Over the last few years I had been collecting a few bottles of wine, and although I have a 6 bottle Wine Rack in my Dining Room, I had nowhere to store all of the extras I had laying around.

One day in my Basement I noticed an area of wasted space above my fuel tank and figured I could fit a small wine rack in the space.

After doing some searches and finding some very basic rafter style wine racks, I decided to design my own.

Come join me as I show you how I went from wasted space in my Basement, to a simple 42 Bottle Wine Rack...

Step 1: Measuring the Empty Space

First off i needed to see what kind of space I had and how much room I had to play with.

I measured from the space from the top of the fuel tank to the bottom of the rafters, then also measured from the outside of rafter to outside of rafter.

This gave me a simple area to work with and laid the groundwork for the planning of the rack system.

Step 2: Gathering and Shaping Materials

Material List:

2x10 Pine Board
3/4" Plywood
Eight 1/4"x2 1/2" Lag Screws
Wood Stain
Wood Glue
Nailer Gun
Pocket Screws

For the sides I realized that it needed to be fairly sturdy as it would be supporting the weight of the bottles from the ceiling. I found some old 2x10 boards that I could use and cut the two sides and bottom. In section, the boards had a slight curve to them so I used a planer to flatten them out.

For the framework inside I wanted boards thick enough to support the weight of the bottle but didn't have any 1x10 boards to work with so I decided on 3/4" Plywood. I used my table saw to shape the boards and give them the necessary miters on the ends for the assembly.

I decided that it was going to be a simple "V" and "X" connected for the interior frame.

For the two pieces of Plywood that cross in the middle and make the "X", I decided to put a notch in both where they crossed so they would help support each other.

Step 3: Assembling the Shell

For the shell of the rack I cut the two sides and bottom out of the 2x10 board.

I then used my Router to place a simple decorative edge on the front face to give it a little better aesthetics.

To connect the bottom to the two sides I placed pocket-holes in the bottom board and used pocket screws to connect them together along with wood glue at the edges that touch.

The top of the sides were flopping around and wanted to 'pull-in' slightly once it was all connected so I cut two pieces of scrap wood to the same length as the bottom board and wedged them in between the top of the sides to hold it in place as the glue set.

Step 4: Adding the Bottom "V"

Adding the base of the interior rack or the Bottom "V" was the first pieces of plywood I added.

I measured and marked the center of the bottom board.

I then placed the first side of the "V" and glued the mitered edges to help it stay in place. Once it was placed and in the correct position, I used a Nail Gun to tack a few small nails in through the miter to help make it more stable.

I repeated this for the 2nd side and soon had the base of my interior rack.

Step 5: Adding the Top "X"

Once the Bottom "V" was placed, I was then able to place the Top "X" on it to finish the interior framework.

I cut the top of the "X" so that each board would rest on the inside of the ceiling joist and I could make an additional connection for support.

I placed the Top "X" and used a spacer board from the apex of the "V" to get each board placed into the correct position (sorry no pictures of this).

I used pocket holes/screws and wood glue to connect the bottom legs of the Top "X" to the Bottom "V".

This connection to the "V" is the only thing holding the Top "X" in place, but was actually very stable.

Step 6: Adding Some Color

Once everything was connected, it was time to add some stain and make it look a little better.

This was going to be hanging in my basement above a fuel tank, so I wasn't too worried about the finished appearance, but I wanted it to look nicer than just unfinished wood.

Getting into some of the corners was a little rough, but again, I was not too worried about the finished look, but I was glad I wore gloves.