To buy a single wardrobe online with confidence, you need four measurements and three checks. The measurements are the width of the space, the ceiling height, the depth available including any skirting board, and the diagonal clearance needed to raise the assembled unit upright. The checks are the internal layout, the door swing direction, and the access route from your front door to the bedroom. Get those right and online buying is straightforward.
A single wardrobe, usually one door and somewhere between fifty and eighty centimetres wide, is the most common choice for box rooms, children’s bedrooms, rented flats and second bedrooms. It is also the size where small measurement errors cause the biggest problems, because there is rarely any spare room either side.
Measure the wall width at three heights: floor level, waist height and near the ceiling. Older UK walls are rarely parallel, and a difference of fifteen millimetres between top and bottom is common. Use the smallest figure. If you are fitting the wardrobe into an alcove, subtract at least ten millimetres from that smallest figure to give yourself working tolerance.
Measure depth from the wall to the point where the wardrobe would begin to obstruct the room. Remember the skirting board. A wardrobe pressed against a skirting board sits forward by its thickness and can also lean slightly, which affects door alignment. Some designs have a recessed plinth to clear skirting; many do not.
Then measure ceiling height at the exact spot the unit will stand. Loft conversions, bay windows and rooms with coving all vary within a single wall. Finally, work out the diagonal. A wardrobe assembled on the floor and tilted upright needs more vertical clearance than its finished height, and this is the measurement that most often catches people out on assembly day.
Most single wardrobes sit around fifty to eighty centimetres wide, fifty to sixty centimetres deep and one hundred and seventy to two hundred centimetres tall. Depth is the figure that matters most for usability: anything under fifty centimetres will not allow a coat hanger to hang square across the unit, so narrow designs sometimes run the rail front to back instead.
Check which arrangement a product uses. A side facing rail holds fewer garments and makes browsing harder, since you see only the shoulder of each item. It is a reasonable compromise in a very shallow unit but a poor one where a standard rail would fit.
Internal height should be checked against what you will hang. Full length coats and dresses need around one hundred and fifty centimetres of clear hanging. Many single wardrobes include a shelf at the top that reduces this, so read the internal dimensions rather than the external ones. You can compare internal layouts across our modern 1 door wardrobe UK selection before deciding.
Photographs are styled and often shot with a wide lens in a large room, which makes any wardrobe look slim. Ignore the impression and read the specification. The figures you want are external width, height and depth, internal hanging height, shelf dimensions, weight and the number of boxes the item arrives in.
Material descriptions matter. Solid wood, veneer, laminated board and foil wrapped board all behave differently. None is automatically wrong, but they suit different situations. A child’s bedroom wardrobe that will take knocks may be better in a durable laminated finish than in a delicate painted one.
Look for detail on hinges and rails. Adjustable metal hinges let you correct alignment later. A steel rail supports more weight than a plastic one. These small items determine whether the wardrobe still closes properly in three years.
Read the assembly information. Flat pack is the norm at this size and is usually manageable for two people in an hour or two. Check whether the back panel slots into a groove, which gives a much more rigid result, and whether wall fixings are included.
A single wardrobe has one door, so the direction it opens is important. In a narrow room, a door that swings towards the bed can be awkward. Check whether hinges are reversible; many are, and it costs nothing to confirm before buying.
Allow around six hundred millimetres of clear floor in front of the door. If that is not possible, consider positioning the wardrobe so the door opens towards an open part of the room rather than towards a wall or a radiator. In very tight rooms, a sliding design may be the better structural answer even at single width, though the options are more limited at this size.
This is the part of online buying people skip. Measure your front door, any hallway turns, the staircase width and the bedroom doorway. Flat pack boxes are long and heavy, and a tight stair turn can stop a delivery in its tracks. The box dimensions are usually listed and are worth checking against the narrowest point of your route.
Plan where the boxes will sit while you assemble. A single wardrobe needs roughly its own footprint again as working space, plus room to lay the panels flat. Clearing the room beforehand makes a substantial difference to how long the job takes.
We offer free delivery to most UK mainland postcodes, and Returns are available up to 30 days, which gives reasonable breathing room if a piece does not suit the space once it arrives. Checking the return terms of any online purchase before ordering is sensible practice.
Single wardrobes hold less than double units, so interior planning matters more. A double rail arrangement, where a second rail hangs below shirts and jackets, roughly doubles usable hanging space. Hanging shelf organisers turn part of the rail into folded storage without any modification.
Use the top shelf for seasonal items in a box so the height is not wasted. Use the floor of the wardrobe for shoes in a low tray, which keeps them contained and makes cleaning easier.
If the wardrobe cannot hold everything, pair it rather than replacing it. A narrow modern chest of drawers UK beside it, or an ottoman at the foot of the bed for bedding, spreads the load and usually costs less than upgrading to a larger unit. For very small rooms, storage that doubles as seating is particularly useful, and our modern ottomans UK range covers several sizes.
Work on a soft surface such as a blanket to avoid scratching panels. Fit all cam bolts loosely, check the frame is square using the back panel as a guide, then tighten everything. Squaring before final tightening is what keeps doors aligned.
Level the unit with packers or adjustable feet before fixing it to the wall. An unlevel wardrobe on an uneven floor will pull its door out of true. Then fit the wall bracket, using the correct fixing for plasterboard, brick or stud.
After a few weeks, tighten the hinge screws. Timber and board settle, and this five minute job prevents the sagging door that makes furniture feel cheap.
It is worth being honest about the limits. A single wardrobe holds roughly half the hanging capacity of a double, which for many adults is around a week of clothing plus a coat. If you own a large amount of hanging clothing, buying a single unit to save space usually results in overflow appearing on the back of a door or over a chair within a month.
Two narrow wardrobes side by side are often a better answer than one double, since they are easier to carry upstairs, easier to reposition and easier to replace individually. They also allow you to split functions: one for daily clothing, one for coats and seasonal items.
Where floor space genuinely cannot take more storage, look upwards instead of outwards. A taller single wardrobe in the same footprint adds a top section for seasonal items, and the difference in capacity over a standard height unit is considerable.
Full details on ranges and finishes are available at Furniture in Fashion, where single wardrobes sit alongside matching bedroom pieces.
Typically between fifty and eighty centimetres. Anything narrower is usually described as a slim or compact unit and may run the hanging rail front to back rather than side to side.
Around fifty five to sixty centimetres allows a standard hanger to sit square with the door closing cleanly. Shallower units need a side facing rail, which reduces capacity.
It is possible but not advisable. The side panels are long and awkward, and raising the assembled frame upright is much safer with two people, particularly in a small room.
Yes. Tall, narrow furniture is the most likely to tip, so always use the supplied bracket with a fixing suited to your wall type.
Internal hanging height, external depth including skirting clearance, diagonal clearance for raising the unit, box dimensions against your access route, and whether the hinges are reversible.
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