Easy Access Panel Build - Cheap but Satisfying!

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[@Pharmaceuticat]

Small projects like these are good for the normal people who might want to install something smaller scale than huge house builds. More videos like this are welcome.

[@robertthomas6127]

Similar magnet systems have been in use in Germany (to my knowledge) for at least 50 years. Often for easy access to drainage pipes from bathtubs and Showers as well as for water meters that need to be read anually and are in the apartment.

[@stevecotes301]

Great timing Matt. I'm putting in a whirlpool tub in my Dad's old house I'm fixing up. Want to put an access panel in a closet to get to the pump and was contemplating what to do with the panel. This is classy and definitely gives me ideas about how to finish it. As always, enjoy what the videos you put out.

[@danielrosenbaum9966]

Really like the idea of building the entire frame then inserting in the hole. Have done that on several similar projects and is so much easier than piece building in place. Nice job

[@ColeSpolaric]

This was a much more useful video than I expected.

[@hassenfepher]

Good work Jorge.

[@Durrttyy]

love stuff like this, great work Jorge.

[@IAmKyleBrown]

Good on you. Putting the craft and attention into these details that normally would only be seen in fine furniture truly can make a fine home as well.

[@ZealofSparta]

Thank you for sharing this little detail Matt! Sometimes the little things like this can have many applications and I now have a few more ideas for a project that I am drafting up for my place.

[@tlangdon12]

I like the fact that this panel can be opened without tools, and is fully removable in neede. I also like the very clean, flush finish. I expect that a joiner could reduce the time to build the frames and panels if they got an order for all the access panels needed for a whole house. Engraving "Push Here" along the front edge, where the catches are, would give a future home owner an idea of how to open the panel.

[@kiwdwks]

Nicely done...well thought out. You know you did it right when you have a smile on your face using it...

[@billhung1393]

I have done a removable bathtub/whirlpool access panel using the same trick on a piece of tile.

[@rok4220]

So slick. Looking forward to the next house Reno update.

[@PhanoftheShow]

been banging my head trying to find the right magnets to do something like this. thank god for KZbin

[@christheother9088]

Previous owner at my place built a shelving unit that completely enclosed the main water shutoff and an exterior bib faucet. Both were completely inaccessible. Put in a couple access panels.

[@augustreil]

Those access panels would be nice to have on the backside of shower/bath fixtures.Thumbs up.

[@tangents6299]

Exactly!

[@timgleason2527]

I was just thinking about this- on the back side of my shower wall it’d be great to have access to shut-offs and maybe a spare hose bib or something.

[@MorryB]

@@timgleason2527 You can buy pre-made access panels at electrical or plumbing shops (also Home Depot, Lowes, etc). If you need something larger it might be worth it to DIY though.

[@Pondo1333]

Nice change of pace, sweet little QoL project

[@ghiagoo]

Wow, your house is coming along. Haven’t seen it in a while

[@LeMatt87n]

Maaaaaatttt, moar cool little things like this. Practical and geeky AF!

[@donaldbiehl1733]

Cool. Love the wire rope connection. BTW, Spenser Lewis needs your input on a masonry clad house / interior trim issue. I know you have that experience.

[@mdug7224]

Fun little project 😁

[@AlexanderAry]

Like these small DIY ideas

[@dginta7932]

Awesome. Plumber left a 10” x 20” hole in my basement knock down textured ceiling. You can’t find anything to fit a hole that size so looks like this is on my list of ‘to-do’s.’ Thanks.

[@dginta7932]

Build one yesterday. Thanks again for the great idea.

[@pavelstolarczyk9699]

Very cool. On a home that wasn’t cared for from an air tightness perspective like yours, would weatherstripping be important for this?

[@zakiducky]

If the GWB+ paint forms the air barrier between the conditioned house and unconditioned attic, then yes.

[@TheHaydeenee]

Don't use this method if you have attic flat insulation, unless you have magnets strong enough to create a strong seal on your gasket.

[@zakiducky]

@@TheHaydeenee For sure, you’d need a strong magnetic clamp to keep the gaskets sealed. Possibly too strong to easily open. A sealing mechanical latch, similar in principal to a hopper/awning/ casement window would work better if you need the panel to seal.

[@squeekhobby4571]

Wonderful

[@snowgorilla9789]

7 years and three months from now when you open that to check the noise, you will smile

[@PandorasFolly]

The wire supports are my favorite part

[@olivercotton347]

So cool!

[@chetnash5991]

Very clever

[@drooplug]

The use of just magnets makes me a bit nervous for a ceiling panel like that. Looks good though. You can upgrade that panel by getting rid of the casing, putting a bevel on the edge of the jamb, then tape and mud over the gap. Then you'll have a real clean transition to the access panel with only the gaps showing.

[@ricbailey170]

No gaskets to stop air flow from house to attic?

[@randyfinfrock143]

Agreed - Add some thin weather stripping to stop any air leak from house to attic … Nicely done !

[@fanofb44]

I believe it's a conditioned attic

[@timgleason2527]

Yeah it’s not a vented attic- nice when you don’t have to worry about such things!

[@Seibar42]

Probably could have done with a couple cabinet hinges rather than magnets and strings, or any of the flush options that are commercially available for a lot less money and a cleaner look. It was fun though

[@ironmanonaninja3025]

I would love to see how that was made.

[@Gideon_Judges6]

If the other side was a bedroom make the backside of the shower the inside of the closet (either a side or the backwall). Then you don't care how finished or ugly the access is. Could just be a sheet of white colored aluminum nailed in the corners. Easy to get on and off in the unlikely occasion you need to get in there.

[@huntera123]

Interesting. Why no air seal? Any thoughts on how this could be adapted for plumbing access would be awesome.

[@srt4b]

No air seal because his whole interior is air sealed. The attic and wall interiors are sealed at the exterior zip.

[@wjthehomebuilder]

Plus you're looking at a floor joist up in that cavity. There's living space directly above.

[@Nickenstine]

You live in my neighborhood I’ve seen your house. Pretty cool.

[@lorenworthington8739]

Matt seems satisfied.

[@mpxz999]

If you were to do this same kind of access panel in say, a bathroom, would a simple 1/4" rounded rubber gasket be enough? I'm considering this for a panel I need to have, and am worried about humid air from the shower trying to escape into the wall (its an exterior basement wall)

[@captainkittles]

We’re the magnets recessed? If not might the gaps cause HVAC efficiency issue?

[@barbarazastrow3745]

Only a homeowner, but does anyone think you could seal a large metal air vent, top with some lightweight insulation, attach an airtight gasket, and then attach the whole thing with strong cabinet magnets, for an easier access panel? Not for a Risinger home, but a lesser home??

[@hoopie1022]

As soon as I saw that blower I was like “nooo not a dryer vent booster” glad it wasn’t

[@billvojtech5686]

I'm helping a friend remodel a 20' x 20' barn into a dog training /kennel space. We have insulated the ceiling with 12" fiberglass batts and installed sheetrock over it. As of now, we left no access hatch into the rafter space. There are wires going to 5 ceiling boxes above the insulation. Do you think we should put an access hatch in? The attic is vented from soffit to ridge vent. I can't see any reason to regularly access the space. If in the future an access hatch were needed, we could cut a hole and install one, or just patch the sheetrock.

[@thomasmoorhead42]

Yes you should have one if just so you can do roof maintenance

[@valkyriefrost5301]

Great idea. However, I would be concerned about the panel falling and hitting the cabinet on the back wall or your head (should you be standing on that step stool at the time). Household vibrations (or accidental contact) + gravity pulling down on that panel held in place by magnets is the danger, especially since you have a second floor and more vibration. Those front touch latch magnets are designed for horizontal loading and are just not that strong. The rear magnets look stronger (the specs claim 6.6 lbs), but the torque and inertia from the panel opening, should the front magnets let loose, will easily overpower those better magnets in the rear. The cables look adequate to arrest the falling panel, but it will then swing and strike your cabinet with some force, marring both surfaces. A simple solution would be to double your touch latches. Another possibility would be to add a hidden latch system (in addition to the touch latches) like the ones used for child safety on cabinets. Safety 1st (the company) makes both hidden mechanical and hidden magnetic actuated child safe latches that would address this issue. Since you never plan to open the panel (for 10-20 years), I'd suggest a pair of mechanical safety latches. That way, when the time comes to open the panel, it should be obvious to the user what needs to be done to open the panel fully (including yourself). You might also include an instruction sticker next to the cable anchors that they can be unscrewed to completely remove the panel. That will also help the next owner (or yourself in 20 years) opening and needing to remove that panel. :-)

[@virgil3241]

Where can you buy those latches in Canada. Only seems to be in the US

[@turboflush]

Was this after thought? Suprised you didnt go with a premade. Many of the premade require 2.5" of extra gap. So truss to truss i M looking at like 20" opening. High risk of anaging any of that hardware and damaging it and or drywall.

[@ericgiesberg4179]

On your range hood fan does it connect to the erv system at all? I've heard of people using recirc vent hoods with erv systems

[@22kmclaren]

I have worked on houses where the range hood vent stack had to be scrubbed or replaced due to oil/soot build up on the internal duct wall. I expect an ERV would make that build-up occur even faster due to the cooling and greater surface area of fins. IMO, the extra maintenance hassle and cost wouldn't be worth the energy savings.

[@ericgiesberg4179]

@@22kmclaren would the negative pressure be negligible? Would you try to at least boost the supply side if you could connect it?

[@joelw6215]

From now on when I tell a client I’ll see them at the site. I’m going to say. “ I’ll see ya in a few oooooonnnnnn the build site”

[@whitefeather5629]

Nothing fancy? That's not your $15 oatey access panel there. Nice and thought out. Looks good

[@75thshootist]

I know, it probably cost him a few hundred to have it made and installed

[@BradKaboord]

Real cool use of hardware available. Wondering if there is a more time consuming yet cheaper option. Yes time is money, but some have more time than money. I'm not knocking it one bite just thinking here.

[@daveklein2826]

Stop thinking.... Your thoughts make no sense

[@RealJohnnyDingo]

secure the access panel with four screws, unscrew when needed. that's a cheap option for a panel that will get opened once in a blue moon. if you want fancy and cheap rig something with hard drive magnets that you scavenge.

[@tominglis9690]

That could become a very poplar solution 🤣

[@KyBrancaccio]

Nice. There is no reason to nail that cross strip of wood retaining the wires; you could have just let it sit up there and fish it out each time to remove the panel completely if desired.

[@75thshootist]

3 or 4 hours of work, and 100 dollars in materials. A skilled carpenter is probably working for around $100 an hour right now so that makes it a three to five hundred dollars access panel.

[@ike7933]

Nice panel Matt, …..are you going to have a safety chain? What if there was an earthquake and someone was standing in the pantry, and that thing fell down on someone’s head because the magnets were not strong enough?🙈🙏🏼👀

[@DagarothBlackrose]

there are literally 2 of them in the video at 0:08

[@robertthomas6127]

Oh just use one that is strong enough to hold when a meteorit hits the house. Won't fall down.

[@ike7933]

@@DagarothBlackrose those safety cables were only on one side of the access panel….if someone was standing Just under it… When the “earthquake” struck…. The panel would fall down and strike someone in the head…, You are correct there are two safety cables… And they are simply suspending “one side of the panel“…. The other side of the panel is not suspended by to safety cables… You can see that in the video at 0:09…🥸

[@22kmclaren]

How low do you think that door reaches when open? Like 18 inches down from a 9 ft ceiling? I don't expect they will have too many 8 ft tall people standing in the corner of their pantry during an earthquake. lol

[@GregFulks]

He was on a ladder…. So, you would have to be taller than 7ft to get hit by it!

[@yourmomma3132]

Wonder if that meets fire code like Sheetrock or a metal access panel?

[@BlackhawkPilot]

Patent it and sell it in various sizes.

[@gregmitchell6062]

What is the purpose of the hole above your door and what will the detail look like when finished?

[@Wild_Bill57]

Overkill, but it is satisfying…

[@robwalker8530]

I know your house is sealed, but for regular attics this might leak air significantly.

[@MandoFettOG]

I'm pretty sure this is in the first floor ceiling

[@VeryPersian]

I feel like that would fall down in the middle of the night

[@LeMatt87n]

Would that scare you?

[@VeryPersian]

@@LeMatt87n nah as long as I have my blankee

[@75thshootist]

I think it's a lot stronger then people realize

[@ethanml33]

don't paint it, it looks awesome as is!

[@ShopTherapy623]

I have one question for you…..was it satisfying?

[@kenneth6102]

The time used for the construction of this house, at where I live, they would've built a skyscraper already. LOL

[@deanjohnson4597]

Wouldn’t a pocket door been better? That way you could just slide door and it wouldn’t be hanging down.

[@bulatdavlet5141]

Cheap!? This is most expensive way to do service door in closet what i've ever seen. LOL

[@daveklein2826]

We will wait for you to post your expert video

[@nicholasweatherman4097]

@@daveklein2826 It'll never happen SMH lol

[@pauljarrell8162]

😂😂😂 you have to admit it’s super cool though lol

[@jwiereng]

rabbet. You use the proper term. Many are incorrectly say rebate

[@sergeybebenin]

I always like what Matt does/makes (except maybe 20awg cables for LED lights) but this is just an unnecessary expensive and not useful. This whole assembly with labor is probably pushing $500 when you could have gotten away with same look but instead using recessed 4 decorative screws. You said it yourself - it'll be opened maybe once in a decade.

[@pnwbuilder]

but it wouldn't be so "satisfying" ;)

[@snuffyupagus2216]

I see unsealed holes!

[@vote2a617]

Looks like a potential headache if the panel gets bumped by mistake.

[@AsHellBored]

cant just order online :( no good for us minor league guys.

[@micahwatson9017]

Failed inspection due to no fire rating. 🤣

[@AlexLeri]

First

[@arthursmolinski5455]

Total over kill.