Introduction: College Hacks: Desk Drawer

By myminifactory
About: You'll see ;D

So, I've just started college and 1 week in I've realized something. Space is hard to come by.

Personally I love to have a clean work space, whether it be for designing something, doing homework, playing PC games or even taking a nap at the desk. Space is the enemy here. How can I have a clean work space If there is no place to store anything? For most college students not only is space limited, but money is too.

This is why I have made the "DIY College Desk Drawer" Instructable

** I am entering the spotless contest, please vote :)

Step 1: So What Do You Need?

This was built to be a minimalistic project so you will only need a few things.

  1. Access to a 3d printer (I believe most colleges have a 3d printer)
  2. Some sort of box (cardboard, plastic, etc.)
  3. Adhesive tape or glue (I used hot glue)

Step 2: Where Are You Going to Put the Drawer?

Probably one of the most important parts is, where am I going to put my drawer? If you are going to store pencils, pend, notepads and things that are needed more frequently I would suggest under your desk. If its for long time storage I would suggest a more out of the way place, and you probably wouldn't need a drawer.

I chose the right side of my desk.

Step 3: Design and 3D Print

I wanted to make something small and that would be easy to slide. Looking at eth underside of my desk I found that the surface was not totally flat. If I made the same sized "hook" my drawer would be slanted, so I designed two different sized hooks; a shallower and a deeper hook. If the underside of your desk is flat with no indents or anything you can make four of the same size. My desk had a 33mm offset, so I designed the file for that size.

I 3d printed the hooks at a 15-20% infill because I was not planning on storing anything too heavy. If you are planning to make a larger drawer I would suggest making the hooks a bit more dense than mine and making more than four so you have greater support.

**Notice**

The pieces I used on my drawer were not to long, so when I open the drawer and close it I need to re-align the pieces. I have attached rail-style pieces to fix this problem.

You can also fix this by printing 2 more hooks for the middle of the drawer.

Attachments

Step 4: Testing

After I printed the pieces I needed to see if the pieces fit. I didn't want to glue the pieces to the bottom of my desk if the pieces didn't fit the container.

Make sure there is no resistance when sliding the "hook'' and your container.

Step 5: Attach the "Hook" to the Desk

Next is to attach these to the bottom of your desk; or the bottom of whatever you're attaching them to. I used hot glue because it was cheapest and it can come off without making any marks, but you can use gorilla glue, or gorilla tape, or any strong adhesive.

First I put on the edge pieces against the far end. I did this so that the container would be more flush against the side of the desk.

Next I used the container to measure the distance between hooks and glued those in.

Step 6: Test It Out!

When you are done waiting for the adhesive to dry you can fill up your drawer and clean off of your desk!!

Using hot glue my drawer can hold a fairly good amount of things and the weight does not pull the hooks off.

When you pass this step you're done!! I hope this helps you guys out!!!

Please let me know if you have any questions or need me to help you out with designing different sized hooks.