Industrial Pipe Bookshelf and Shoe Rack

This industrial pipe shelf is the perfect project for any handy -- or non handy -- person looking to update their room.  The shelf is quick and easy to install and its hard industrial yet shabby chic look makes it a great addition to any room.  All of the pipes have threaded ends which makes it really easy to update the shape of your shelf every few months.

I've seen similar shelves on etsy of the same size starting at $150.  I made this shelf myself for under $70.  

Step 1 Materials

Materials 

• (2) Flanges to mount pipe on the wall
• (8) Wood Screws - size 12x2"
• (8) 12" threaded pipes (1" diameter)
• (9) 90 degree pipe elbows (1" diameter)
• (2) 5" threaded pipes (1" diameter)

Tools

• Hand drill
• Drill bits
• Pencil
• Measuring Tape

Comments

[saitaiable child]

Looks like a cat ladder to me. The delicately balanced concept would be a very bad idea at our house .

[CatTrampoline]

I thought 'Cat Ladder' too! I've been toying with making a cat ladder similar in design, but more organic and less industrial looking.

[KwartzKitten]

Wait I'm confused, how does this hold stuff?

[bruce.desertrat]

Poorly. It looks good, but depends on balancing stuff on the pipe. Bumping the bottom book will likely bring the whole shebang down and getting, for instance the fourth book down from a pile of seven will be difficult and require three hands.

Building it with two courses in parallel would be better but would also dramatically increase the price, by doubling the materials costs.(basically build two of these and replace the vertical sections between elbows with a T linking the two together.)

Alternatively, simply attach wooden or metal shelves to the pipes with screws.

[KwartzKitten]

Oh okay, so it's a balancing act. Thanks for the info.

[prince-of-weasels]

LOVE IT as is LOL but was distracted by that dragonfly in the window........where can I tell Santa to get me one?

[northcalgreens]

i see the stuff falling off the pipe all the time(dangerous - messy) how about making 2 of them and running shelves on the pipe? and instead of galvanized go with the black iron (cheaper) and paint it any color you want. i would go with tees and elbows.
very cool look and very functional . will last a couple lifetimes.

[badrescher]

Do you think this would be sturdy using PVC? I don't want to add something this heavy to our walls, but my kids are really into steampunk and it might be a nice addition to their rooms. I'm thinking of using the same spray paint & other techniques we use to give things like nerf guns and gadgets the steampunk look rather than using copper pipe.

[jongscx]

If you glue them, 1.5" or 2" PVC should be plenty strong for some books or Nerf guns...

Add some hooks to the bottom rack and you can hang mavericks by their slides off of them.

[Broom]

Be careful using books on PVC, especially with all those zigzags adding up to a long, unsupported run of pipe.

[badrescher]

Hooks - great idea!

[Carleyy]

I haven't worked too much with PVC, but I don't see why it wouldnt work! I'd love to see how it works out!

[arzola1]

Steampunk!! nice

[zombiasnow]

To all who are adding your own ideas to it; I too, would add some sort of shelve support, but use clear plexiglass. v--v meow
Great Idea Carleyy!!

[hammer9876]

Those are some awesome, high steppin's shoes! Oh, and cool build, too. Congratulations on being Featured.

[mckeephoto]

That is totally awesome!

Hmm... but I think the commuter rail that goes by my studio would vibrate everything off of the pipes. I might need to figure out how to secure a small flat spot on the top of the appropriate pipes.

Or, maybe a false book? Screw it into the pipe on the inside and then stack the other books on top..

Oh, boys! Time to go to work again...

[agis68]

the aesthetic is high add the functionality and we have a perfect design of new era. Its like recycling. Maybe i missed but what's the distance between the solenoid structure and the wall so to provide good sypport

[Eleventy]

I love these. I totally appreciate the aesthetic appeal of the single pipe with no platform – but I also get the practical concerns of the "balancing routine". Maybe if I made these myself I would try a cheat: fasten a length of quarter-round molding to the wall behind each horizontal pipe, at the same level of the top of the pipe and flat-side-up, to create a little ledge for the back of your book to rest on. Paint the molding the color of the wall, and it might not be too noticeable...

This may not even be necessary for the vertical books, since they can rest against the wall in the back, but it seems like it would help with the horizontal stacks, or for other objects.

Another idea would be to extend the top and bottom pipes coming out of the wall, and have a second set of the zig-zaggy pipes directly in front, so each shelf level has two parallel pipes. But I love the simplicity of this design and that might busy it up too much.

[Jayefuu]

Hey they look great! When you said shoe rack I thought you meant something like this. Wonder if that'd work too....

[Carleyy]

I definitely think you can use this concept to make a shoe rack like that. However, I think that works better for sneakers, not heals.

[Jayefuu]

Yes, they wouldn't look anywhere near as pretty in my shoe rack, which is just as well since I don't own any heels :p

[codyg102]

If you're not able to screw into a stud just drywall, I'd recommend a STRONG wall anchor to hold the screws for the flange such as the E-Z Anchor shown in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E71YFP2zaik

The cheap plastic "plug" type anchors only work well in harder materials like concrete, brick, cinder-block, etc. There are metal versions of the type shown in the video that are rated at 300 pounds shear strength (i.e., downward force).

[bertus52x11]

What a great idea! Super!
Do I understand correctly that there are no shelves involved?

[jessyratfink]

These look so neat! :D

[SIRJAMES09]

another version of this would be to use Schedule 40 plastic pipe.

For those who are not aware of what Schedule 40 pip is, it's that thick walled plumbing pipe.

I thought about this as I was reading, and I think that just maybe, for safety sake if for no other reason, one should prolly have 2 vertacle lines..one on each side of the "shelves".
This also would make it stronger.
Did I mention that Schedule 40 is(usually) lower cost than galvanized pipe? yet just as strong?

Just a thought... :)

[Eye Poker]

I love the look, but I'm not personally keen on the balancing routine. A small bit of 1/4 lexan or 1/2 painted MDF added for shelving would make them a lot more platform-ish.

[Grissini]

Fantastic. I might try this with copper pipe. Thanks for great idea.

[kazmataz]

Looks awesome, Carleyy!

[mikeasaurus]

I love the industrial feel of it. Nice pipes!