Super heavy duty shelves

[barrysuperhawk]

I have a literal ton of stuff to store. I have tried plastic shelves, wood shelves, Shelf brackets with support arms, wire rack with the plastic things, rivet shelves, pound together industrial shelves with both wire shelves and MDF over wire, and even stacked milk crates.

Everything sags, everything *****. I have come to the considered opinion that every single company that makes shelves over-rates the weight capacity by a factor of at least 10. "Holds 2000 lbs" my sore ****, it has a hard time with 200.

the best I currently have are a few of these: https://www.menards.com/main/storage-organization/garage-outdoor-organizers/freestanding-shelving-units/edsal-77-w-x-72-h-x-24-d-3-shelf-metal-shelving-unit/men7224w3/p-1444429580107.htm and they are OK but a full 5 gallon bucket makes them sag a bit and the wire shelves themselves are a pain.

I am not a carpenter, so I freely admit the attempts I have made at building my own have been pathetic. I have better tools now, so I might give the project a go again, but I would like some help with design so that half of my space isn't taken up with supports.

So, what am I to do?

Oh, and just because I know that inquiring minds will want to know, I want to be able to stack or contain 25-30lb M19A1 cans, up to 50 lb M2A1 and PA108 cans as well as cardboard boxes of a similar size and weight, in such a way that I don't have to unstack them to get to one on the bottom.

 

[bad_idea]

https://www.lowes.com/pd/edsal-72-in-H-x-36-in-W-x-18-in-D-5-Shelf-Steel-Freestanding-Shelving-Unit/1000525

I have a mess of these. Before putting them into service I coat them in polyurethane. A big reason the shelves sag is moisture gets into the particle board and breaks it down. The other issue that causes the shelves to sag is weight distribution. A 5 gallon bucket doesn't have a very large footprint. On shelves that will be holding a lot of weight I cut out some 3/4" plywood to replace the particle board.

I prefer this shelf type due to it's ease to modify to changing storage needs.

 

[barrysuperhawk]

Those are what I referred to as Rivet shelves, and they sag with MDF and with 1" plywood (two 1/2" layers glued)

 

[seedtime]

Possibly you could rethink how you view storage. The garage is where all the odd shaped, ugly looking, and heavy items generally end up. Maybe for some things a shelf is not the best solution. What I did for my heavy items was buy $10 furniture dollies from HF and I just push them under my bench. Easy to lift in and odd, and easy to move around my garage. I currently store my pipe cutter, radial saw, portable air compressor, and paint cans this way. What I plan to do in my new shop when it’s complete this fall is; use this same rolling dolly idea. To solve the ugly problem, I will either make the front of the cart look like cabinets doors or ad wide swing doors under my benches. I will certainly post my pictures when this future project is complete.


Sent from my iPhone using Garage Journal

 

[MushCreek]

Look for used industrial shelving. We have shelving at work that we store numerous 2,000 lb. injection molds on. I've never had longterm luck with home center shelving. Wood or plastic fail over time; cheap steel shelves buckle and fail suddenly.

 

[bob15]

Make it out of super-strut and it will hold.

 

[JimNC]

I was looking at pallet racks for a similar application, I have well over 100 full cans. Just lucked into some really old steel shelving on Craigslist.

Before that I built shelving from 2x4 and found that they don’t sag if the span is 4’ and each shelf holds a single row of cans. I couldn’t help myself and on the top row I stacked 6 cans across and 5 tall, that top row has a pronounced sag.

If I was starting from scratch I might just drill and bolt together pieces of 1.5” angle iron.

 

[ezover]

used commercial / industrial shelving. I like the 24" deep stuff myself. basically it is the same stuff you see lowes and HD use in their isles. also referred to as pallet racking.

 

[vavet]

I have a few of the shelves bad-idea linked to from Lowe’s. I’ve tried a few things to make the shelves sturdier. I have attached a piece of 1x3 furring on the bottom of the shelf. It’s oriented across the 4 foot dimension of the shelf, but the skinny side of the 1x3 contacts the shelf with some wood screws driven through the shelf and into the furring. That helps the sagging a lot, but reduces the effective height of the shelf.

The other thing I’ve done is install old bowling lane material in place of the shelves instead of the particleboard. It’s much stronger, but 3/4 plywood would work well too,

 

[driftpin]

I use the 5 ft & 6 ft wide Gladiator shelving, I think it's stronger than edsal shelves. They have good cross members reinforcing the shelves' middle. The wire rack shelf surface has been sturdy in my use, I use them for motorcycle parts & tools mostly. I use 1/8" masonite just as a solid, smooth surface on top of the wire shelf. That helps heavy items slide easily, loading/unloading. It doesn't need to be strong itself, the masonite.

I agree your needs would best be served by pallet shelving. I would be very careful about your top shelf stacking. It sounds like you're making it top-heavy.

 

[matt_i]

Pallet racking. Use steel.

 

[JimNC]

I would be very careful about your top shelf stacking. It sounds like you're making it top-heavy.

If you’re referring to mine, I’ve reduced that risk by placing heavier items on the bottom of that particular shelf. The bottom row holds about 2,000 lbs of lead, the next 5 rows hold cans of loaded ammo, and the stack on top is brass to be reloaded.

That rack is not bolted to the wall due to placement, but the heavier racks are securely bolted to the wall.

 

[jonshonda]

Sounds like pallet racking is what is needed. Anything else will more then likely not be a long term solution.

 

[930dreamer]

X2 on industrial shelving.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Pallet racking is good, but I would not store a SBC engine block on one without additional support.

If the shelving you bought from Menards seems strong enough except for the mesh shelving, place 7/16"-1/2" plywood, over it. Make sure that the plywood runs out to the outer edge of the supports.

 

[Viper98912]

Home Depot has steel shelving under the Husky brand, which is like mini pallet rack. If it's the wire grate that's giving, then put additional 1" plywood on top of it. You shouldn't be putting anything heavy enough on shelving like this if it'll bend the actual beams. If so, I'm curious to know how you're even lifting it on there?

 

[Shiftless]

I’ve never seen any sagging on my shelving framed up with 2x4s with 2x12 horizontals supported every 32 inches. (Screwed into the wall studs)
Heavy vises, cast iron heads, flywheels, stacks of extra ceramic tile...that kind of stuff.
.
Like viper said, anything you can lift up onto such shelving should be OK.
If you’re loading stuff with a forklift you’ll have to up your game. Big box stores stack pallets full of concrete blocks up in the air on industrial pallet racks. Maybe you need those if you’re totally *********.
.
Like the wizard said, you could store an engine block on pallet racking if you merely put a pallet under it. Just about any of us sees decent used pallets laying around free for the taking.

 

[mikec35]

I used Lozier shelving purchased from a store that was closing down. You install the uprights and can adjust the height of the shelves to your liking. Extremely sturdy. I can't find any pictures now except this one that kinda shows them. When I go to my other house I'll see if I can get some better pics. You can sometimes find these on Craigslist or at closing retail stores.

 

[BukitCase]

I've had good luck so far with Whalen shelves from Costco, (sorry, no link - not available online) but admittedly haven't put a full ton of lead on 'em (yet) I HAVE put 2-300 pounds of steel and/or 5 gallon buckets of various liquids on a shelf tho, no problem.

"I would not store a SBC engine block" - if you meant a BARE block, they only weigh 88 pounds (the older CI versions) - 2 5 gallon buckets full of liquid will weigh THAT much... Steve

 

[Bretny]

This is garage journal...build them your self as im sure you can build something that will fit your needs better.

 

[ItsNemo]

1.5x1.5x0.125 steel tubing, welded frame, vertical supports no more than 4 feet apart, cross supports on each shelf at 2 feet intervals, with 1/2" plywood on top. You'll have zero problems with weight.

 

[ezover]

Pallet racking is good, but I would not store a SBC engine block on one without additional support.

If the shelving you bought from Menards seems strong enough except for the mesh shelving, place 7/16"-1/2" plywood, over it. Make sure that the plywood runs out to the outer edge of the supports.

depends on what you have, I made my work bench from pallet racking and would have no issue dropping any car or truck motor on it.

 

[gearhead1]

depends on what you have, I made my work bench from pallet racking and would have no issue dropping any car or truck motor on it.

+1 .....I got a quote for some pallet racking and it’s good for 5,000 lbs per shelf. Not all are rated the same, there are different weight ratings but pallet racking is designed for a warehouse and designed to hold some weight.

Where I work, we have cylinder heads, blocks, and complete engines on pallet racks, three rows high. No problem.

Go to your local Lowes or HD, they use a lot of pallet racking, and estimate the weight on a shelf. Also, go to a junkyard and see what they use to store engines and transmissions.......pallet racks.

 

[Tinkerman66]

https://www.lowes.com/pd/edsal-72-in-H-x-36-in-W-x-18-in-D-5-Shelf-Steel-Freestanding-Shelving-Unit/1000525

I have a mess of these. Before putting them into service I coat them in polyurethane. A big reason the shelves sag is moisture gets into the particle board and breaks it down. The other issue that causes the shelves to sag is weight distribution. A 5 gallon bucket doesn't have a very large footprint. On shelves that will be holding a lot of weight I cut out some 3/4" plywood to replace the particle board.

I prefer this shelf type due to it's ease to modify to changing storage needs.

Yes, the particle board shelves that come with these are a joke. I replaced all of them with 3/4 ply and all is good for years now.

 

[Jsf721]

The gladiator shelving system has worked well for me.

 

[Barnabas]

I found some used pallet racks on Craigslist. They did not come with enough wire rack shelves, so I made shelves out of 2x8s that are about 30 inches long. This makes for a heavy duty shelving that can hold just about anything.

 

[matt_i]

Pallet racking is good, but I would not store a SBC engine block on one without additional support.

Unless you refer to the wire mesh decking without an appropriate number of cross-supports, I find this claim to be out of bounds. I have seen people use pallet racks for gantry hoists lifting Bridgeport mills (etc) and the like, have to distribute the load some, but its ~2000# is well within the 5000#, distributed, total, per-shelf rating that most industrial systems have. The place I bought them from had other, identical units, cram-packed with engines and transmissions of all shapes and sizes.

I have my pallet racks loaded with manual sheetmetal tools, I dunno, 2 or 3x the weight of a 350 cid V8...

 

[rustyjames]

I used Lozier shelving purchased from a store that was closing down. You install the uprights and can adjust the height of the shelves to your liking. Extremely sturdy. I can't find any pictures now except this one that kinda shows them. When I go to my other house I'll see if I can get some better pics. You can sometimes find these on Craigslist or at closing retail stores.

That type of shelving is pretty strong stuff.

 

[wssix99]

You might be interested in this stuff: https://www.buyrack.com/fastrak.html

It's constructed like pallet rack but you can get it in narrower widths. (like normal shelves) Depending on the weights you'll be carrying, you can get different duty beams.

 

[77Birdman]

For the price of steel shelving, you can buy quite a few 2 x 4's and osb and make your own shelves. Easy to frame them to hold a ton of weight.

 

[86turbodsl]

Pallet racking is good, but I would not store a SBC engine block on one without additional support.

If the shelving you bought from Menards seems strong enough except for the mesh shelving, place 7/16"-1/2" plywood, over it. Make sure that the plywood runs out to the outer edge of the supports.

I don't know of any pallet racking made that wouldn't support a SBC with even the lightest of shelf beams. Even the 3" beams are several thousand pound capable.

 

[Jaguar Fan]

X2 on industrial shelving.

That Herbalife must be darn heavy.

 

[kbs2244]

The key is the shelf span.
Keep it to 4 feet, even 3 feet.
Then DIY 2x4 shelves will work fine.

I often use bed frame angle iron to stiffen shelves of 6 foot or less.
Front and back cross bars.

Steel is great stuff.

In the OP's case, if you already have the Menards shelving, try some bed frames across the 8 foot span.
It will spread out the load even if not attached at the ends.
If that doesn't do it, get more uprights and shorter cross pieces.

 

[pcmeiners]

A client I have purchased used super market shelving. He has the deepest shelves approx. 24" deep, floor to ceiling. They hold tremendous amount of tools/supplies without supports in the front which get in the way. Only issue is you need a strong wall to anchor the main supports.

 

[bdbecker]

This place might not be too far a drive for you - they deal in new and used industrial racking.

http://www.welterstorage.com/

 

[cj7jeep81]

I have the same shelving from Menards. They sell the little u-shaped piece that goes in the middle and supports the shelf. There are already pre-drilled holes in the rails, and I just added 2 more to each shelf (so each one has 3), and that really seemed to help.

https://www.menards.com/main/storag...k-rectangle-tie-bar/tch24/p-1444429587941.htm

 

[Mr. T]

https://www.rapistak.com/pull-outshelving.jsp

That’ll hold it... just get out the check book!

 

[9GUY9]

I am a locomotive mechanic. I use the same shelv's you have to store many, very heavy locomotive parts.

If you do not have the center braces cj7jeep81 linked, get and install them. Then trow away the flimsy wire racking that comes with the shelf's. Go back to Menards and buy a big stack of the straightest 2x6's you can find. Come home and cut the 2x6's to fit in the shelf indents the short way. Its been a while since I set mine up, but I believe its something like 22.5". Lay your cut 2x6's side by side the length of your shelv's,

Your shelv's will now hold anything you can set on them,...without a forklift.

Not the best pics, but its what I found on my phone.

 

[drivesitfar]

ALL: I use a lot of pallet racking at my storage unit like these. the deeper you go the more you might need something more than plywood or 2by's, but i've yet to break one and i've had 3-4000 pounds of steel gym weight plates or good old steel on several shelves with no negative results.

this type of shelving comes in all different heights, widths and depths. also I mentioned this on my garage gallery Organizing thread today that all types are not the same so make sure you have the right beams for the correct uprights.

 

[PNWguy]

Pallet racks (the stuff used at Home Depot or Costco) will do what you want. It's not cheap, but it's available used for less.

Go into HD or Costco, look at the 12' spans of shelving and how much weight they hold. They are awesome.

For less money, 2x4s and OSB will do the trick, but require more work and skill.