The Family Handyman ultimate organizing solutions: kitchen, bath, closet, garage

357 Pages·2015·31.45 MB·English

by  Family Handyman

A NOTE TO OUR READERS: All do-it-yourself activities involve a
degree of risk. Skills, materials, tools and site conditions vary widely.
Although the editors have made every effort to ensure accuracy, the
reader remains responsible for the selection and use of tools, materials
and methods. Always obey local codes and laws, follow manufacturer
instructions and observe safety precautions.
Contents
CHAPTER
1
Kitchen & bathroom
Kitchen cabinet rollouts
Built-in bath cabinet
Great Goofs
Above-cabinet shelving
Organize your knives
Kitchen organization tips
CHAPTER
2
Home office & technology
Ultimate office organizer
The outlet, reinvented
Technology tips
Magnetic office supplies holder
Label-palooza!
Add home office outlets
CHAPTER
3
Bedroom, closet & entryway
Small-closet organizer
Traditional coat & mitten rack
Super stuff sacks
Coat & hat rack
Triple your closet space!
Entry organizer
Storage above windows and doors
Picture-hanging perfection
Under-bed rollout
CHAPTER
4
Garage & basement
Upgrades for the garage mechanic
Flexible garage storage
Tips for the garage
Storage tips
Simple utility cabinets
Magazine storage bins
Plywood organizer
Handy folding table
CHAPTER
5
Outdoor organization & storage
Garden shed
Weatherproof plant labels
Backwoods repair kit
Shed plus shelter
Pine garden hutch
Window planter
CHAPTER
6
Tools & materials
Tool tray tower
Job-site organization tips
Space-saving workbench
Shop organizing tips
Utility trailer upgrades
A folding sawhorse with a built-in shelf
Keep track of stuff
CHAPTER
7
Shelves & bookcases
3-tier basket stand
Super-simple DVD holder
Leaning tower of shelves
Hanging shelves
Flat-screen TV bookcase
CHAPTER
1
Kitchen & bathroom
Kitchen cabinet rollouts
Building rollouts in cabinets with center dividers
Built-in bath cabinet
Great Goofs
Above-cabinet shelving
Organize your knives
Kitchen organization tips
Specialized storage, swinging trash, upright spray bottles
Kitchen cabinet rollouts
WHAT IT TAKES
Time: 4 hours
Skill level: Intermediate
B
ase cabinets have the least convenient storage space in the entire kitchen.
Rollouts solve that problem. They make organizing and accessing your
cabinet contents back-friendly and frustration-free.
If you’re stuck with cabinets without rollouts, don’t despair. Here you’ll
learn how to retrofit nearly any base cabinet with rollouts that’ll work as well
as or better than any factory-built units.
It’s really very easy. Once you take measurements, you can build the rollout
drawer (Photos 2–6), its “carrier” (Photos 7–9), and attach the drawer slides
(Photos 6 and 7), all in your shop. Mounting the unit in the cabinet is simple
(Photos 10–12). You’ll also learn how to construct a special rollout for
recycling or trash (Photos 14–15).
The project will go faster if you have a table saw and miter saw to cut out
all the pieces. A circular saw and cutting guide will work too; it’ll just take a
little longer. You can build a pair of rollouts in a Saturday morning.
What wood products to buy
These rollout drawers are made entirely of 1/2-in. Baltic birch plywood. Baltic
birch is favored by cabinetmakers because it’s “void free,” meaning that the
thin veneers of the plywood core are solid wood. Therefore sanded edges will
look smooth and attractive. If your local home center doesn’t stock Baltic
birch, find it at any hardwood specialty store.
If you choose, you can make the sides of the rollout drawers from any 1x4
solid wood that matches your cabinets and then finish to match (use plywood
for the bases). But if you use 3/4-in. material for the sides, subtract 3 in. from
the opening to size the rollout (not 2-1/2 in., as described in Photo 2 and
Figure A).
The drawer carriers (Figure A) are made from pine 1x4s for the sides (Photo
7) and 1/4-in. MDF (medium-density fiberboard) for the bottoms (Photo 9).
The MDF keeps the drawer bottom spaced properly while you shim and
attach it to the cabinet sides. It can be removed and reused for other carriers
after installation. If MDF isn’t available, substitute any other 1/4-in. hardboard
or plywood.
Side-mounted slides are the best choice among drawer slide options. Their
ball-bearing mechanisms and precise fit make for smooth-operating drawers
that hold 90 lbs. or more. Shown here are 22-in. full-extension side-mount
drawer slides that have a 90-lb. weight rating. That means they’ll be sturdy
enough even for a drawer full of canned goods. Full-extension slides allow the
rollout to extend completely past the cabinet front so you can access all the
contents. You can find slides at any home center or well-stocked hardware
store.
Measure carefully before you build
Nearly all standard base cabinets are 23-1/4 in. deep from the inside of the
face frame (Photo 1) to the back of the cabinet. So in most cases, 22-in.-long
rollout drawer and carrier sides will clear with room to spare. Check your
cabinets to make sure that 22-in. rollouts will work. If you have shallower
cabinets, subtract whatever is necessary when you build your rollouts and
their carriers (see Figure A).
Then measure the cabinet width. The drawer has to clear the narrowest
part of the opening (Photo 1). When taking this measurement, include hinges
that protrude into the opening, the edge of the door attached to the hinges
and even the doors that won’t open completely because they hit nearby
appliances or other cabinets. Plan on making the drawer front and rear parts
2-1/2 in. shorter than the opening (Figure A).
Shown here are drawers with 3-1/2-in.-high sides, but you can customize
your own. Plan on higher sides for lightweight plastic storage containers or
other tall or tippy items, and lower sides for stable, heavier items like small
appliances.
Drawer slides aren’t as confusing as they may seem
At first glance, drawer slides are pretty hard to figure out, but after you install
one set, you’ll be an expert. They’re sold in pairs and each of the pairs has two
parts. The “drawer part” attaches to the rollout while the “cabinet part”
attaches to the carrier. To separate them for mounting, slide them out to full
length and then push, pull or depress a plastic release to separate the two
parts. The cabinet part, which always encloses the drawer part, is the larger of
the two, and the mounting screw hole locations will be shown in the
directions. (Screws are included with the drawer slides.) The oversized holes
allow for some adjustment, but if you follow the instructions, you shouldn’t
have to fuss with fine-tuning later. When mounting the slides, you should
make sure to hold them flush with the front of the rollout drawer and carrier
sides (Photos 6 and 7). The front of the drawer part usually has a bent metal
stop that faces the front of the drawer.
Assembling parts and finishing the rollouts