DIY Barn Door Baby Gate

Today I wanted to share with you our plans that we came up with for a safety issue we currently have in our new place.  We have a set of steep stairs that we wanted to keep our girls from playing on so they wouldn’t fall and get hurt.

I thought that it would be awesome to build our own baby gate for stairs.  Baby gates are not cheap and it was hard to find one that would fit our exact needs, so I decided that I would just design and build one.

I sketched a plan to show Cassity and she immediately fell in love (like the first time she saw me! ha. ha).  I love it when she falls in love with my designs.  I am really excited too, because I know that many other people will benefit from having a way to build their own baby gate for stairs and any other place you would want to keep kids out.

DIY Barn Door Baby Gate

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Thanks to True Value we were able to get all the supplies that we needed for the job.  The design of the gate plays off of the rustic look.  We wanted it to be like a barn door and have a really rustic feel with some country charm.  The hardware that we purchased is hardware that you would use on an exterior gate, but (NOW) you can use it indoors as well.

Everyone likes free money right?  I’m sure that your list is as big as mine and you could use some extra cash to get some of those projects done.  So True Value wants to give you a chance to win a $100 True Value Gift certificate.  How cool is that?! Enter Below!

And here are the gate plans so that you can build you own barn door baby gate for stairs.  Keep those kiddos safe and have fun building!

Click Here to Get a Free Printable Version of this Building Plan

(Get part 2, to turn this baby gate in to a full Dutch door by following this tutorial)

List of Tools:

• table saw (for ripping cap to 2 1/4”, you could use a 1×3 if you don’t have a table saw)
• miter saw (for cutting the lumber to length and the angles)
• drill
• utility knife (for shaving edges of pine boards)
• framing square
• tape measure
• pencil
• sander block
• sand paper
• 4” foam brush
• old rag

Important Notes:

• This gate was designed for a 35 1/4” opening.  The width of the opening where the gate is needed will determine the width of the gate.  Generally you want your gate to be 1/2” to 3/4” less wide than the door opening. This will allow it to swing freely and give room for hinges.
• I used pine boards with lots of character for a good rustic look. But you can use any material you like
• After all the pieces were cut the length, I used a utility knife to shave off the factory edge on all corners.  By doing this it will give the wood a more hand carved look.  After shaving off the edge use a sanding block to soften the edges from any slivers.
• All pine wood used is 3/4” thick.
• All dimensions are finished dimensions .
• All screws in this gate were drilled in through the back stiles.  This made it look better on the side with the cross x to not show any screws.
• For additional support, wood glue can be applied in-between all the wood joints where screws are used.
• The angles listed on the cut list are for quick reference only and are approximate.  You will need to make proper measurements to ensure the proper angles especially if your gate is not the exact same size.

List of Materials:

• • (2) 1x6x96 pine boards (actual width is 5 1/2”)
  • (6) 1x4x96 pine lumbers (actual width is 3 1/2”)
  • (1 box) 1 1/4” drywall screws (I decided to use screws, because it pulled the two pieces together nice and tight.)
  • Wood glue
  • Wood stain of your choice (I used Minwax water based stain and had it mixed to a gray color)
  • Extra Heavy Gate Hinge

• Gate latch (the gate latch that I used requires a hole drilled in the door frame.)
• Handle (pull)

Cut List:

• (1) Cap – 35” x 2 1/4” x 3/4”
• (2) Short Cross Braces  –~14 13/16” x 5 1/2” x 3/4”
• (1) Full Cross Brace – 33 5/8” x 5 1/2” x 3/4”
• (2) Front Stiles – ~24 3/16” x 5 1/2” x 3/4”
• (10) Back Stiles – 35” x 3 1/2” x 3/4”
• (2) Front Rails – 35” x 3 1/2” x 3/4”

Exploded Assembly View

Step-By-Step Instructions

2. Cut the front top rail to the same length on the miter saw.

3. Cut a back stile to length on the miter saw. Use a framing square to square up the corners. Drill in one screw on each corner to attach the back stile to the front rails.  Before assembling any of the pieces, shave off the factory edge for a more rustic look.

4. Cut a second back stile to length on the miter saw. Use a framing square to square up the corners. Screw in one screw on each corner to attach the back stile to the front rails.  Be sure that the back stiles are aligned with the front rails at 35” apart from outside edge to outside edge.  After all four screws are in place, check the frame that is is square.  Do this by using your tape measure and measuring from one corner to another on a diagonal (see image below).  If the two measurements are the same, drill in an additional screw by the first one, to lock the frame into square position.  If they are not the same make small adjustments by pushing or pulling the the opposite corners together or apart.

5. Cut front stiles to length.  Now that you know your exact spacing for the stiles between the front rails you can cut them to the right length.  Now screw the stiles in place through the back stiles.

6. Cut the full cross brace to length.  The opening for the cross brace has now been determined and can now be measured.  Place the board under the frame at an angle.  Overlap the ends lightly to provide part of the board to be cut off.  Take a pencil and mark where the frame crosses over the cross brace.   Be sure the make the piece on the wood that will be discarded.  The angles are listed below but it might be slightly different.   That is why you should just trace the angle from the frame.  Cut the length and shave of the edges.  Sand and get ready for assembly.

7. Cut the short cross braces.  Follow the same instructions as above, but this time mark along the full cross brace where the short cross braces will stop.  Cut to length, shave off the corners and sand.

8. Cut (8 more) back stiles.  Screw the stiles in place one at a time.  As you screw in the back stiles make sure that you are on top of the front boards: the front stiles, rails and cross braces.  This is so the screws hold the pieces in front.

9. Cut the cap.  Screw or nail on the cap.  I used brad nails and clue so they wouldn’t show.

10.Now that everything is assembled and sanded, all you need to to is stain it.  After you stain it you can brush a layer of clear varnish to protect the stain finish.

Final Baby Gate For Stairs

Exploded Assembly View

UPDATE: Here’s the finished space! See how to build a matching top half of the door for a full Dutch door here, build the Swedish Mora clock here, install the thin floor-to-ceiling board and batten here, and build the console table here.

——————————-Reader Update, January 2017——————————-

Check our what our reader, Brian, did with these plans and read about his adaptations. He says:

“I doubled up everything to make it wide enough to go across my hallway.”

“I added a wheel on each end and a track in between with a wheel upside down on the floor to ride in the track. This keeps the bottom from sliding out and keeps the gate straight while rolling back and forth.”

What an awesome, clever adaptation to fit your specific needs!

Thanks for sharing, Brian!

——————————-Reader Update, February 2019——————————-

Another reader, Chelsey, sent this pic over and here we see another example of a great job adapting the project to fit a specific need:

About the project, Chelsey says,

“We had to get clever with attaching the latch end to a metal banister but I think we executed it well. (We agree 100%! Wow!) And we ended up changing the X into 1 single cross beam. Other than that we kept it the same. Thank you for sharing.”

Thank YOU, Chelsey for sharing your finished project with us! Your gate looks incredible. We love how it fits right into your home!

To find more posts with building plans, click here.

And check out these other similar projects. You’ll be glad you did!

DIY Outdoor Baby Gate

DIY Rustic Wall Storage Bins

Simple DIY Barn Door Tutorial with Free Plans

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“I was one of the bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. I have been compensated for the materials needed for my DIY project. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments.”

Here you can find the last True Value project that we tackled with the bathroom sink faucet.

Published: September 12, 2012Filed Under: *Our Projects, DIY, DIY Project Plans, How To, Tutorials Tagged: barn door, Canyon House, Canyon House Living Room, DIY, Kids, Project Plans, stain, Stairs

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