Closet shelving makes better use of your space.
Shelves are a great way to add some extra storage space to your closet. They are easy to install, and can turn a Saturday afternoon into a new place to store your extra-plush bath towels. If you can wield a circular saw and make simple measurements, you'll have a new shelf in no time. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Measure the width and depth of your closet.
2. Transfer those measurements onto your sheet of medium-density fiberboard. Take your chalk line and snap cut lines onto the fiberboard. Cut the lines with a circular saw. This will give you your shelf.
3. Now, on the scrap fiberboard, again transfer the depth measurement and use it to cut out two, 1 1/2-inch ledger strips. Ledger strips are what the shelf itself will sit on.
4. Measure from your floor the height you would like the shelves to sit at. Subtract about 3/8 inch for the thickness of your shelf, and mark the wall.
5. Find the studs in your closet. You can use an electronic stud finder or a strong magnet. The magnet will find the Sheetrock screws already in the studs. The studs should be 16 inches apart, though this can vary in older homes. Mark the studs.
6. Take your ledger strip and hold it to your height measurements. Rest your bullet level on the ledger strip. Once it is level, drive the 1 1/4-inch drywall screws into the wall studs. Repeat for the other side.
7. Now take one last measurement between the two ledger strips you've screwed to the closet walls. It should be the same measurement as your closet width, minus the thickness of your two ledger strips. Now cut one last 1 1/2-inch strip to the width you just measured, and again screw it to the wall studs. If you've done things correctly, the three strips should all be at equal heights, and therefore flush for your shelf to rest on.
8. Rest your fiberboard shelf on top of the strips. If the shelf sits flush, you now have a new closet shelf. If for some reason the shelf does not sit flush, you may need to adjust the heights of your ledger strips to make sure they are even with one another.
Tags: your closet, your ledger, your shelf, ledger strip, ledger strips, ledger strips, Rest your