Let me start by saying this… I hate baby gates. Not the actual use of them obviously – they keep my toddler safe and out of trouble. Maybe I’m hard to please when it comes to this particular piece of baby gear, but it’s always challenging to find the right size and latching system (being able to open and close a gate with one hand is a must for me since I usually have a toddler or baby in my other). We also made the mistake of buying a baby gate that had a bar on the floor and the number of times my husband and guests tripped over it was unreal (I learned this is actually called a “trip bar” – go figure).
I ran into yet another issue when shopping for a baby gate for the bottom of our stairs – our handrail is mounted too low for any baby gate I could find, and the newel post (the vertical post at the end of the balusters and handrail) didn’t align with any open wall space (meaning that we couldn’t mount a gate on the wall and secure it to the newel post.
Like most mamas out there, I was looking for two things when shopping for a baby gate: ease of use and safety. I got fed up with searching for the perfect gate and decided to make our own.
This baby gate was so easy to put together and it allows us to block off two rooms. It can swing open to close off the playroom on the other side of the staircase when the kids are in there and when we don’t need the stairs blocked off.
*Note: This DIY gate works great for the bottom of our stairs, but we have a store-bought baby gate for the second floor that is designed for the top of the stairs.*
Here’s what we used and the steps we took to build it:
Materials
- (2) 1x4x8
- (1) 1x4x6
- 1 1/4″ brad nails
- 2 hinges
- 1 gate latch or 1 sliding latch (we used 1 of each to accommodate the extra doorway)
- paint, primer, or stain
- roller brush
Tools
- Miter saw
- nail gun
- level
- speed square
- screwdriver
- drill
- sander
Step 1: Measure and cut the wood
We started by finding the 2 spots we wanted to mount the gate (where the hinges and latch would go). For our stairs, we found it was best to mount the hinges on the inside of the doorway trim and the latch on the newel post. Our newel post is a “turned” style, which means it would be difficult to mount anything to it. We attached a 2×3 to the newel post to secure the latch. We sanded and added polyurethane to this 2×3 before mounting it to make it look more finished.
Once we found the two mounting spots, we measured how high we wanted the gate (30 inches high with a 4-inch gap between the bottom of the gate and the ground). Be sure to measure your own space to ensure your design will keep your toddler safe. To make our gate, we used a miter saw to cut 2 3-foot horizontal boards and 6 30-inch vertical boards (you can also use a circular saw, jigsaw, or handsaw to make these cuts). We always buy an extra piece of wood when starting a project like this one just in case we make a mistake. This saves us from running out to Lowe’s in the middle of a project.
Step 2: Sand and paint
After everything was cut, we laid the pieces of wood on the floor and played around with the spacing. We decided we liked 3-inch spaces – this design worked well with the width we needed. We then sanded and painted it white to match our baseboards and trim. I’m a big fan of using things you already have, so we used a bonding primer we had left over from another project (I love this primer – it’s thick and provides good coverage). You can also stain the baby gate if you’d like – find the look that’s best for your space!
Step 3: Nail the gate together
Once everything was painted, we used a nail gun to assemble the gate. We laid the boards down the way we wanted them and used a speed square to make sure each vertical board was square with the horizontal boards. It was helpful to have a spacing block to use during this step to make sure our spacing between each board was consistent. We cut a 3-inch block for this purpose.
Step 4: Attach the hardware
We marked where we wanted the hinges to go and attached them. Be sure to leave enough room between the wall or trim and the gate when mounting the hinges to allow it to open without rubbing against anything. We attached the hinge to the gate first and then tested it by holding it up to the trim. Once we felt confident about the hinge’s position, we used a level and marked where we wanted it to be screwed into the trim.
Step 5: Mount the gate!
After hanging the gate, we marked where we wanted the latches to go, and mounted them. Again, we had to add a 2×3 to our newel post for the gate to be even with the trim.
There are so many types of latching systems. We first used 2 of these gate laches – one for the newel post and another for the trim on the playroom doorway. We knew this latch was temporary, as our toddler eventually learned how to open it. Once she was able to open it, we kept the one in the playroom doorway, but we changed the one to the stairs to a sliding latch like this one. We mounted it on the inside of the gate so she can’t reach it. She’s 2 years old and is not able to open it.
To sum it up
We chose to keep our design simple, but we also played around with adding a diagonal or horizontal board across the center of the gate. The best part about DIY is that you can customize it any way you want!
We chose the hinges and latches we wanted to use before starting the project to make sure everything would fit and align. We used 2 hinges and 2 latches (since we also wanted this gate to latch to the adjoining room). Doing this is also helpful because it holds the door open when we aren’t using it for the stairs.
I hope this step-by-step guide for making a DIY baby gate was helpful for you!
