If you wish to be able to rearrange your built-ins in the future or transport them with you to a different house, you can use the methods outlined below. A primer on the fundamentals of building construction is provided here. The “box” — consisting of the cabinet’s sides, top, and bottom — is the foundation of any built-in. There are numerous options for assembling these pieces.
Which one you choose relies on your available resources, how much time and effort you will put into creating the built-in, and the desired outcome. Shelves for the living room don’t have to look the same as those for the basement workshop. A storage cabinet with a movable door for laundry detergent and other cleaning supplies need not resemble a cabinet for serving utensils in the kitchen.
Use your skills and ingenuity and develop the most effective solution possible for the position. Any built-in will improve the visual appeal of your house.
Inserting a Rear Plate
When there are numerous built-ins, a back panel is required. This panel can be crafted from a variety of supplies. Use 1/8″ hardboard or 1/4″ plywood if it will be hidden, meaning flush against the wall. However, if the back panel is visible, like in a room divider, you should choose a decorative one. You can use one of the materials above and paint it, or you can use hardwood-veneered plywood to mimic the look of the solid wood top and sides. The hack panel could be made of 3/4″ plywood with a plastic laminate like Formica or Micarta.
The rear panel can be installed in various ways, as detailed in the drawings provided below. There are three easy approaches in this portion of the built-ins that anyone can use. Look at them and decide which ones work best for you. The back panel can be installed with just a hammer or screwdriver. There are two other techniques for securing the rear panel if you choose to have it indented so that it is flush with the borders of the top, sides, and bottom.
Before cutting any pieces, ensure you have a detailed plan for the entire build. You won’t have to put forth as much effort.
How to Install Shelving
After the “box” and attaching method for the back panel have been settled, the rest of the design may be mapped out. Remember that you will likely need to make adjustments as your plans develop, so planning is essential. Consequently, finish all necessary preparations before laying out the job to be cut.
The method of installing a shelf is significant, but the thickness of the stand comes first. Use heavier lumber if the frame needs to support a hefty load or spans a great distance with no other supports than the ends if it just needs to hold a few trinkets or is only 12 inches long.
The accompanying plans include specifics on shelf sizes based on safe loading capacities; please adhere to these guidelines.
Here are some guidelines for determining the appropriate shelf depth when designing your unit. Use 3/4″ thick plywood or solid stock for sturdy books or record shelves. Shelves with a thickness of 14 inches or 3/8 inches are OK for decorative purposes but not heavy loads. If the length of the frame in your built-in is less than 36 inches, you can get away with using a thinner sheet of plywood.
Whichever Doors You Prefer
There is a time and a place for open shelving in built-ins, but you will likely need some closed shelves. The type of door you construct will be determined by your skill with tools, the built-in style, and the room’s overall aesthetic.
There are three distinct door designs depicted here. There are three primary categories, each with its unique variants. Sliding doors, for instance, can be constructed from various materials. You can use 1/4″ plywood, 3/8″ Novoply, 1/8″ hardboard, or 1/8″ plate glass. You can also switch up the slides you use. Dadoes can be cut into the top and bottom panels to facilitate the sliding of the doors. Sliding door hardware off the shelf will do.
Alternatively, you could choose the new hardware that keeps both sliding doors parallel to one another on a single track.
You can still have door issues even if you use hinged doors. Is a butt hinge, offset hinge, invisible hinge, pivot hinge, or some other kind of hinge in your plans?
Your built-in could benefit from the addition of moving doors. When not used, the doors can “fold” back into the unit, disappearing completely. Research various door installation methods, evaluate your skillset and consult appropriate chapters in these books for further information.
Create a Drawer
Drawers are another excellent option for easy-access storage, complementing shelves or a cabinet with a door. Most designers and tutorial authors start with the idea that the simplest drawer you can make is just a “box” with butt joints at each of the four corners and an attached back panel on the exterior. This is a typical drawer, the kind you’ll find in most pieces of furniture.
The rabbets on the front of the drawer are designed for the sides to slide into. On the inside of the drawer front, a dado or groove is made so that the drawer bottom can rest in it.
Dadoes are cut into the sides near the back edge to accommodate the drawer back. The sides are the same height as the front and mount to the underside of the drawer.
The drawer back not only aligns with the grooves on the cabinet’s sides but isn’t as deep as the front. When the item is constructed, the backrests are on the bottom of the drawer.
Putting Up a Sloping Built-In
Many wall-mounted built-in storage units are used in modern homes. They provide an attractive and functional storage solution while freeing up the floor below. The built-in and the wall material have a role in determining the best method for securing the built-in to the wall.
Screwing into the studs in a wall is the simplest way to secure a wall-mounted built-in. The holes must be predrilled through the back of the built-in, the wall, and into the stud before installation. However, reinforcement is required if the built-in is meant to hold realistic weight and the back panel is made of “thin” material like 1/8″ hardboard or 1/4″ plywood. We insert a cleat into the built-in and secure it to the cabinet’s sides and either the top or bottom. Add cleats to the rear panel and screw them into the wall to do this.
If your built-in has a “thin” back panel and no cleats are used inside the unit, you can put one across the bottom and another across the top, either primary or ornate. After that, screws are driven through the cleats and into the wall studs, or special fasteners are used to secure the unit to the wall. You should try to ensure the built-in wall studs if it bears significant weight.
As a civil engineer, KevinLe constantly thinks of ways to make his life more straightforward. His current area of study is Valves Technology. His latest website, http://valveproducts.net, has a wealth of information about Valves, including where to get them, how to keep them in working order, what components make them up, how they operate, and even what others think of them.
