- If your shelving unit is going to hold heavy items, adjust the length to evenly disperse the weight. A common length of a wood shelf for a garage is 4 feet. This is a stable length to hold a variety of things. Lumber is also available in 8 foot lengths and, by buying two 8-foot 2x12s, you will have four wood shelves.
- To establish a strong base for your wood garage shelving is to purchase wall anchors and the standards. The standards are the strips of metal that you align directly across from one another in order to stabilize the shelves. For a 4-foot shelf, measure 4 feet and mark at 2 feet from each side of the 4-foot length, in order to place the standards. After you have marked at 2 feet on either side, use a level to mark horizontally to ensure your standards are plumb and at equal height. Drill a hole in the wall in order to place the anchors which will install the standards securely to the wall.
- Now that your standards are in place and securely anchored to the wall, you are ready to set the shelf brackets in place. Shelf brackets are not permanently connected, they slip into slots in the standards and lock in place, allowing you to change the level of your wood shelves. Decide on how many wood shelves you need and install the appropriate number of brackets. It takes two brackets per shelf.
