project: under [garage] door shelving cabinet #1: A simple carcase

I’m still hunting for space to end the clutter in my 1-car garage shop. I found some when I moved part of the PVC ductwork from my dust collector a bit so I could open the overhead garage door again. In that space, between the dust collector (and its separator can), hoses and dust collection accessories, and the path traveled by the opening garage door was a location about 2’ wide by 32” high – small cabinet size!

Note the > marks on the wall, tracings of the door’s corner in various positions to outline its travel path:

I want to store all the flat kit things like these that are always being moved around, in my way:

Joinery was simple pocket hole work on the outsides of the top and bottom panels, with a back glued on. This is all scrap baltic birch that’s been sitting in my storage shed. None of the scraps were large enough to cover the back, so I used 2 equal-sized cutoffs at the top and bottom edges. I’m having fun using up scrap material for things lately, as I’ve collected quite a bit this past year. There was a ~3” space between the panels, so I cut a piece of the same stock scrap to fit snugly between them. That’s what’s being glued in in this shot:

I’m a little disappointed in myself for going with 4 drilled holes and toggle bolts to hang it (a chore in itself!), as it means when I need to move it someday, I’ll have to empty it, take out the shelves, remove the bolts – losing the springy bits in the process – and then go through that again to rehang it. I wish I’d gone with a french cleat system. Then I could just lift it free, put it in my truck, full of its wares, and drive it to my next home whenever I move. Maybe I’ll update it one of these days. Good enough for now :)

It’s certainly full on that section of wall now! I also used my laminate trimmer to rout some grooves for adjustable shelf standards. I went tangent to the inside edge lines of the top and bottom panels – i.e. not routed all the way to the ends. Then I chiseled the grooves square, tin-snipped some leftover adjustable shelf standards to length, and dropped them in, flush with the sides.

There’s clearance for the dust collector’s motor’s intake, though I can always roll that side out from the wall a few inches.

Next up, some shelves.

-- Gary, Los Angeles, video game animator