our last house the previous owners has the carpet fitted around the wardrobes and the bed. A real pain. However if you plan to live there for quite a while go for it.

Could you slide the wardrobes horizontally along (in front of the door and keep going) then the carpet fitter fits the carpet on the wardrobe side first, fits through the room, then wardrobes lifted over fold of carpet and slid back into position?

We are were advised, when having carpet fitted, before new non fitted wardrobes were delivered, not to have gripper rods put down, where the wardrobe will stand. Gripper rods would make the wardrobe tilt forward slightly.

I would personally put threshold bars in as tight to the wardrobe as possible so it at least has a nice finish.

Not related... but I had a similar wardrobe space and I put sliding doors in front of the wardrobe area. Maybe a suggestion?

Also if the wardrobes have plinths it is standard practice to put the plinths on top of the carpet, it looks like the carpet edge can be tucked a little under the wardrobes with the plinth on top to hide

Could you use sliding doors and remove skirting to have them flush to the wall

it looks like you won’t be able to use opening doors because the sloping roof being in the way

also would the carpet interfere with the doors opening even if they were sliding doors

If it is a wiw would you have carpet under anyway. A small plinth for the wardrobe to stand on would raise it over the carpet. It doesn’t have to be a lot. Even a 10mm piece of wood secured to the floor and wardrobe on top would do

definitely remove the section of skirting and push the wardrobe up to fit flush with the wall otherwise it will have an annoying gap that needs a filler panel.

As per pp - slide them sideways (in front of door) to get carpet fitted and then slide back. Bigger problem would be the wardrobe doors opening.

You really should do it properly… remove the skirting so they can go against the wall.. and it look slike there is plenty of height to carpet udnerneath them. I don’t see how you can have doors on them though…

Yo uh will be bending down to look in them with the height restriction. Do the doors open. This is “spoiling the ship for a ha’peth of tar!” You should have built them in on the other wall and done a proper job. This looks like a bodge.

IKEA PAX wardrobes have sliding doors as an option…indeed, it might be the only option…I’m not sure

Yes of course in theory you can do this but it will probably look like a bodge, and if you or anyone else wants to take the wardrobes out it will be a nightmare as you’ll have a massive square with no carpet. Is there no way you can just take the carcasses apart (even partly), then remove the skirting, fit carpet, then put them back up. Someone must have got the pieces in originally and I can’t see the carpet making much difference. If that’s really impossible I think what I would do is get rid of the wardrobes, fit the carpet and then use cheap hanging rails until I could get new ones.

It’s fine. No one is going to know. It’s your house and if you are not planning to move or make alterations in the near, or distant, future, do as you want. I assume you won’t be putting doors on at all. That would be unnecessary- doors on a wardrobe inside a wardrobe. You could remove the skirting behind, though, so the wardrobe will be flat against the wall. It will appear then that the wardrobe is built in. I’ve seen it done like this before, and no one would carpet underneath-as you wouldn’t carpet underneath a fitted wardrobe.

There is plenty of room, looking at that photo. You can also easily separate the two and move one at a time. No, I would not carpet up to them and around.

The OP said it is the steel (lintel?) above the door that is the problem. You can see it in the picture.

Could you pull the wardrobes forward so that they go in front of the lintel and then you can get carpet underneath? It would leave a bigger gap behind, but you could put a panel to cover it.

I've literally just done the same in my house . I've got IKEA pax which is up against my wall.no skirting boards and is totally flush to the wall. And then the flooring goes up to the wardrobes.

If I move, I'll leave the wardrobes in situ and I've got spare flooring so they could easily finish the room off. I've gone for vinyl wood type floor.