Screw size needed for contiboard shelving?
 

I'm going to build some shelving inside built in wardrobes and plan to
buy the screws online, what size/type do I need?


many thanks,


K

anon wrote:
I'm going to build some shelving inside built in wardrobes and plan to
buy the screws online, what size/type do I need?

We need more information!

How are you going to mount the shelves in the wardrobes? I can think
of various methods:-

1 - Crude and simple
Drive screws through holes in the wardrobe sides direct into
the shelves. The disadvantage is that there are screw heads
showing on the outside. Screw size - long enough to go
through the wardrobe and give a reasonable depth into the
shelves, say between 1.5 and 3cm depth.

2 - Better
Put wooden battens inside the wardrobe to rest the shelves on.
Screws need to be just shorter than the thickness of the
batten plus the thickness of the wardrobe side.

3 - Carpenter method (!)
Make slots (there's a proper word for this) in the wardrobe
sides into which the shelvs fit. No need for screws at all
except that the sides may move apart a little and then the
shelves can drop out. (It'll weaken the wardrobe sides,
probably not a good approach if it's chipboard)

4 - Standard 'home assembly' flat pack method.
Get little plastic shelf supports that sit in 1/4" or
thereabouts holes in the sides of the wardrobe and rest the
shelves on these. No need for screws again.


As regards strength of screws, don't worry, any sane sized screw will
be strong enough for this application. Just get them the right length
so they don't stick right through but go deep enough to grip. As
regards diameter I'd go for 4mm (I buy Screwfix metric ones) which in
old 'guage' sizes is around number 8. I find that Screwfix Turbogold
3.5mm and 4mm screws cover just about all my requirements, with a few
5mm ones for really heavy stuff. (I do have some 6x100mm for fences).
The Turbogold ones are also good in that they really don't need pilot
holes in most materials and work OK (as well as any screw will) in
chipboard and MDF.

--
Chris Green

Doh, as I read my message I realised I'd missed out info. i'm
planning to use thise little plastic supports with two holes in one
direction and one in the other. I forget what they're called!

:(


K


On 18 Aug 2004 13:34:39 GMT, wrote:

anon wrote:
I'm going to build some shelving inside built in wardrobes and plan to
buy the screws online, what size/type do I need?

We need more information!

How are you going to mount the shelves in the wardrobes? I can think
of various methods:-

1 - Crude and simple
Drive screws through holes in the wardrobe sides direct into
the shelves. The disadvantage is that there are screw heads
showing on the outside. Screw size - long enough to go
through the wardrobe and give a reasonable depth into the
shelves, say between 1.5 and 3cm depth.

2 - Better
Put wooden battens inside the wardrobe to rest the shelves on.
Screws need to be just shorter than the thickness of the
batten plus the thickness of the wardrobe side.

3 - Carpenter method (!)
Make slots (there's a proper word for this) in the wardrobe
sides into which the shelvs fit. No need for screws at all
except that the sides may move apart a little and then the
shelves can drop out. (It'll weaken the wardrobe sides,
probably not a good approach if it's chipboard)

4 - Standard 'home assembly' flat pack method.
Get little plastic shelf supports that sit in 1/4" or
thereabouts holes in the sides of the wardrobe and rest the
shelves on these. No need for screws again.


As regards strength of screws, don't worry, any sane sized screw will
be strong enough for this application. Just get them the right length
so they don't stick right through but go deep enough to grip. As
regards diameter I'd go for 4mm (I buy Screwfix metric ones) which in
old 'guage' sizes is around number 8. I find that Screwfix Turbogold
3.5mm and 4mm screws cover just about all my requirements, with a few
5mm ones for really heavy stuff. (I do have some 6x100mm for fences).
The Turbogold ones are also good in that they really don't need pilot
holes in most materials and work OK (as well as any screw will) in
chipboard and MDF.

anon wrote:
Doh, as I read my message I realised I'd missed out info. i'm
planning to use thise little plastic supports with two holes in one
direction and one in the other. I forget what they're called!

OK, same sort of approach applies.

You need screws that will go through said little square plastic things
and then as deep as possible into the wardrobe side without any risk
of going right through.

I've used them quite a bit and, if I remember right, I used 3.5mm x
25mm screws for fixing to 18mm contiboard. I have some 4mm x 25mm as
well which are useful if the 3.5mm ones pull out.

Mount the blocks so there are two screws in the wardrobe sides.

Do a test first somewhere that doesn't matter to check that the screws
*don't* go right through.

--
Chris Green

In uk.d-i-y, wrote:

I've used them quite a bit and, if I remember right, I used 3.5mm x
25mm screws for fixing to 18mm contiboard. I have some 4mm x 25mm as
well which are useful if the 3.5mm ones pull out.

Aye. Go wild, treat yourself to a box-of-200 of each probably-relevant
size. The contiboard will be 18mm, right? So probably-relevant lengths
are 20mm, 25mm, and 30mm: go on, go wild and get some 35mms too. The
joy of not sorting through your old-sweetie-tin selection of pre-used
screws to find 16 screws all of the same guage, length, and head is well
worth the, what, 8 quid for all 4 boxes. You're bound to find another
37quids' worth of stuff to buy from Screwfix/IsaacLord/Axminster to make
it up to their no-extra-delivery-charge pricepoint ;-)

Stefek

wrote in message
...
In uk.d-i-y, wrote:

I've used them quite a bit and, if I remember right, I used 3.5mm x
25mm screws for fixing to 18mm contiboard. I have some 4mm x 25mm as
well which are useful if the 3.5mm ones pull out.

Aye. Go wild, treat yourself to a box-of-200 of each probably-relevant
size. The contiboard will be 18mm, right? So probably-relevant lengths
are 20mm, 25mm, and 30mm: go on, go wild and get some 35mms too. The
joy of not sorting through your old-sweetie-tin selection of pre-used
screws to find 16 screws all of the same guage, length, and head is well
worth the, what, 8 quid for all 4 boxes. You're bound to find another
37quids' worth of stuff to buy from Screwfix/IsaacLord/Axminster to make
it up to their no-extra-delivery-charge pricepoint ;-)

Or get them from www.toolstation.com before the end of the month as they are
still running their no-extra-delivery-charge-no-minimum-order-charge
promotion. (Bet they must *really* love me at toolstation at the moment, the
number of dinky orders I've sent them in the past month... hmm, need a new
Stanley knife blade........ click! )

David

Grunff wrote:
wrote:

Aye. Go wild, treat yourself to a box-of-200 of each probably-relevant
size. The contiboard will be 18mm, right? So probably-relevant lengths
are 20mm, 25mm, and 30mm: go on, go wild and get some 35mms too. The
joy of not sorting through your old-sweetie-tin selection of pre-used
screws to find 16 screws all of the same guage, length, and head is well
worth the, what, 8 quid for all 4 boxes. You're bound to find another
37quids' worth of stuff to buy from Screwfix/IsaacLord/Axminster to make
it up to their no-extra-delivery-charge pricepoint ;-)

Can I take this opportunity to do my contiboard rant?

What exactly is the point of it? I would be prepared to understand
someone wanting to use the stuff despite its extreme ugliness if it
offered some mechanical properties which were in some way superior to
alternatives. But it seems to me that it is by far the least rigid sheet
material you can buy - when comparing similar thickness. Even plain
unclad chipboard seems to be stronger.

How and why do they make it so bendy, and what is it actually useful for?

I agree in general, for shelves which are to carry any weight at all I
always use wood if possible. The only real advantage that contiboard
has is an immediately finished wipable surface. It's the 'TV supper'
of DIY materials, quick to give you an 'acceptable' (or not) result
but there are many, many ways of doing it better.

--
Chris Green

anon wrote in message . ..
I'm going to build some shelving inside built in wardrobes and plan to
buy the screws online, what size/type do I need?


chipboard is real weak stuff, thin screws tear it easily. The fatter
the screws you can use the stronger with chip.

Regards, NT

N. Thornton wrote in message ...
anon wrote in message
. ..
I'm going to build some shelving inside built in wardrobes and plan to
buy the screws online, what size/type do I need?


chipboard is real weak stuff, thin screws tear it easily. The fatter
the screws you can use the stronger with chip.
Screwfix carcass screws are ideal for chip. They really do go an inch into
the end grain without distortion.

N. Thornton wrote:
anon wrote in message . ..
I'm going to build some shelving inside built in wardrobes and plan to
buy the screws online, what size/type do I need?


chipboard is real weak stuff, thin screws tear it easily. The fatter
the screws you can use the stronger with chip.

More to the point you need parallel sided screws and ones with a deep
thread, old fashioned plain steel woodscrews really don't work well in
chipboard.

--
Chris Green