Creative Storage Ideas For Knee Walls

Knee walls are short walls that are at the intersection of a sloped roof and the side of your house.

They are short because your angled rooftop intersects this wall. These are commonly found on the topmost floor of a house or in the attic. 

Here is an example of a knee wall.

In this article, we’re going to talk about how you can use a knee wall to your advantage and make it a super effective storage space.

Why Consider Storage For Knee Walls?

Usually, the area behind a knee wall is unused space. They typically leave that gap as an insolation space. 

This is valuable and unused space that can hold a good amount of items depending on your house. 

Knee wall storage could replace a large dresser, a bookshelf, some seasonal storage, and more. You save a ton of space if you can magically store items inside of a wall! That’s pretty much what we will be doing with these knee-wall storage ideas.

A random attic space like this is perfect for storing items that would otherwise live in a garage or similar. Knee wall storage lets you use that gap and essentially make your house bigger!

Not only does it mean that you make more space by storing things inside of your wall. It also means you can finally make use of those awkward corners of your topmost floor! 

In short, you have more storage space and more living space. A win-win!

Creative Storage Solutions For Knee Walls

1) Creating Knee Wall Storage From Scratch

If you don’t have a knee wall already, and you just have that awkward long corner where your roof meets the floor, this is for you. 

Ana White has a Youtube channel and a great website tutorial where she does exactly this. 

In this video, she walks through how to measure and build a knee wall storage solution with plywood, lumber, and hinges! 

2) Creating An Energy Efficient Knee Wall

Because knee walls blur the line between an insulating space and your living space it can be confusing and challenging to properly build them. 

When done correctly, they can help your house be more energy efficient. 

The key lies in including your knee wall storage space in the thermal boundary of your home. Check out this video by Dr. Energy Saver on how to make knee wall spaces energy efficient. 

Your electricity bill will thank you and your house will be better insulated for more comfortable living. Here is a guide on how to insulate those knee-wall storage spaces. 

3) Making A Dresser Inside Of An Existing Knee Wall

If you already have a knee wall and want to make it a recessed storage solution, this is an exciting DIY project to take on! 

In the following video, Down to the Frame breaks down the knee wall and makes room for a full-sized custom dresser! Talk about the space savings…

They record every step from breaking down walls to cutting angles in their knee wall storage to meet the roof. 

This Old House also has a pretty detailed guide if you prefer a website format.

4) Building Outside Of A Knee Wall

Sometimes you don’t want to break any walls if you have a nice-looking knee wall. But you can still build in front of it! 

A huge benefit here is that you still make use of some of that pesky-angled roof space. Angled roof rooms are not fun to walk around in, so why not create storage there instead? 

In this video, Sandra Powell creates angled cabinets that fit perfectly against her angled ceiling. 

She further perfects her angled cabinets with finishing touches by adding crown molding! 

The London Craftsman does something very similar that takes up a whole wall in his house! 

For a more detailed walkthrough of an angled cabinet build, Charlie DIY talks you through the process below

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Dasun

I'm a big time workspace enthusiast who is constantly experimenting with my setup. Sharing along the way to help people make their own desk setups more functional and inviting, whether it be for productivity or play!