Zero Point Shelf

If putting holes in the wall was a game this shelf wouldn't net you any points. The image below is a very rough SketchUp concept drawing of a shelf I built. The concept of "clamping" shelving between the ceiling and floor isn't original to me, in fact I've see several variations of the idea; this is just my variation. The point of this method of mounting shelves is - you get the shelf without the holes in your wall, the concept also lends itself to being placed where there is no wall (stud) support.

Special Note: In the following steps I describe how I removed the lip from the flanges, if you'd rather not have to do this I've learned that Simplified Building can bore out the fittings for you (additional cost per flange).

Step 1 Parts List

x15 - type 61-6 1" Kee Klamp Flanges | Simplified Building

x3 - 10ft 1" galvanized pipe | Home Depot

x3 - 1x12x8 | shelves | Home Depot

x2 - 1x6x8 | header and footer | Home Depot

x3 - 2ft 3/4" threaded rod | clamp assembly | Home Depot

x6 - 3/4" bolts | clamp assembly | Home Depot

x6 - 3/4" flat washers | clamp assembly | Home Depot

x60 - 3/4" screws | attach flanges to shelves | Home Depot

Comments

[MetaGrav]

Great 'Ible! I'm stealing your idea for my BSA Eagle Project, with some modification. I wonder though, could you get away using some plastic pipe like ABS?

[Jumpin Jehosaphat]

nice ible, i like so much, ive made my own. i put a little more money into it and set springs on the inside of aluminim stopers that sit in the pips (copper/ for the look) it came out more like a poego stick, it forces it self out when pressure, a celing and a floor in this case, is applied. it just sticks there, nice and firm, i love it, ill post pick asap

[tabi]

Please post pics... and an ´able if possible

[tabi]

I thought of something like that, but with copper tubes ¿can it be done? my idea (just in my head) was to drill holes in the boards an separate them with wood blocks, I´ll try to make a drawing and send it but this sounds very nice.. actually I can drill hokes in MY wall (it is MINE MUAHAHAHA) but the odea was to have something very clean and lean. books being the main thing.

[bvz]

This is the part that, I think, will scare a bunch of people off of this otherwise really cool instructible. I have actually cut this kind of pipe with a standard, hand pipe cutter. They aren't too expensive (shouldn't run more than $35 for a good one), very very accurate, and pretty easy to use (you just clamp it on and start twisting... but best to watch some tv while doing it because it does take a while). Just so people don't stop short at this stage. :)

[Frankie Pintado]

Remember "Cool Hand Luke"?  Didn't he use on of those to cut the parking meters off?

[MACKattacksnipe]

Very nice job thinking out side the box ill use this for my well any were

[zackthegrind]

use threaded rods in place of pipes  and nuts and washers instead of flanges. its a bit different look but accomplishing the same thing

[Blackice504]

this will be great for my server room to keep parts thanks for this.

[arthessa]

I think I'd put the clamps at the bottom, so they wouldn't be as visible. Would that bring any unwanted consequences? Thanx mada! You made my day. My living room has some very ugly wall-to-wall mirrors, which I painted over, but can't screw anything on it. So this seems a wonderful wonderful solution.

[mada]

Glad this is useful to you! I can't think of a reason why not... Picturing it in my head it seems that the shelf would not be as stable with the clamps at the bottom, though I can't say why exactly. It would be simple to test as your putting it together, if it does not work with the clamps at the bottom you'd just flip it around so their on the top. I always pictured it with the clamps at the top so I never thought to try putting them on the bottom because it just seemed "right" to have them on top. But that's not to say putting them on the bottom is wrong... It would just be something that would have to be tested. If you do use this idea and put the clamps on the bottom, I'd love to hear how well it works.

[Wolfix]

I would think that clamps at the bottom would be dangerous as the load is on them. Better to have them at the top in case they don't hold for some reason. I guess this is why Ikea put their Stolmen telescoping part up the top, though they do put a small threaded bolt for adjustment at the base.

[Mike SF]

Nice project....

I have toyed with ideas like this over the past few years in an effort to circumvent "no holes in the walls" lease agreements and finally settled on modifying an Ikea system (STOLMEN also mentioned by mada on March 3) This route won out for ease of construction a good cost to appearance ratio.

IKEA STOLMEN

Ikea systems are great for their modularity and the fact that you can order pieces separately. I simple bought the posts and suspension fixtures and made the rest.

POSTS

FIXTURES

The posts are telescoping (extends with a screw mechanism) with flanges to attach to the ceiling and floor. Not wanting (or being able to) put screws in either I put a thin foam pad top and bottom and just wedged each post in place. This works fine as long as there is minimal lateral force (not to be used as a DIY stripper pole).

The suspension fixtures clamp on anywhere along the post and can be used like shaft collars for shelves or to bolt on anything that you can think of.

I am currently using one as a floor to ceiling coat / plant rack.

[Wolfix]

This is a great idea - thanks Mike SF. I would add that if you don't want to damage the floor/ceiling by the vertical force needed to hold the pipes in place, find a beam in the ceiling to push up against and use a large piece of wood between the ceiling and the pole fixture to distribute the force.

[Mike SF]

I'm not sure exactly what kind of foam it was...I got it out of a scrap pile. It was the type you can get at most fabric or craft stores. Probably 1/16" - 1/8" thick and available in colorful sheets. The key is not to use something that is too thick and would cause instability. If I was doing it today I might use one of those rubber mats that are sold as drawer liners, router/sanding mats, and anti-skid rug mats.

[jonnabutt]

What kind of foam did you use for that?

[mada]

I think you may be referring to my Industrial Picture Frame Project?

It's just the 20x30" Elmer's Foam Board, the same stuff you'd use for your science fair project. You can get it at you office supply stores, Target/Walmart, or craft stores.

<rant>
I'd go with the Target/Walmart or craft stores as Office Depot and the like RAPE you on the price - Target has them for ~3.00 Office Depot charges 16.00 PER SHEET! </rant>

[splendidus]

Looks awesome! I was wondering how stable it is. In the pictures you don't have too many books on it, any idea how it would handle being packed with books? I'm thinking of building this, but I want to make sure it'll meet my needs first. Thanks.

[mada]

It is very stable. I have tons of stuff on it at the moment and would not fear putting an encyclopedia collection or two on it. The Kee Kalmps themselves have a load rating of something like 2000lbs when the set screw is torqued to specs. It's really a sold shelf and I have absolutely no worries about it with valuable items, along with books on it. I would recommend that (as I do) after you build it and put a load on it that you recheck the tension between the shelf and the ceiling. Also, a week or so after you install it and have a load on it check the tension again. I also periodically (not very often, when I think about it) just to be sure. This is primarily important if you have the shelf on carpet. I would also steer clear of fence post and only use galvanized pipe if yo plan to put a good load on it. Simplified Building has some nice galvanized pipe (nicer than the stuff I used). If yo do build it I would love for you to let me know and send me pics! E-mail me adam (at) adambyers.com

[jakdedert]

I read at least 40 comments, but I didn't see any suggestion to use *black* pipe. IMO, it is more attractive than galvanized, just as strong, takes many different finishes, and is probably less toxic to your indoor environment.

[mada]

what do you mean less toxic? I went with galvanized because it matched other furniture in the room... if you were going to paint the pipe though, i don't think the color of the pipe woudl be a big deal...?

[leebryuk]

Galvanized steel is just steel coated with a blend of zinc. Don't lick it and there won't be any problems. Hell, feel free to lick it and there still won't be any problems. Now if you wanted to pole dance, there could be a problem because it's not slippery (like a chrome surface.) But at that point it's a personal problem.

[mada]

Crap... I lick mine every morning before I go to work... so it knows I love it. :)

[HandyMan1959]

Don't just use PVC but use schedule 40 it has thicker walls than standard PVC, even a 10' piece of 3/4" has very little flex to it.

[Ferrite]

I think that schedule 40 is the standard.

[mada]

You can get some pretty thin walled PVC meant for drains, it's not pressure rated and it wouldn't work for this or much else...

[smokehill]

That's what they call DWV -- drain/waste/vent -- and it's much weaker than PVC or CPVC since it isn't designed to take any pressure at all. You're right that it would be completely inadequate for this. The standard, sort of, is Sched 40. Schedule 80 has 10-25% thicker walls and is probably 50% stronger, maybe more. Schedule 120 is stronger yet, but I don't think it's available in regular hardware outlets. I've never used it, just heard of it and seen it in the charts. The green stuff used commercially -- I don't know much about. I've scrounged a few pieces to replace the old iron drain & overflow on my ponds, and it is mean stuff -- I drove it into the pond bottom with a sledge hammer, cushioned by a 2x6. I think it may be used for natural gas lines. I've seen it laying beside the highway on utility work. Most of it has built-in flanges for connection, and sometimes built-in 90-degree angles at one end. Nice stuff to scrounge when you can. CPVC, for those that don't know, is much different from PVC. Instead of really stiff & brittle, you can definitely bend CPVC. It's for water supply pipe and can take hot water. Totally untrustworthy in compression, like in this shelving application.

[Ferrite]

Yeah, I think that is CPVC and it would be too weak for this application.

[EnigmaMax]

? zero point?

[mada]

"If putting holes in the wall was a game this shelf wouldn't net you any points"

[EnigmaMax]

oops, sorry. I never read the intros.

[mada]

no worries - plus it's catchy.

[Ferrite]

If you wanted it to be cheaper, you could probably make it out of 1.5" PVC, it should be sturdy enough and I believe it considerably cheaper. It would also be easier to cut the pipe and take the lip off of the flanges.

[mada]

Humm... the pipe in this case is over 6ft long so I'm not sure that PVC would not be to flimsy at that length. In addition there is vertical tension being placed on the pipe so even if the PVC was rigid enough to not bend at first, I'd think it would almost certainly buckle when you started to put tension on it... I don't know it may work with (as you said) 1-1/2" PVC, still at 6ft+ it'd still be awfully flimsy.

[therealjdb]

Couldn't you just use sections of PVC in between each self thus reducing it from 6 ft to around 1 1/2 - 2 ft?

[Ferrite]

Mabey, but I think you would need twice as many flanges to have support on both ends of each section.

[smokehill]

1-1/2 or 2" PVC should be pretty strong in compression, as long as there isn't any lateral strain on it, or unusual loads. To me, the biggest hitch here is the (to me) really expensive clamps. For someone on a tight budget, it turns into a pricey set of shelves, mostly because of that. For that reason, PVC seems like a good alternative to look at, since the fittings are so much cheaper. I haven't looked at this kind of PVC fitting, just regular plumbing parts, but they should have something that would work, with some imagination. Just half-thinking here ... but maybe with PVC if you used twice the number of pipes (PVC is cheap), one at the front and one at the back at each support point? Then you could skip the clamp-type supports and use something simple -- maybe a glued-on bushing and/or a pin of some sort, thru drilled horizontal holes in each pipe, just below each shelf. Glued-on supports under each shelf would, of course, seem to make it a one-use installation, needing to be cut apart when un-installed ... you could theoretically re-use most of it, cutting off the glued parts and having shelves a bit closer together than originally. Not a perfect solution, but just food for thought if someone really needs a very low-cost set of shelves. I do like your setup, though. Very sturdy, and not necessarily "ugly." If one is offended by the industrial-looking pipe, one could always paint it, wrap wood-grain contact paper around it, etc. "Raw" galvanized pipe can be a real pain to get paint to stick to because of the oily coating, but if you clean it well (as you mention) it works fine, especially if you prime it first. If one used PVC, it would be a good idea to investigate the different types -- sched 40 or 80, and I think there are some other options, like the green stuff they use for (natural gas, I think?). Some have thicker walls than others.

[Ferrite]

I think that the twice as many pipes idea would work well.

[mada]

sched 40 is probably the minimum you'd want to use if you were going to go with PVC.

[smokehill]

After digging thru my box of stray PVC fittings, I found a fitting that might work for this. Not sure what it's called, but it's the usual sleeve you use to glue two pieces of pipe together. If you glued it to the top end of one piece of pipe, it should support the shelf resting on it just fine if the hole in the shelf is just big enough for the pipe to pass through. Then the next section (going upward) would slip down thru that same shelf and wedge tightly into the PVC "sleeve" supporting the shelf. With all the weight off the shelf (and the compression from the threaded rod), it seems like the vertical PVC "pole" shouldn't be too flimsy laterally. Gluing every joint would of course make it all really sturdy, but then you'd lose the (theoretical) advantage of portability (unless you used notches in the shelf rather than holes ...?) . Frankly, based on my experience with PVC, once a fitting has been jammed really tight for a long time, it isn't coming apart. If one planned on really overloading the shelves, you could always drill thru the fitting and pin it for safety. Your metal pipe still has the advantage of not really NEEDING paint, whereas few people will want to look at the naked PVC with its industrial printing. I've never painted PVC, but with cleaning & priming it should work. I believe the 1-1/2 or 2-inch PVC should be strong enough. In my business, we use 3-foot sections of both sizes as suction wands, and they get banged around pretty badly by my drivers, and dropped on concrete all the time. It takes about a year or two for the sunlight & freezing temperatures to degrade the pipe enough that it'll eventually crack when hitting the concrete. Another small advantage for PVC would be in a humid environment, like a garage, or a basement apartment, since it doesn't rust. The threaded part of iron pipe usually does. I really do like your idea of using the wooden plates to protect the ceiling & floor -- landlords can be vicious about their security deposits. I wonder if sticking a thin piece of rubber, like from roofing scraps, between the wood & the ceiling would give a "stickier" grip and prevent marks from the pressure of the wood? Most commercial roofers are happy to give you their rubber scraps after a job, and I find all manner of uses for the stuff. Some of the scraps are really large, too.