Sometimes it is not possible to use the studs, the fasteners have to be in a certain spot, this is when anchors are used, in sheetrock walls we can either use a plastic anchor or a metal star anchor. The metal star anchors will support a greater load than the plastic anchors.

Plastic anchors are pushed into a hole drilled in the wall, when the screw is tightened the back of the anchor expands locking it to the wall.

When the screw in metal star anchors is tightened it buckles metal fingers back to clamp the fastener into the wall. This shows the screw only partially tightened.

Hanging Shelves

There are several methods of hanging the shelves, if they have a back screws can be driven through the backing material into studs or anchors.

Do not use drywall screws to mount a shelf or cabinet, they are designed for hanging drywall and do not have the proper shear strength for any other use.

A strip can be placed below the shelf and screws can be driven through it as shown below. Hole plugs can be used to hide the screws.

French Cleats

To mount a cabinet on a wall a French Cleat can be made by ripping a 45 degree cut through a wooden strip:

Metal brackets are also available similar to above wooden style.

Keyhole Slots

To mount a shelf that does not have a strip you can use keyhole slots cut in the supports. This can be done with a router with a special bit and a jig, or metal hardware can be used for this.

If you don't have a router and use the metal plates you will have to cut an insert for the plate with a chisel and drill out the material for a pocket behind the keyhole.

 

Insert for plate

This type of mount hangs on screw heads that protrude from the wall, if you have to use an anchor the metal star anchors work best. Insert the anchor, tighten the screw until the fingers are completely compressed against the back of the sheetrock, then back the screw out enough to allow the slot to slide snuggly over the head of the screw.

Two ways to locate mounting screws

Cover the keyholes with a length of masking tape, with a felt pen fill in the outline of the holes.

Lay the tape on the top of a level so it overhangs with the bottom of the keyholes even with the corner.

Fold the tape up and place level in position against the wall, press tape to wall and remove from level.

Drive screws or drill holes for anchor at the top of the slots, remove tape and hang shelf.

Drive a small finishing nail into each of the keyhole slots as shown, cut it off with side cutters so that it protrudes about 1/8". Using a level position the shelf on the wall and press the shelf tight to the wall, the nails will mark the mounting spots. Remove the nails with pliers. If you are not sure if a stud is behind the mark drive a screw into the wall, if it finds a stud use the screw, if not remove the screw and drill a hole for an anchor.

 

Floating Shelves Add some decorative flare and wonder to a room using these concealed shelf supports. They create the illusion that a shelf is floating and the lack of visible hardware supporting the shelf grants you a wider range of visual variety and options. These invisible shelf brackets are made of sturdy metal and have alloy steel coupling screws to ensure they maintain tension between the posts and the inserts in the plates. This gives you an impressive capacity of 50lbs for an 8” deep shelf that’s 34” or less long. (The support capacity is higher for shallower shelves.) If you need a longer shelf just add additional supports. More Info From Rockler.com

 

Making Shelves

Books are one of the heaviest things we put on shelves now that nobody uses record albums anymore. There is a basic span chart to the right to give you an idea of how long the shelves should be. As you can see a reinforcing strip on edge will add quite a bit of support to the shelf as well as providing a finished look to the end product. For maximum strength glue the strip to the shelf.

Shelf Span Chart 10" wide full of books Shelf Material Max. Span 3/4" Particle Board 24" 3/4" Plywood 30" 4/4 (13/16") Solid Stock 36" 6/4 (1 - 5/16") Solid Stock 60" 3/4" Plywood reinforced with 1 1/4" face strip on edge. 36"

How shelves are fastened inside a carcass depends on whether they are to be adjustable or mounted in a fixed position. Fixed position shelves can be held in place by cutting dados in the uprights, or by using dowels, nails or screws using a basic butt joint.

To make shelves wider than the recommended distance in the span table dividers can be put below the shelves to support the weight.

Adjustable shelves are usually done by drilling a series of equally spaced holes in the uprights and then using pins or push in brackets to hold the shelves. For added strength and a finished look metal sleeves can be inserted into the mounting holes.

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Bench Notes has a jig for drilling evenly spaced holes that you can make, or another method is to use a strip of peg board to mark the position of the holes.

A traditional way of making adjustable shelves without additional metal hardware is to make sawtooth shelves, uprights with notches cut in them for cross supports are placed in the four corners of the case. The ends of the shelves are notched to sit on top of the cross pieces.

Single wall shelves require a support, this can be either under the shelf or at the ends of the shelf, if the shape of these supports is an ogee, then one cut makes two supports.

To make a plywood shelf appear to be a solid board tilt you table saw blade to 30 degrees, make the first cut with the angle toward the top, the second cut is opposite with the angle toward the bottom, save this offcut and fasten it to front of shelf with finished surface exposed.

The Woodbin has a very handy calculator to determine the dimensions of a shelf, just plug in your information such as length, width, thickness and weight it has to hold:

The Sagulator

Simple Shelf Projects

• Bow Shelf
• Three Heart Shelf