splitbrain.org

electronic brain surgery since 2001

French Cleats and Wood Storage

Wood Storage under the Stairs

We have some dead space behind the stairs to the cellar (where the workshop is located). You can just squeeze by if you must, but it's not an easily accessible space. Right when I saw it for the first time, this screamed “wood storage” to me. So this weekend I finally built a shelf right behind the stairs.

It allows for moving wood through the steps and gives me a good overview on what I have available. Again I used the cheapest wood I could find, because this only needs to be sturdy and practical – it doesn't need to win any design prices. So some spruce and 12mm OSB was all I needed. Total cost was about 35EUR.

I tried to organize the wood mostly by length, because the shelves get shorter towards the top. I think this is probably the best way to use the space under the stairs1).

French Cleats

For the workshop proper, I finally came around to install a French cleat system. It's a simple way to add tool holders to the wall and still be flexible to move them around when you need to reorganize.

The setup is simple, you simply saw your 18×80 spruce boards in half, using a 45° angle. One half is mounted to the wall, the other goes on your tool holder.

I built a few holders already, but more are sure to follow.

Tags:
house, workshop, diy, woodworking, carpentry
Similar posts:
1)
chances that I'll have my wife's wizard nephew moving in are slim