Guide To Floating Shelves – Everything You Need To Know

Shelving is an item of furniture that is useful because it is completely practical for arranging items and storing them easily, whether the need for storage is in your home or in your garage.  You can easily keep items organized and visible for handy use as and when they are needed.  There are many different types of shelving that one can purchase or build at home if they are so inclined.  The option to make shelves on your own is one that is good if you have a specific need or design in mind.

Floating Shelves are a type of shelf that are affixed directly to a wall surface without any visible support.  They are called “floating” shelves because they are not part of a larger shelving “unit” and stand alone on a wall.  It is much easier to place a floating shelf because it does not take up much space on a wall.

Considerations for Purchasing Floating Shelves

Most floating shelf units will be sold with some type of mounting hardware.  The main consideration you will have is the function of the shelf and then you will consider size, colour and material that the shelf is created from.  Do you want a natural wood look or do you want something more modern?  Glass is another commonly used material for floating shelves.  Choose shelves that are sturdy enough to hold the items you want to place on them but are not too heavy to place on the wall safely.

Some stores sell shelves in groups of two or three while others sell single shelves.  The thing to watch out for would be a discount when purchasing in “bulk” if you buy more than one shelf at a time.

Installation of Shelving

As with any type of shelving, you are going to need to be able to drill into the wall directly into a stud.  For this you will need to be able to locate the wall studs and have a drill or other piece of equipment that can drill a hole.  Studs can hold weight when you load the shelf whereas simply drilling a hole into the wall is not going to accomplish anything except that the shelf will fall from the wall and the items on it may be damaged.

Measure the area on the wall where you want to place shelving and decide how many shelves you would like as well as what sizes you need.  Use a level to mark the exact location of the shelf before you start making holes.  Installation of floating shelves usually means using a bracket of some sort and then mounting the shelf onto it.  Generally speaking, the screws and brackets that are provided with the shelf in a “kit” are not of very good quality.  It is definitely worth it to purchase separate items that are going to last and keep the shelf in place for as long as you want it in place.

Small Space Living

Today’s homeowner is more likely to live in a much smaller space and has a greater need for more innovative types of shelving.  With small space living, every square inch of a home is precious and must be used to its highest potential. Floating shelves really fit the needs of small space living because they do not take up much room while providing a much-needed storage area or place where items can be displayed.  For those who are renting an apartment, it is often important to ensure that the walls do not sustain much damage or the renter could end up having to cover that damage cost out of their own pocket.

Floating shelves are usually reasonably priced enough that one might even consider leaving them in place when they move so that no holes are left in the wall afterwards.

Floating Shelves for Every Room

Floating shelves are great for the living area, bathroom, bedroom, kitchen or any room in your home, really.  They are nice to look at while serving a purpose of organization and general tidiness.  These shelves can be easily removed if needed and placed in a different location.  It is all up to you to decide what is aesthetically pleasing and floating shelves tend to be a good choice since they don’t have the large and ugly brackets that many shelves need to hold them up so they will not detract from the décor in your room.

Certain types of shelves just work better in certain rooms.  For example, if you have some items that you want to store in the bathroom but your bathroom is really small, there may be only certain areas where you can place a space-saving shelf, and that is where a floating shelf will come in extremely handy.

The floating shelf is not specifically designed to hold extremely heavy items such as heavy books and/or heavy decorative items.  These types of shelves can really break up the length of a large hallway and can be handy for items that are always in demand such as hats, school bags, shoes and keys.  Shelves look best if they are organized in a tidy fashion, adding another dimension to the room.  If everything that you own is crammed onto a shelf then it can start to look unkempt.  That is obviously not the result that is people are looking for when they install a shelf.

The division of spaces in a studio style apartment is important and shelves can help to achieve that division while still keeping the feel of the open plan.  In fact, floating shelves can be installed near furniture to hold a lamp or remotes for electronics while the same style of shelf can be installed in a dining area to hold extra items needed for the table when guests arrive.

The installation of floating shelves in a dining room can also add another use to a typically underused room.  The shelves can be organized in such a way that they can hold a computer and a keyboard or provide an area where quiet reading or studying can be undertaken.

A little bit of planning and forethought is great before shopping.  That way you know what the shelves will be used for, how many shelves you will need and what types of material these shelves should be made from.  The right shelves can add another dimension to any room.