FITTING SHELVES
Shelving is always useful around the home for added storage space. When planning a shelving project you need to consider the type of materials you want to use (which will depend upon where you want them to go), what you intend to place on them, how strong they need to be and the ‘look’ you want to achieve (what you can live with in the garage is not necessarily what you would want in the living areas). All of this will have an effect on the materials you use, the distances between supports and the methods used to support the shelves.
Types of shelving - There are three main types of installation situations – making use of alcoves, using brackets and installing adjustable shelving. All three require different methods to secure them. The next consideration is in terms of the type of wall you want to fix them to - brick or concrete or onto plasterboard using studs/noggings wherever possible to screw into.
Into alcoves – Using an existing alcove where the shelf supports can be fixed at the sides is one of the easiest and quickest ways to put up shelving and often uses a space that would otherwise be wasted. For this type of shelving you would use battens cut to size which would differ in thickness/size according to what you intend to store on the shelves. Although the length of the shelving is normally determined by the size of the alcove you can be quite creative by placing shelving at different heights and using shelves of different width.
Using brackets – There is a wide range of angle brackets available in terms of materials, size, colour and finishes. When fitting them the longest part of the ‘L’ shape fits to the wall and the shortest bears the weight of the shelf. Brackets are fixed directly onto the wall using appropriate wall plugs and screws or wooden battens fixed to the wall and the brackets screwed to them. Into this category would come ‘hidden’, ‘invisible’ or ‘floating’ shelving which consist of special brackets fixed to the wall, into, or onto, which specially made shelves fit, but these are not meant to carry heavy items.
Adjustable systems – Adjustable shelving systems are readily available. To put them up you need to fix the vertical rails to the wall and then slot in the brackets to support the shelving. (Note that the verticals and brackets made by different manufacturers are not normally interchangeable.) Rails and brackets are made from either aluminium or steel and come in various sizes (they can be expensive!)
Materials - There is a wide range of timber that can be used for shelving - white melamine/metallic finished board, chipboard, MDF or dressed timber such as pine. Measure your dimensions and cut the timber to length (at Bunnings Warehouse we will cut your timber to length on request).
Fixing - Decide where you want the shelving to be positioned and mark the shelf line using a spirit level. Check for the position of wiring and pipes sunk into or behind the wall and position the fixing points accordingly. The type of fixings you use will depend upon the type of wall to which you are attaching the battens, brackets or rails. Always try to screw into studs/noggings behind plasterboard (normally placed at either 400mm or 600mm centres). If you are unsure ask about the kind of fixings you require for your situation). If you use timber brackets, the shelves can be screwed down through the top of the shelf into the bracket (drill a hole first). Angle and adjustable brackets generally have pre-drilled holes to allow for screws to hold the shelves in place.
The faults you want to avoid, no matter what type of shelving you are installing, are fixings being pulled out of the wall, brackets bending or shelves sagging and eventually breaking.
Bunnings can help you with all of this, so come and speak to us!
Information provided by Jim Wolger, DIY Presenter, Bunnings Warehouse North Shore.