Custom Closets

[aerofreaky`]

Most of my life is spent in NYC where space is a premium. After some years of laziness, I've started to build custom closets for my apartment. The space saving aspect is amazing. Additional shelves have 4x'd my space at least. I was able to capture unused space behind hangars. Hangars need about a foot and my closet was over 2' deep so it made for a huge improvement.  I started with attaching supports to the metal studs in the walls (seen in the photo with the shelves straight ahead and to left.) However, I decided it would be more efficient to use a router and essentially build custom shelves and mount them in the closets. This method is seen in the other closet with the wider opening. In this closet, two shelves were installed and then shelves were placed in between (routed both sides of the wood.) 

A couple of notes if you're going to make your s/o happy with this type of project. First, don't use "sande plywood" (no d at the end is on purpose). The quality is garbage and the lamination will split. It could be used for shelves, but i'd say it's garbage at around $40 a sheet. Better is the maple or oak plywood (7 or so ply with a thin veneer) which is made in the USA. This is $50-70 a sheet. I also found a "Chinese Elm" with probably 15 layers was made with strong enough glue to be functional.

Route 1/4." Floor underayment is about $12 a sheet and has a A quality side. If you paint the shelves white, calk the ends of the shelves smooth and forget about ironing on veneer.  Use a good quality wood glue and make sure to pick construction screws with a good bite, pre drilling the holes. Sink them and calk.

[Counting_Down]

Nice work!

[Metric Mouse]

Looks great!

[Dicey]

Hmmm, not sure if this is shelving that goes behind the hanging bar? Looks nice, but I can't tell, so sorry if this is obvious to everyone but me.

When we bought our house, we discovered that one closet was built too shallowly, if that's a word. After a little searching, I found a couple of hanger styles that were shorter than most by about 1.5 inches, which made all the difference. In NYC where fractions of inches matter, it could be "good to know" info. Also, if you get really good at it, it could be a great side gig. I knew the guy who started California Closets, and he actually did quite will with his little venture.