Wardrobes: The Closet You Bring With You

A wardrobe is the one piece of closet furniture that belongs to you rather than the flat. It arrives in a van and leaves the same way: no holes, no filler on move-out day. You cannot adjust it later with a saw, so choose it properly.

A wardrobe is furniture, not a fixture

A built-in cupboard belongs to the building; a wardrobe is a box with a rail in it, and that difference shows on moving day: it comes with you, fits the next flat if the shape is similar, and can be sold when it stops earning its space. If you are unsure what you have, see the closet types overview.

Depth is the number that matters

A hanger is about as wide as your shoulders, and a coat on it is wider. Hang it facing forward, as in a proper closet, and the wardrobe must be deeper than your shoulders with a hand behind.

Most wardrobes sold as compact are not that deep. The rail gets turned ninety degrees and runs front to back, so every hanger hangs sideways, like books on a shelf. You see shoulders instead of fronts, and finding a shirt means pulling hangers out lengthways. Some let you angle them instead, but each eats rail width, so thirty become fifteen. Measure first: a hanger on the floor against the wall shows the depth you need.

Doors: hinged or sliding

Hinged doors need room in front: the width of a door plus a little, kept clear every day. Check the arc against the bed, the bedroom door, the socket.

Sliding doors need no swing space, which suits narrow rooms. In exchange you get a track that collects dust until the doors drag, rollers that flatten, and a wall that must be straight. Against a bowed wall, one door rubs while the other gaps.

Fix it to the wall, always

A tall, loaded wardrobe is a lever: weight high, base narrow, and a door pulled open at the top is a hand pulling the whole thing toward you. Tall furniture is meant to be fixed to the wall, not balanced against it. That is a safety requirement, not a decorating choice.

The anti-tip bracket is the small angled piece in the bag with the screws. One fixing into the wall stops the wardrobe going over. Ask where the studs are and fix into one, or use a strap rated for the weight. Permission for one bracket is easy; a wardrobe on the floor is not.

Ask first, get the yes in writing, and fix it even though it feels stable while empty.

Buying second-hand: four things to check

Second-hand is the sensible way to buy: wardrobes are miserable to move and priced to go. Check these first:

• Back panel. Thin board, often pinned. Press the middle; if it flexes off the frame or shows water marks, it stood against a damp wall.
• Drawer runners. Pull each drawer right out and push it back with one finger. A grind, or a drawer that drops, means worn fittings.
• Door alignment. A gap wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, or a door catching the frame, means a twisted carcass.
• Smell. Damp board has a flat musty smell that does not wash out. A wardrobe that smells of damp makes clothes smell of damp.

One rail, one shelf, one divide

Inside, a wardrobe is one big cavity, and one big cavity becomes a heap. Set the rail within reach, hang by length so hems step down short to long, and put a shelf above for bags and hats. Then stand a board upright as a vertical divide, splitting it into a hanging side and a folded side. The divide removes the empty space the heap grows into.

When the seasons turn, the seasonal clothing swaps guide covers what moves up.

When a wardrobe beats a rail, and when it does not

Choose a wardrobe when clothes need protecting from dust, sun or the sight of them at the end of the bed, or when you will move soon and want the storage along. Choose a rail when the room is genuinely tiny, when you need to see everything at once, or when the stairs will not take a box that size.

The wardrobe without a closet guide covers the open version, and the no-drill ideas page covers what holds without a hole.

Wardrobes: questions

How deep does a wardrobe need to be for coats?

Deep enough that a hanger sits front-to-back with a hand of space behind it. Stand a coat hanger on the floor against the wall and see how far it reaches out; that is your minimum, whatever the label says.

Do I need permission to fix a wardrobe to the wall?

Yes, ask first, because it is a hole in someone else's wall. Most landlords agree once they hear it is a safety bracket rather than a shelf. Offer to fill and paint the hole on move-out day.

Are sliding doors better in a small bedroom?

They save the swing space that small bedrooms never have. In exchange you get a track that collects dust and needs a straight wall, and you only see half the wardrobe at a time. Hinged is easier if the floor is clear.

Can I move a wardrobe on my own?

Empty it first, because a wardrobe is heavier than it looks and the back panel will not take weight. Two people and a trolley is the honest answer. Measure the stairs and the doorway before you buy anything.