2 Attachment(s)
Slatwall organization in the workshop- my latest project and some tips and links
Good day everyone:
I was going to wait until this is finished, but I guess it's far enough along to share now. I will get more photos later, and also plan to post a video to my YouTube channel once it's all done and once my videographer (my wife) returns from a work trip.
First here are the "after" pics:
Attachment 375938Attachment 375939
If you just wanted to see my new slatwall, you can stop here, but if you want more details, read on...
Just to see where I have come as far as workshop organization- this first video is the workshop I had when we were renting, which was actually part of my kitchen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKdJkejiYP0
Here is a video I shot of THIS workshop when I had shelves and tool boxes, but this is an older video and I now have the Roubo in place. (still a bit of work to do installing vises)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVl80cDqCrI
Since that second video was shot, my tool collection probably doubled, as did my supply of offcuts, full boards, and other stuff. It was just getting so crowded. I am posting the two videos for (a) reference of this particular shop, and (b) reference to the old shop where I was using mostly Husky tool bags to store everything. The tool bags were a good idea for certain tools, like all those car tools that you rarely use- ball joint forks, brake tools, VW specialty tools like a head CC'ing kit, and whatnot. It was NOT a good idea for the more used tools. Why? Because the tool bags were not efficient use of storage space. That's also the problem with the big monster Husky tool box. I LOVED it at first, but I started to hate it, because in my cramped shop it just took up too much real estate.
I want to say that nobody can tell YOU what's the best storage for YOUR shop. That's not why I am posting this. I am posting this because when searching for "slatwall workshop storage" or similar, I found very few photos. I wanted to see what it looked like and gauge if I wanted to go with that or not. I am posting so people can look at it, think about it, and either say, "I love it, and I think I may go with that," or "I hate it, thanks for saving me from wasting my $$$" or maybe, "I like it somewhat, maybe for some tools- I might do half my shop this way." So again- I'm just sharing what worked for me, and why.
Here is the main reason why- REAL ESTATE!!! It's very limited in my roughly 12' by 16' shop. (My shop is not square- one wall is 14' and the opposite is 16', and the other two walls are something like 11' and 12'. The house was built to fit the lot, which I kind of hate, but I wasn't alive when it was built, so I get what I get!!! The rolling tool cabinets were my thought that I could move them around, and that they would provide lots of drawer storage. That's great, but drawers have two problems- one is that they have a set size, and always seem to be just a little too big, or a little too small, creating wasted space, or not enough space. The other is that drawers require not just their depth, but TWICE their depth in floor space if you want to be able to open the drawers. In my tiny shop, drawers are ALWAYS (Yes- always- not just sometimes) being blocked by large boards awaiting projects, or ladders, or the shop vac, or SOMETHING was always blocking the one drawer that I needed to open. It never failed. With slatwall, I can adjust my storage to fit the item. I can prop a ladder or 10' long board up against the wall and still reach behind it and get what I need. For my shop, that was the best solution. If my shop were much larger, I may have kept the big rolling Husky cabinet for automotive tools. Note: I'm referring to the tall one with the stacking top box- not the 37" one with the wood top. I love that one and am keeping that one.
I guess I'm jumping the gun. I realize now that I need to post more pics, but I'm sitting here waiting on someone and I happen to have these two pics on the computer. Will also upload a couple from the phone of the "during" to show how I did my slatwall since my walls are stone. I had to use 2x4 furring strips behind them.
Now here are the dislikes- and they are few, but there are some:
- It does mean that dust will get on your stuff, and also your stuff is more exposed to possibly rust. I did some experimenting, however, and found that all I had to do was periodically blow the stuff off with a leaf blower or air hose, and dust wasn't an issue. Also, the wire shelves didn't trap dust like the old wood shelves, and also the tool cabinet still ended up getting dust in it and that was worse to clean out, so really I think this is better. I wipe everything down after use anyway, so rust is under control, and honestly I found that stuff rusted just the same in drawers or hanging on the wall.
- It means all your stuff is out on display, which can go either way. If your stuff looks like heck, it may be better in a drawer. I kind of felt my tools looked good on display, and here is the key- as long as you have them neat and organized, and you don't just throw them up any old place. The clamps especially look kind of cool and uniform hanging up.
- It's great for larger tools, but I'm going to still have one long and one short rolling cabinet for all the files, rasps, chisels, small planes, and stuff that doesn't hang well.
- Although it makes excellent use of wall space, it does take up wall space, and that's kind of contradictory. If you like to pile all your lumber up against the wall, this may not be ideal for you. I am adding a lumber rack above my hand tool storage (not shown- will add pics when I get that up) to store lumber.
The main likes are:
- Makes great use of wall space- even though I mentioned above that it leaves little wall space open. I find that storing vertically makes great use of space in a small shop.
- VERY versatile- I have already changed the layout three times while placing stuff on the walls to get more space by moving things around. Also there are plenty of shelves and fixtures available, which I will touch on in this post.
- The biggest win- everything is easy to get to, and easy to put back. That's the primary reason for this. I found that I was literally spending as much time getting tools out and putting them up as I was actually doing whatever project I was working on. Also, I was tripping over the tools because I would keep them out for the duration of the project. This new storage lets me get a tool out, use it, put it back, but still have it almost arm's reach from the workbench. I LOVE THIS!!!!
- It is very clean and crisp, especially with the aluminum inserts. I will mention more about these very nescessary inserts later.
- I got my floor space back!!! Man, it is so nice to be able to walk around my shop again. It's like having a bigger shop- I mean that literally. The shop feels bigger because I am not tripping over tool boxes.
Now here are some pointers on slatwall. VERY IMPORTANT that you read this if you are going to do slatwall:
MAKE SURE YOU GET THE GOOD STUFF!!!! Do not get Home Depot slatwall. I actually had to get one sheet of it because I didn't order enough of the kind I got, and that stuff is horrible. When I do a video, which I will add to this post when done, I will cover this in more detail. The Home Depot stuff is horribly routed. It has a variance of almost 1/4" in the width of the slats. It was so packed with sawdust that I had to take a hook and scrape it all out and vacuum multiple times, and still there is sawdust crammed in the slats. The stuff I got was a much higher quality MDF, and it was much better routed. The HD stuff was also so poorly routed that in places the edges of the grooves ended in a "V" rather than a 90 degree angle, and I got some pretty bad cuts on my fingers the first few minutes of handling the stuff. While making a saw cut, there was blood everywhere and I thought I had cut myself on the saw before I figured out it was the slats that cut me.
Get the aluminum inserts. Period. Do not get the kind without aluminum inserts. I used the above mentioned HD stuff only for a 2' by 6' patch where I am only hanging small plastic bins for storing screws and other small items. It works okay for that, but you need the aluminum inserts for strength. Spend the extra money- it is well worth it. Also, spend the extra money on quality slatwall as mentioned above. Not all of them are the same. My melamine is visibly thicker than the one on the Home Depot stuff.
*** A note on the aluminum inserts- there is one down side- they make the slats smaller, so some wire accessories won't fit, but I remedied this by simply nipping off about 3/16" of the end of the wire part that goes into the slot with no issue at all. There is still plenty left to hold the shelf or accessory.
Buy more hooks than you think you will need.
I used angled shelves to hold my stuff that is in injection molded cases. I thought that would be more convenient to have them at a slight angle. Keep in mind- these are actually made for store displays. The shelves angle down slightly. That turned out not to be too great of an idea. I would rather have the flat shelves, which I did get some of, but wish I had gotten more of those and none of the angled ones.
CD and bookcase shelving is excellent for storing paint and varnish. Just the right size for it, and they slightly angle backwards. (Not downwards like the above mentioned shelves.) It's only a tiny bit, but it is nice- I don't get that feeling that somehow I'm going to bump one and it slide off the shelf. It perfectly fits the gallon size metal jugs of acetone/WD40/linseed oil, and other stuff that I buy that way, and also fits very well the smaller sized ones, and the quart cans of paint and varnish.
You can buy accessories that turn any bolt-on item into a slatwall item by bolting on a slatwall hook. I used this to bolt on the magnetic tool holders that you see holding the saws in one of the above pictures. Also the clear storage bins that I have the pliers in are hung this way.
There is an accessory called "slatbox" that is small plastic bins for storing your smaller items. I bought 60 (yep- sixty) of the smaller ones, and a handfull of the larger ones. I will post an update pic when I get home. Sorry- forgot to take that pic this morning. They are awesome. I would like to have even more. See below for link.
They make accessories for hanging just about anything- tools, guitars, guns, small children... go look at some sites and don't look at what it's designed for- look instead at what you can use it for. Also I will share a link below for "tool hangerz" which worked very well. I also bought drill hangers from Norsk, and they were VERY expensive even when Sears was closing them out over 50% off, and I somewhat regret it. The drills just barely fit, so it's difficult to get them in and out. They look great, and they lock into place, but I like the ones from Tool Hangerz better- they were also half the price, even with the Sears closeout pricing on the Norsk.
A tip on cutting slatwall with aluminum inserts: Tape the aluminum inserts with masking tape so they don't move when you cut them. Tape close to, but not on the cut. Then just cut with a circular saw and a combination blade. I used my track saw to make the cuts. Do a scoring cut first, then the final cut. No issues at all. When making the long cuts, try to plan your cuts so that they fall between the slats, right in the middle of the gap between the slats- that way you have plenty of meat on either side of the slats.
So here are the links. I have no affiliation with any of these places- just sharing knowledge here and saving folks time:
My slatwall, shelving, and hooks came from Displays Depot in Miami. I bought from them because they were the only ones I could find that would ship offshore, and the shipping company is in Miami, so that worked best for me, but I highly recommend them for their excellent service, BEST price I found anywhere, and the slatwall is very good quality. They have a 10% discount going on right now when you buy online. I can't say enough good about these guys. https://www.displaysdepot.com/
Here are the tool holders I mentioned that I liked. Very reasonably priced, and I love the small shelves that fit saws and routers. What I did not like as much was the holder made to store a drill at an angle. Everything else I loved, and wish I had saved money over buying the Norsk drill holders and bought more of those from this guy. http://www.toolhangerz.com/products/...tility-hanger/ Actually that's the drill holder. Browse their page- I bought a few of just about everything they make. Very reasonably priced. In the pics above the routers are all on separate shelves, the Milwaukee circular saw is on their saw shelf, and if you look really close, there is a Milwaukee multimeter (the one that is a "gun" style) hanging on their drill hanger next to all the drills on the Norsk hangers if you want to compare. By the way, the Norsk hangers do not lock in fully if you have the aluminum insert slatwall, but they lock in good enough.
I bought the slatbox bins from a place in Kansas City because my brother lived there and he picked them up for me. They would not ship overseas, but they will ship to the US. It was the best price I found on these. Here is their main page: https://kc-store-fixtures.com/a-slatwall.php Here is the slatbox accessories page https://kc-store-fixtures.com/index....tSearch=Submit
So I guess that's it so far. I hope to get a video up this weekend, and I also will try to add some photos. I just wanted to get this up because I found so little on slatwall.
OH- I almost forgot. Someone will ask- "Why didn't you just do French cleats?" Well I love French cleats, but no way was I going to hang a hundred of them in granite stone walls. This was a much more versatile option for my shop, but the advantage of French cleats is they can hold a lot more weight. That's not an issue for what I'm storing. I forgot to note that the large clamps are hanging on shelf supports, and I added the optional additional support that gives them some added support like this one: https://www.displaysdepot.com/produc...d-14-brackets/ Note that slatwall with aluminum inserts is rated to hold something like 70 pounds per accessory. Not sure if that's max usable load, or breaking point, but I can tell you that I pulled myself up on one of the shelf supports just to see, and it held me. I didn't stay long, but I'm satisfied.
edit: I'm sure I'll get asked why so many drills. I live in a stone house, so I have a number of different SDS+ hammer drills- corded and 12v and 18v cordless. The 12v is for light work and carrying up ladders, 18v is for heavier work, and the corded is for really deep holes, like drilling through my 18" thick walls when I added a lpg stove. I also have two regular 18v hammer drills which are used for woodworking as well. All the 12v drills are for boatbuilding where, for example, when doing copper riveted lapstrakes, you need a hole for the rivet, a small recess for the head of the rivet (not a "V" but flat recess), and for each end you need to drill for screws of two different sizes- all in one go. I found the best way is to have a drill for each bit, and a couple of drivers. The 12v drills are also great for use in tight places.
