How to Hang a Bookcase
Hanging bookcases can be both attractive and a space saver. Modern decor styles like to float shelves, cabinets and bookcases off walls so that the floor space remains clean and uncluttered. This poses some concerns with how much weight you can place on these shelves and how hard it is to mount the bookcases to the wall. Underlying these issues is safety. Any bookcase, cabinet or shelf you hang on the wall should be secure from falling and should support the weight of the objects for which it is designed. A hanging bookcase should support the weight of books. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Solid wood bookcase
- Stud finder
- Level
- Tape measure
- Pencil
- Keyhole brackets
- Router
- Wood chisel
- Hammer
- Power screwdriver
- Wall anchors
- Screws
Instructions
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1
Select a bookcase completely constructed from solid wood. The vertical sides and uprights of the bookcase need to be at least three-quarter of an inch thick.
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2
Find and mark the location of studs on the wall where the bookcase will be mounted. Use the stud finder and a pencil. Pre-fit the bookcase over your marks to see where the studs are in relation to the vertical uprights and sides of your bookcase. Position the bookcase so that one or more of the vertical uprights aligns with a wall stud.
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3
Mark the location of the wall stud you are using and the location of the other vertical uprights. (Use a V-shaped mark on the wall in pencil.) Draw a guide line along the top of the bookcase to indicate where you expect the bookcase to mount. Use a level to make sure your top line is perfectly level.
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4
Reverse the bookcase, and use a keyhole bracket and a tape measure to draw the location of each bracket on the vertical upright members of the bookcase. You should have a keyhole bracket every 16 to 24 inches horizontally (along the top of the bookcase). You will need an additional row of keyhole brackets vertically for every 24 inches in height.
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Freehand route (with your router) to the depth of the hangers, close to your scribe lines. Chisel the mortise clean using a small chisel and hammer. Chisel a deeper slot for the screw head. Repeat this for each hanger.
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6
Screw the keyhole hanger plates to the back of the bookcase so that they are flush with the wood. Mark and measure the exact location of the corresponding screws on the wall. Use the power screwdriver to screw directly into studs, leaving one-eighth of the end of the screw exposed. Use wall-mounted anchors for screws positioned at wall cavities.
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7
Align the bookcase with your earlier marks. Position the wall screws over the keys in the mounting plates. Press the bookcase to the wall, and slide it down so that the keys trap the screw heads and secure the bookcase to the wall.
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Tips & Warnings
Note the weight that your mounting hardware will support, and add additional hardware as necessary to support the weight of your objects.
Wall-mounted bookcases must be secured to studs for best safety and support. Mounting with wall anchors will limit what the shelves can hold. Never exceed the weight limits of anchors and hardware.
