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This linen closet rebuild replaced an unsuitable wire storage system with sturdy, modern shelving and power points for charging a vacuum cleaner and tools.
- The project
- The materials
- The build
- Before and after
- More storage inspiration for organising in your home
The project
While many people enjoy a wire wardrobe system, we have hated ours ever since we bought this house. We've removed it from our bedrooms and, finally, this linen closet.
The old system was an eyesore, it broke with too much weight on it, and it was poorly installed into the house when it was built. It had clearly been the cheapest option available.
We wanted to build something that was good looking, feels good to touch and is sturdier than the wire system. We also wanted a tall unit with a power point inside for things like our stick vacuum.
The height needed to be consistent as well – the wire placement was uneven and all over the place, and the height made it difficult to put things up the top.
My Dad took the lead on this project.
The materials
I bought the following (I always buy in excess, just in case):
- 2400mm x 1200mm x 16mm white matte Melamine x 4
- 42mm x 11mm x 5.4m Pine moulding FJ colonial SA2 clear x 4
- 68mm x 18mm x 5.4m Pine FJ DAR clear x 6
- 31mm x 11mm x 5.4m Pine FJ DAR clear x 1
The build
The first thing we had to do was to take out the wire racks. We also did a good clean of the walls and vacuumed the area.
Next we filled the holes with a Poly Wall Repair Kit, sanded the excess when it had dried, then cleaned the floor again. In hindsight, we should have painted the interior then, but we didn't because we thought we might scuff the paint while installing the units.
My Dad got to work cutting our new shelves.
The support system was installed first. The top full-length board is actually two precise cuts of the Melamine.
We wanted to ensure that our main storage shelves were spaced the way we wanted them, so we used these Kmart storage baskets to ensure we had things right. The gap for the top shelf is 450mm; the gaps between the middle shelves are 350mm; and the gap at the bottom is 500mm.
Once the build was complete (and our electrician friend had installed a four-plug power point), all that was needed was some painting.
Already much better! We made an alteration at the last minute and created a hole closest to our power point for our Ryobi chargers, ensuring that our batteries are always charged.
Finally, we reinstalled the sliding doors onto the tracks and refilled the cupboard. Everything fits much better, feels more secure and looks fantastic.
It took us 20 minutes to remove the shelving, and a full day of building and installing to get the new shelves in. Another quick project finished.
Before and after
More storage inspiration for organising in your home
Experienced Bunnings Workshop member JoeAzza gave his wardrobe a stylish new look and greater functionality by replacing three wide doors with six narrower ones.
Joe also made these stunning glass-fronted overhead laundry cupboards, which have been extremely popular with the Bunnings Workshop community.
There are plenty more great ideas in our collection of 8 inspiring cabinet projects and Top 10 most popular storage projects.
Let us know if you need a hand with your project – we're here to help.
