Monday, January 29, 2018

Project: IKEA Kallax LP Storage with Feet and Shelf Stops

I have been unhappy with my old blonde Ikea Expedit shelves that have been used for storing LPs. The finish doesn't match any of the new furniture - mostly dark walnut or teak - in the house, so I decided to get something to match my mid century house. A 2-hour trip to Ikea and I buy three new Kallax 2X2 shelves, but opt for the turquoise blue (my wife and I aren't afraid of colors).

First step - assemble the Kallax shelves. Pretty straight forward. They feel a little lighter than the out-of-production Expedit but not by much.


I then cut - by hand - twelve roughly 13" pieces of 1X2 wood that I bought from Lowe's. Screws are 1 and 1/4" long. Wood and screw cost was just over $14.  I'm certainly no carpenter but this part of the shelf won't be seen by anyone.


Next I flip the shelf "upside" down so I can install chrome Ikea Captiva 4" feet which are found in the Kitchen section of Ikea.   An additional foot in the center was added for extra support. Screws come with the legs but I did drill a pilot hole so less work is required to get it in.


Finished piece looks like this:


Now the really hard work - it's time to move some stereo gear, shuffle the old shelves out, remove the protective tape on the Kallax shelves, haul a ton of vinyl, and then bask in the glow of my labors.



The stops work great, making my LP collection look a lot tidier - almost like a magazine shoot. The addition of the feet give more "space" to the end of my living room, which in turn makes the area look larger.


And a final picture of the stereo gear back in place and the records tucked away.