Built in bookshelves

[jeffinsgf]

Hey guys.  I'm in the very early planning stages on some built in bookshelves and base cabinets for the spare bedroom where I have our home office. My wife is an avid reader, and we have hundreds of books, both hardcover and paperback to shelve.

I've been thinking that I might use this project as the justification to buy an LR-32, but I'm concerned about loading up pin supported shelves with hardcover books. Is that concern unfounded?  The convenience of having the shelves adjustable would be wonderful, but I envision hundreds of dollars worth of material ruined because we overloaded them.  

My other design consideration is a window that is very close to the corner of the room. I'm having a tough time figuring out how close to bring the cabinet down the wall toward the window and also how best to terminate it. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[sw1211]

This doesn't really address your pin question, but here are 5 guidelines regarding shelf sag,

Five Tips for Managing Shelf Sag

1. If shelf span is reduced by one-fifth, shelf stiffness is approximately doubled (deflection is halved)
2. If shelf span is increased by one-fourth, deflection doubles
3. If shelf span is doubled, deflection is eight times greater
4. If shelf thickness is doubled, deflection is reduced to one-eighth
5. If shelf depth is doubled, deflection is cut in half

You might want to check out the Sagulator  (not my term)

 

[jeffinsgf]

Thanks, Steve.  That gives me a starting point.

 

[jzaavy]

Depending on the style you are choosing, you should consider using those shelf connectors (the type they use a lot in italian furniture, like Jesse, B&B, etc...) This is very nice hardware. If you use facing down C shaped shelves with these connectors, it becomes quite strong and still ajustable.

And if your cabinets will be very builtin you can assemble your cabinets with the two holes connectors, you can then assemble it directly in place.

I love that kind of "European" hardware.

Jerome

 

[jeffinsgf]

Jerome,

If you're talking about a shelf support that is a bent wire that goes in two holes, I like that design very much, but have not been able to locate them on the internet.  Do you have a brand name or link?

 

[sw1211]

Check out Lee Valley for the wire supports

 

[jzaavy]

Hey Jeff,
no, I think its called knock down connectors. More precisely:

hettich vb 35 M or vb 36 M

or from hafele http://www.hafele.com/ca/en/external/catalog/connectors.pdf

the rafix or tab V.

From Richelieu, I think there are some too from Titus, but they are all plastic.

Jerome

 

[danrush]

Jeff,  as long as the pins fit snuggly in the holes drilled, I don't think you can overload the pins.  I once had a call back to a cabinet job.  It was reported that one cabinet was falling off the wall.  ( big box store cabinets, 1/2" particle board sides)

Upon inspection, the 36"x 36" wall cabinet was fully loaded with dozens and dozens of soup cans.  The back was securely attached to the studs, but the back and side joints gave up.  I remember specifically looking at the cheap shelf pins and holes.  All ok. 

Dan

 

[Dave Ronyak]

Hey guys.  I'm in the very early planning stages on some built in bookshelves and base cabinets for the spare bedroom where I have our home office. My wife is an avid reader, and we have hundreds of books, both hardcover and paperback to shelve.

I've been thinking that I might use this project as the justification to buy an LR-32, but I'm concerned about loading up pin supported shelves with hardcover books. Is that concern unfounded?  The convenience of having the shelves adjustable would be wonderful, but I envision hundreds of dollars worth of material ruined because we overloaded them.  

My other design consideration is a window that is very close to the corner of the room. I'm having a tough time figuring out how close to bring the cabinet down the wall toward the window and also how best to terminate it. Any help would be appreciated.

Jeff, several years ago I made a bookcase with shelves that were nearly 4 ft between the uprights.  The shelves were solid red oak, 7/8" thick.  End supports were 1/4 inch holes with removable metal or plastic supports available for Rockler's and others.  The shelves were fully loaded with my collection of Fine Woodworking, BMW CCA Roundel and an old Encyclopedia set -- very heavy items.  Even after 10 years of supporting these heavy items, there was no visible sagging of the shelves.  I did make the shelf boards symmetrical so they could be flipped occasionally if necessary or desired.

Many people make shelves from plywood or MDF or particle board core materials.  For a given thickness, these materials a much less resistant to the bending load they will experience when used as shelving.  If you choose to use these materials rather than solid lumber, the addition of solid lumber edging will significantly stiffen the shelving.  The greater the thickness (vertical dimension when the shelving is installed) of the applied edging, the greater its influence on resistance to bending loads.  For a simple beam, if I recall correctly (and I may be wrong!!), bending resistance is proportional to the cube of the vertical dimension.

When the Domino machine came out, my first trial use of mine was to add a reinforcing edge to a closet shelf melamine covered particle board.  That shelf was 16 inches deep and nearly 5 ft span and sagged considerably under its own weight with nothing set on it!!  The addition of a strip of hard maple, 1 inch thick by 2 inches deep (vertical dimension protruding below the shelf) straightened out that shelf and made it quite useful.  I has not sagged in 3 years of use even though I reinforced only one edge.

Dave R.

 

[jeffinsgf]

Thanks so much, guys, for all the response.

Dave, I have been considering oak veneer plywood with a solid oak edge for the shelving.  I think it will depend on the quality of the oak plywood I can find -- and the cost.  I don't relish the idea of gluing up as much solid oak panel as the project will call for, but if it is a wash in terms of cost, I might go that route -- I know they would be stronger and more attractive.

Dan, thanks for the post on the pins holding up to a full load of soup cans. That eases my mind considerably. 

Steve, thanks for the link to the shelf supports from Lee Valley.  They were in the Hafele catalog, too, in both 3mm and 5mm.

Jerome, I'm not so much interested in the K-D fasteners as the shelf supports.  Those were in the same Hafele catalog section that you linked.  Thanks.

 

[ShawnR]

Jeff,

If you have not already started.. I saw this done a few years back that is a surefire way to keep your shelves from sagging.  Whatever material you use for your shelving, route a small groove down the front, insert a metal rod into it, and glue in place.  You will likely have to add an edging to the shelve or go with a very contemporary look of wood and metal.

Cheers,

Shawn

 

[Jay Knoll]

Use your domino to put in slots instead of pin holes.  Then run the domino across the end of each shelf to make a continuous grove starting at the back. Stop it before it goes through the front edge.  You can now make the shelves "float" without buying those other supports.

Jay

 

[Deke]

Jeff,

We made a whole wall of bookshelves, and they are loaded with heavy books. The pins are holding fine and there really isn't any need to anything extra. In fact, you should probably be more concerned with the actual shelf warping. Good birch ply, widths at a reasonable size and a leading edge of hardwood (with a nice profile) will take care of that.