How To Frame New Door Openings For Storage Closet Under L Shaped Stairs With Landing 

Im so glad I found this. I already have a door on the tallest side. However I want to take advantage of the storage space under the stairs. When I cut into the back of the closet it’s got one 2x4 directly in the middle. I’m not sure if removing that one would remove support for the first stairway landing. But now I know that I can at least add a header in for extra support so that I can extend the closet. We desperately need a mud room.

When extending openings upwards it makes sense to consider the possibility of buckling. When we remove a stud or two from a framed structure the remaining studs on the two sides of the opening get much higher load than previously. While the material itself can stand the axial pressure, if it is too thin compared to length it may tend to bend out and loose load bearing ability. This weakness can be greatly improved by adding lateral support in the middle (connect to the adjacent studs horizontally) or fastening some rigid sheet material on the face, like plywood or MDF. Also in such case it is very important that the end faces of the studs are as precisely right angle as possible, else the axial load is introduced off-center and that immediately starts to bend out the stud. (Sorry for the mechanical stuff but am not sure about English terms on this, am not native)

I have similar framing on 2x3 but is there a way to show you my basement stairs to make sure I understand how to approach? I'd like to open up the back area for storage, redo the studs 2x4 with PT sill plates, fire rated drywall

This was very helpful. Thanks for taking the time to make the video.

I am looking for ways to put a bathroom under my stairs. Thank you for your ideas. This will definitely help me!!

Keep up the good work.

I have stairs like this to my basement. There is a closest already located under the taller portion of the stairs and the central landing. I'm planning on installing a beam to open up the floorplan in the basement. The beam runs in line with the tallest support wall of the stairs out from the closest door. I have 2 options: 1- Terminate the beam at the closest. Facing the closest, the right side post would be the main post for the beam. 2- extend the beam along the support wall to the central landing. The post would then be alongside the first corner of the central landing when coming down the stairs. My thought is that 1 is easier. But 2 is more exciting. With 2 (assuming the top of stairs and stringer are attached and supported by the 2x10 floor joist) I could open the area under the top portion of the stairs leaving a small closet under the central landing. Any comments would be appreciated.

These videos have been so helpful for my under stair closet I'm building. If I were to cut out the sill plate for a hinged door opening on a non-load bearing wall, how far do the tapcon screws need to be from the edge of the cut sill plate? For example, if I cut the sill plate, and have a tapcon screw 22 inches from the edge of the cut, is that secure enough to my concrete slab or do I need to install a new tapcon screw closer to the edge of the cut sill?

Do you have a similar video for U shaped landing?