Which material to make basic bookcase/shoe shelf

[Live&Learn]

Hello.

I hope you're all keeping safe and well.

I'm looking to build a floor to ceiling set of shelves to store shoes near my front door, and will want to cover it with curtains or something as cheap.

I'm looking to keep costs low.

I was thinking of getting some white edged chipboard cut from b&q: two side pieces (2.1 m tall), top and bottom (maybe 1m wide), and about 7 shelves. My issue is that I'm not sure which fittings to buy to connect the top/bottom to the sides, and to keep it all stable. I was thinking maybe have a back board too.

I have looked at a few tutorials on youtube but the ones I saw required clamps and glue, I was expecting to screw the pieces in.

Any help please?

Thanks.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Have a look at IKEA shelf units, could well be cheaper than buying stuff separately. You can often get S/H Billy bookcases off marketplace for not much, sometimes even free.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

If you need a solution to fit a non-standard space it might be better to makevyour own. In that case the materials would be:

1. 18mm pre-edged MFC

or

2. 18mm MDF ( or better still MR-MDF)

Get the materials cut to size by the supplier. These materials can be screwed together and small cover pieces (e.g. FastCaps) used to cover tbe screw heads. A back will be necessary to get rigidity - this can be screwed, pinned or stapled in place (make it 10mm shorter and narrower rhan the overrall sizes). Painted hardboard will do for the back

TBH Billy bookcases from IKEA are cheaper than you can buy the materials!

When I was first married (pre-IKEA) our first bookshelves were floor planks and cement blocks...

 

[foxhole]

You can screw it all together using chipboard screws, (have a coarser thread ).Pilot hole to avoid splitting .

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

If you did go with the pre-edged MFC (which is the white faced chipboard you elude to in your first post), I can say that follwing a recent rekkie the stuff from Selco is about the cheapest from the sheds and the stickers actually peel off. Which you might find an odd comment but for many brands the stickers are a right PITA to remove.

 

[Live&Learn]

Thanks for the tips guys. I will go for the Billy bookcase for the downstairs and I will go to Selco for the smaller non-standard space I have upstairs.

Thanks so much!

 

[Live&Learn]

Hi guys. I wanted to give an update. I bought a used billy from facebook marketplace for £20 and bought another for £20 for extra shelves (extra shelves from Ikea are an extortionate price).

Anyway, I have a new problem now as per the photo below lol.

I have posted my issue here: https://www.diynot.com/diy/threads/do-offset-light-switches-exist.603858/

Thanks.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

.