Is it safe to lean my wardrobe back to be flushed to the wall?

[PL59]

Hi All,

Pictures with description https://imgur.com/a/oEmVYJN

I moved this wardrobe from another area of my house. After painstakingly removing all the anchors the previous owner installed, I realised the anchors were installed so they could lean the wardrobe back onto the wall to make it flush. As the floor was also carpeted, any gaps on the floor wouldn't be noticeable. 

My question is, is it safe if I do the same thing, but with more L brackets installed on the top of the wardrobe? I found that if I lean the wardrobe back, I could get it pretty flushed.

Thanks all

[AlanM52]

Hi @PL59,

It is safe to tilt and secure but I would not do that!

Leave the wardrobe as it is in the photo and secure the top with two L brackets.

Fill in the side gaps with quad timber:

https://www.bunnings.com.au/search/products?page=1&q=quad+timber&sort=BoostOrder

Measure the wall gap and select quad that is large enough to overlap the wardrobe edge.

Measure, cut and paint the quad.

With a hot glue gun apply three dabs (top, middle & bottom) on the wardrobe edge and quickly press on the quad and apply pressure for 20-30 secs.

Cheers

[JacobZ]

Hi @PL59,

A very slight lean towards the wall wouldn't be unsafe. As long as the brackets are suitably attached to the wall, preferably into a stud, then you won't have any issues.

If you have any concerns, you can always add some rubber bumpers like these Surface Gard Screw In Bumpers to the bottom of the wardrobe to help support that front edge.

Let me know what you think and if you have further questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Jacob

[PL59]

Hi Jacob, thanks for the suggestion.

At the moment, the tilt is very little, i could just fit an envelope with a letter under the wardrobe. I don't think the surface gard bumpers would be small enough for it. Would you still recommend leaning the wardrobe back towards the wall?

Cheers

[EricL]

Hello @PL59 

If you were to tilt the cabinet, I propose having someone measure the gap that is created under the wardrobe. If for example, the gap was 7mm, it would be possible to cut 50mm strips of 1200 x 897mm 7mm Plywood Pine Premium BC Grade and use it as filling wedge under the cabinet. In order to make sure that the cabinet is level make sure to use a spirit level on it. Once you are sure that the 7mm plywood is sufficient, you can put some liquid nails on the strip before you slide it back under the cabinet.

I would still install angle brackets at the back but refrain from moving the cabinet back further as it is already level. My best advice is to fix it to its current location just to secure the cabinet into place. The angle brackets will serve as an anchor and prevent the cabinet from being tilted.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric