DIY Shed Shelving - SO EASY!
Here's my super easy shed shelving using London brackets and very little power tools or skill to help get you organised. Includes video to follow along and tips on the types of wood you can use and alternative shed racking.
PR/Gifted/AD: I was sent the brackets for free by ManoMano as part of an honest review.
Shed shelves don't have to be a difficult task. You don't need skills or much effort, at at least, as shown here. But at the time of posting, I got so sick of not being able to find my tools in my shed quickly.
In fact, you can see how bad it looked below. Not Instagram friendly, eh? I'm sure you get the gist that it became a dumping ground because there weren't specific places for things. And it was all out of sight, out of mind.
So, it was time to work on some shelving for sheds to make my tools and garden equipment much more organised.
After feeling enough was enough, I decided to opt for some London bracket shelving. Why? Because they're super easy shed shelves that just require a selection of tools.
- DIY kitchen shelves, which are very sturdy, holding tonnes of canned food, etc
- Garage DIY shelves, perfect for screwing to a brick wall
- Closet shelves, hidden inside, ideally fixed to a wall
- DIY pantry shelves
- DIY bike shed shelves
- And more!
However, if you're looking for DIY adjustable shelves, then I recommend installing twin slot shelves in a shed, which are equally very easy to install too.
Or, you may prefer using CLS for shed shelves between studs. I personally try to avoid this as it limits adjusting the height of shelves if you ever want to move stuff around, etc.
You can buy London brackets for shelves at most DIY stores. Mine were a gifted PR sample from ManoMano.
They're available in a variety of sizes and colours, but essentially create a mix of DIY metal and wood shelves.
- Combi drill
- Drill bit (for pilot holes)
- 1m Spirit level
- Hand saw (for the smaller cuts)
- Screws
- Tape measure
- Pencil
- Wood for shelving (see recommendations below)
To save yourself having to buy a circular saw, or make many cuts, I recommend that you ask your local DIY wood stockist to make the big cuts for you. This is also beneficial if you have a small car.
Now a key point about the wood you choose. I'll help you by saying I opted for 9mm thick OSB 3 chipboard. It's light, sturdy and perfect in humid and damp conditions, as is my shed.
But, it's important that you avoid anything really heavy because you haven't even filled them yet! But alternatively, you could use:
- Strips of laminate flooring
- Recycling thin wardrobe doors
- DIY distressed wood shelves, but preferably moisture resistant
- Exterior plywood or treated plywood
- Or anything fairly lightweight what wouldn't bow under pressure
I don't recommend MDF as it will sag and expand in damp conditions.
Decide where you want your shed shelf. You'll need to think about what's going to be on top, etc.
Then, using a 1m spirit level (or longer), position it where you want, but ensure your spirit level is smack bang in the middle and draw a line across all of the shed studs (spars).
Now line up your London brackets with your pencil line on the stud work, and screw to the frame.
If you're a beginner, I recommend
- Pre-drilling before screwing
- Use a magnetic bit if possible to prevent frustration
- Sometimes, you can get away with pre-drilling, but there is a risk of splitting wood too close to the edges. It also helps to screw on an angle to prevent poking out.
Place the wooden shelving of your choice ontop and screwed from underneath.
- Avoid any excess hanging over the ends, which would create a weakness
- You could sand down the edges so they're less sharp
- Use small screws to fix the wood to the brackets to avoid cutting yourself
- It's simple enough to cut down with a hand saw
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Wood -
Screws -
London brackets
-
Combi drill -
Drill bit -
1m spirit level -
Hand saw -
Tape measure -
Pencil
- Make a mark on one of your shed spars (studs) where you want the height of your DIY shed shelves.
- Using a spirit level, extend that line across the stud work and make a level line with a pencil
- Line up your London brackets with the height line and predrill and screw one on each spar
- Position your shed shelving wood on top and screw from underneath. See Note 1 regarding easy cutting.
- Note, you may need to cut them down to prevent any weak overhanging wood.
Note 1
It is much easier for those with limited tools or car space to buy your sheet wood from a DIY store that can cut them down in strips to the right depth. Although, you'll still need to hand saw some down to get the right length.
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?