IKEA makes some very functional, affordable and easy to assemble furniture. The IKEA Expedit bookcase comes in many different colors (beech, birch, black-brown and white) and sizes (8, 16 and 25 squares).
Purchase the IKEA Expedit online at http://www.ikea.com or at your local IKEA store. To find a store near you in the United States go here http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_US/ikny_splash.html.
Step2
Place the box on the floor in the area where you want to setup the bookcase. Make sure you have enough room to assemble the bookcase on the floor.
Step3
Open the box and begin removing the pieces and spreading them out on the floor.
Step4
Take the bottom piece and affix the plastic feet to the bottom of the panel.
Step5
Take the 4 main outside pieces and lay them out where in a square on the floor. Insert the small woodden dowels into the pre-drilled holes. These dowels are included.
Step6
Connect the first two corner pieces and screw them together using the screws that were supplied.
Step7
Tighten almost all the way with supplied allen wrench.
Step8
Begin adding the inner shelves. These shelves have pre-drilled holes that fit into the wodden dowels attached to the outside pieces.
Step9
Attached the long inner plank to start the next row of shelves. Connect the top end of the plank to the outside shelf by fitting the pre-drilled hole into the dowel that is attached.
Step10
Repeat the process until you have all of the inner shelves added. All inner shelves should be connected to the inner planks with a wooden dowel. The wooden dowel should go through the entire plank and connect the inner shelves on both sides.
Step11
Add the remaining outside pieces but DO NOT screw them in yet. NOTE: If you screw them in too soon you will not get all of the outside pieces to line up correctly and you will be here all night. Get them attached loosely as you connect all of the pieces. Once they are all connected and roughly aligned you can begin tightening them.
Step12
Tighten all of the pieces and slide the bottom of the bookcase close to the wall. With two people raise the bookcase and stand it upright. You are Done!
Tips & Warnings
Make sure you read the directions.
Do not tighten the outside the screws too tightly on the outside pieces during the final steps of assembly. This can sometimes cause problems since the shelves do not always line up.
Make sure you have two people during assembly. This is very difficult to do with just one person.
The big 25 square shelving unit is almost impossible to setup with just one person.
on 9/15/2008
I would like to ask you a quick question. When I do the step 9 (connect the top end of the plank to the outside shelf by fitting the pre-drilled hole into the dowel), there is a big gap between the plank/shelf. Do you use a hammer to push the wooden dowel into the plank? I try to do that and it cracks the planks :(
on 5/30/2008
Thank you so much for these instructions! I lost my instructions and wasn't quite confident enough to build without- now I know I definitely couldn't have built it without! because of the space I had to build it in, I had to build it on its side- which is not a good idea- about 4 of the small vertical boards cracked in the process from weight stress where the dowels are. I had to constantly flip mine to try to avoid this problem, but in the end- after much yelling, 3 people working together, and an hour and a half, my bookshelf is complete. Thank you!
on 5/30/2008
Thank you so much for these instructions! I lost my instructions and wasn't quite confident enough to build without- now I know I definitely couldn't have built it without! because of the space I had to build it in, I had to build it on its side- which is not a good idea- about 4 of the small vertical boards cracked in the process from weight stress where the dowels are. I had to constantly flip mine to try to avoid this problem, but in the end- after much yelling, 3 people working together, and an hour and a half, my bookshelf is complete. Thank you!
on 1/22/2008
Glad I'm not the only one whose sweat glands were in overdrive, I thought I was having one of my turns! Lordy only knows what it would have been like without these excellent instructions. I bought mine off e-bay without the (admittedly useless) Ikea info so this was invaluable. Thanks!
on 12/31/2007
This is a very physical project; you will be sweating profusely as you try to push the final pieces together. I used 2 adjacent walls and a sofa to brace the bookshelf as I pushed different pieces together. The final piece required enormous effort: I ended up laying on my back with my shoulders against a wall and pushed with both of my legs. Buying a rubber mallet is a very good idea; otherwise you will need something to tap in the wooden dowels. I used a hiking boot.
Comments
zero0008 said
on 9/15/2008 I would like to ask you a quick question. When I do the step 9 (connect the top end of the plank to the outside shelf by fitting the pre-drilled hole into the dowel), there is a big gap between the plank/shelf. Do you use a hammer to push the wooden dowel into the plank? I try to do that and it cracks the planks :(
shinkansen said
on 5/30/2008 Thank you so much for these instructions! I lost my instructions and wasn't quite confident enough to build without- now I know I definitely couldn't have built it without! because of the space I had to build it in, I had to build it on its side- which is not a good idea- about 4 of the small vertical boards cracked in the process from weight stress where the dowels are. I had to constantly flip mine to try to avoid this problem, but in the end- after much yelling, 3 people working together, and an hour and a half, my bookshelf is complete. Thank you!
shinkansen said
on 5/30/2008 Thank you so much for these instructions! I lost my instructions and wasn't quite confident enough to build without- now I know I definitely couldn't have built it without! because of the space I had to build it in, I had to build it on its side- which is not a good idea- about 4 of the small vertical boards cracked in the process from weight stress where the dowels are. I had to constantly flip mine to try to avoid this problem, but in the end- after much yelling, 3 people working together, and an hour and a half, my bookshelf is complete. Thank you!
steffo said
on 1/22/2008 Glad I'm not the only one whose sweat glands were in overdrive, I thought I was having one of my turns! Lordy only knows what it would have been like without these excellent instructions. I bought mine off e-bay without the (admittedly useless) Ikea info so this was invaluable. Thanks!
IKEAworkout said
on 12/31/2007 This is a very physical project; you will be sweating profusely as you try to push the final pieces together. I used 2 adjacent walls and a sofa to brace the bookshelf as I pushed different pieces together. The final piece required enormous effort: I ended up laying on my back with my shoulders against a wall and pushed with both of my legs. Buying a rubber mallet is a very good idea; otherwise you will need something to tap in the wooden dowels. I used a hiking boot.