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How to build a floating shelf?

I was hoping someone could guide my thoughts and help me narrow down a selection kindly. I want to put in two floating shelves, roughly 800x300 and 600x250.

Purpose : Should be able to hold 5 - 10 kg of weight. Be moisture resistant (intend to put a small water feature and a couple of wooden Buddha statues on the shelf - so will expect some water spill/splash/drop).

1) Edge lit LED Acrylic Floating shelf: Seen on the internet - people build this kid of a shelf out of acrylic and stick an RGB LED with the diodes facing towards the shelf, but this kind of acrylic seems hard to find. I have reached out to a plastics manufacturer in Brisbane but haven't heard back. May be a couple of sheets of acrylic is too small an order. Eg photo

So I went into bunnings and looked at
https://www.bunnings.com.au/suntuf-400-x-400-x-8mm-clear-palsun-polycarbonate-sheet-8mm_p1010483

as well as

https://www.bunnings.com.au/suntuf-900-x-600-x-5mm-clear-acrylic-sheet-clear_p1010490 - thinking I could have this sawed and double this up for thickness. But when I put my phones torch light on the edge - nothing really happened - the sheet didn't light up (even on the line where the torch was). So may be theres more to edge lit shelves than sticking an LED on one side of acrylic. Does anyone know how I could go about this one? Even if not for this floating shelf, I'd like to do this as a future project.

2) Timber: Was looking at https://www.bunnings.com.au/specrite-1800-x-600-x-18mm-golden-teak-acacia-multi-use-panel_p0456515 and thinking I can chop it into my required measurements. But this option would mean I need to seal the edges. most likely stain the cut side and either varnish or oil the timber. Yearly oiling is a hassle I want to avoid.

3) Chip board:

I have a sheet of structaflor yellow tongue (1800 x 600 x 19) lying around - I know its not moisture resistant - is there something I could wrap the chip board with? I am only hoping the wooden studs in my wall are 450mm apart - but would the board take weight? Because it will be screwed on to the wall with a bracket - so am not sure how much weight it could take before bowing.

Having never put in a floating shelf, I am also interested to know how much weight do the wooden studs in a wall support?

And is there a specific screw that I need to use for this purpose. What angle brackets should I go for.

Being inspired by the edge lit floating shelves I am inclined to put a groove on all 4 sides (about a centimetre from the edge) of option 2 and 3 and put in some LED strip lights - might add a wee bit more sparkle to the shelf. I want to rule out the custom floating shelves based on reviews and why would I want to make it easy for myself. https://www.bunnings.com.au/flexi-storage-decorative-shelving-oak-900-x-240-x-38mm-floating-shelf_p2583900

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EricL

Hello @Burnings

Folding the acrylic sheet using heat is one way to create a shelf like configuration, but the LED light is another matter as it will not transmit the light though its body. You might need to use a lot more LED strips to create that glowing effect you are after.

Your second choice of timber is more promising as it can be configured, and channels cut to hold the LED strips. I suggest using the Specrite 2200 x 600 x 26mm Timber Multi Use Pine Panel rather than the acacia. The multi-use panel can be painted or sealed with varnish or clear sealer which means that you won't have to maintain it yearly.

The chipboard is promising but is difficult to work with. The wax sealer on its surface must be removed first before you can attempt to paint it. Its cut sides don't provide a totally flat surface and must be filled with filler. It's not very thick and the material is quite heavy.

A floating shelf properly anchored to the studs should be able to handle 5 to 7kg++. They are usually meant for light to midweight decorative items, this includes wine bottles and other ornamental displays. However, if anchored just to the plasterboard, it will not provide the same weight carrying capacity. I usually suggest using Ramset Super Wallmate Toggle Anchor - 10 Pack. It provides a solid steel toggle at the back that holds your shelf in place. I don't advise using a router on the Flexi Storage Decorative Shelving Oak 900 x 240 x 38mm Floating Shelf as it uses an internal bracket that reaches to the front. Cutting a channel will expose the drilled channel in the shelf ruining its look.

Here is a link to its installation manual: 03264_Flexi Storage Decorative Shelving Floating Shelf Oak 900

Let me call on our experienced members @Dave-1 and @Nailbag for their recommendations.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

Dave-1

Good Evening @Burnings

I would go for a thicker wood when thinking of your shelf rather then the 19mm you have mentioned. I just went to see if Bunnings sell the floating shelf brackets on their own 🙂 And they do!

Carinya 100 x 76mm Zinc Plated Hidden Floating Shelf Bracket

The instructions and measurements look pretty decent to follow as well.

I also had a look around google land and came across this company Plastic Warehouse They have a large range of coloured acrylic, I would potentially ask them what would be the best way to light the edge with LED's. I was thinking of buffing the edge so its frosted to give a glow but not sure if that would work. I will try and remember to ask the guys at work tomorrow for ideas they may have. I do like the timber as a first choice, You could potentially inset a thin plastic strip on the underside and have it protude a mm or so underneath with an LED if we can figure out how to highlight the edge.

Dave

Burnings

Thanks for the pine panel recommendation Eric. I would never have thought of it. This seems to fit the bill nicely. I will have a closer look when I pop into bunnings next - but it already seems too light for my liking. What would I need to do so it has a deeper/richer/red-der colour - like spotted gum/Jarrah etc. I suppose I will still need to varnish it to lock the stain/colour in? I have never done wood colouring or varnishing so I would appreciate product recommendations along with the steps I'd need to follow please.

Burnings

Thanks Dave. I am more leaning towards an L bracket to secure the floating shelf to the wall. Will be simpler to do and I have no need for a hidden floating shelf bracket and the extra effort it requires - any errors will be unforgiving. I reached out to Plastic Warehouse and they have asked me to contact a fabricator instead. I am not looking for a coloured acrylic - just someone information on how I could go about diffusing an RGB LED's colour through the acrylic shelf - so it glows up with that colour. It seems the edges need to be either clear and/or polished - none of the acrylics I see listed on the interwebs have this information (including on the bunnings listing)

EricL

Hello @Burnings

Since the panel is not tinted or sealed you can easily stain and varnish it with your preferred finish. There are a number of stain and varnish products that will allow you to change its look and appearance.

Here are some examples:

Cabot's 1L Gloss Tint Base Water Based Stain And Varnish (walnut finish I believe)
Bondall 250ml Jarrah Satin Monocel Stain and Varnish
Feast Watson 250ml Satin Black Japan Stain And Varnish (for a real dark finish)
Cabot's 1L Maple Satin Water Based Stain And Varnish

I propose visiting your local store and having a look at the stain and varnish sample board in the paint department. It will give you a much better idea of what the stains look like when applied to timber. Because they have varnishing properties as well it will effectively seal the wood, and you won't need to renew its coating for quite a while.

Here is a handy step-by-step guide: How To Restore Furniture (the techniques used are applicable to your project)

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

Burnings

So, I got the https://www.bunnings.com.au/specrite-1200-x-405mm-18mm-timber-panel-merbau-fj-laminated_p8330195 for the shelf and used these brackets to support the shelf https://www.bunnings.com.au/carinya-250-x-200mm-black-angle-bracket_p3961579 - I anchored this bracket to the timber studs using these screws : https://www.bunnings.com.au/buildex-rapiddrive-treated-pine-screws-10g-x-50-mm-10-tpi-climacoat-box-of-500_p0417600

It seems fairly stable - but I am doubting if I have used long enough screws? Will three 50mm screws holding this shelf alright? The stud itself seems to be at least 90mm thick.

EricL

Hello @Burnings

If you are worried about how much is imbedded into the stud you can do a quick calculation. The angle bracket is conservatively 5mm thick and the plasterboard is 10mm thick which means that only 35mm is imbedded into the wood. If you want an extra margin of strength, you could use Zenith 10G x 60mm Zinc Plated Hinge-Long Thread Timber Screws which will provide you with an extra 10mm of length. I tend to over engineer my projects, so I recommend using the longer screws for safety.

Eric

Burnings

Thanks Eric. I think I want to find out if I should be worried. Will 35mm into the wood be sufficient? The shelf itself is 8 kilos. I intend to put ~10 kilos of items on the shelf. The combined weight of the brackets is ~1 kilo. So, is there a way to find if ~20 kilos can be held up by three screws per bracket? I have three brackets holding this shelf up Or because the age of the timber (stud) also is a factor and its just better to go in with longer screws?

MitchellMc

It would be better to use longer screws, @Burnings. I'd tend to go for an even larger one than Eric suggested. Pop some of these 75mm screws in there to ensure the brackets can hold the required weight. Just ensure the heads on the screws are larger than the holes in the bracket. If they'll fit in the holes, these Otter 14 x 70mm Black Wafer Screws are an even more heavy-duty option.

Mitchell

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