How to Build a Recessed Bar in a Home

Check out free-standing bars sold at furniture stores and home improvement warehouses; get an idea of what you want your home bar to comprise. Perhaps top-lit, open glass shelves will best display a collection of vintage malt whiskeys, while a closed cabinet might disguise a shameful love of boxed wine. An enclosure for a fridge should have sufficient ventilation to disperse the heat created by its operation. A bar top is a practical necessity; kitchen work surfaces are typically installed at around 36 inches above the floor.

Trace around the full interior of the recess with a magnetic stud finder, locating any wires or pipes that may be running behind the walls. If any are located, mark their routes using a soft pencil. Also locate and mark the runs of studs inside the walls; these marks will be used for fastening the shelf supports.

Measure the bottles, glasses, decanters, ornaments and the like that you intend to store and display in the completed bar. Use graph paper to design a plan that incorporates your ideas and comfortably accommodates everything that will eventually reside in the recess, while also avoiding any in-wall obstructions. If incorporating a wine or beer fridge, locate it as low as possible to minimize the issues caused by weight.

Install electrical outlets sufficient to power all the components that will be installed in the finished bar. This could mean an outlet close to the floor for the fridge, one toward the top for lighting and one or more at the height of the main bar for blenders or ice crushers.

Transfer the lines of your planned shelving, work surface and cabinetry from the diagram to the wall. Use a tape measure, a carpenter’s level and a soft pencil to do this. Building the bar into the recess, rather than buying a kit for installation, allows you to work around any off-true corners or uneven wall surfaces.

Build supports for all the shelves, cabinets and the work surface. Either cut battens from 1/2-inch by 1/2-inch wood, or use proprietary brackets; in either case, choosing ornamented material should be carefully weighed against the whole room’s aesthetics. Fix the supports to studs behind the recess’ walls, not just into the drywall. Once the supports are all in place, erase any visible pencil marks.

Install the shelves, cabinets and work surface according to the plan. The normal maximum for unsupported shelf spans is between 30 and 36 inches, the average depths between 8 and 12 inches. If your plans call for greater sizes, fit central supports or a full-length batten across the back. Use mechanical fasteners or construction adhesive according to the manufacturer’s instructions to anchor the shelves to the supports; liquids are heavy and can pull an insecure shelf from its brackets.

Install lighting tailored to fit the room’s style. Good light is important above the counter, especially if knives are to be used for slicing limes for a nutritious after-work margarita. Pendant or spot lighting toward the ceiling will bath the recess in light when the main fixtures in the room are not switched on. Transparent canopies for pendants can be found at most lighting suppliers that mimic the brand advertising common in most bars and clubs.