Hexagon Shelves - Am I mad?

[Molynoox]

I fancy something semi functional and yet interesting to look at in my workshop
What I am thinking of doing is some hexagon themed wall units / shelves, with integrated lighting.
Here is a quick sketch I made, although I don't think I will put it on that particular wall:

for lighting I have bought some LED strips which I will somehow route behind or inside the units.
Here is a pic of the LED strip - I will probably set it to white or warm white, but I think it was set to some sort of strange blue colour in the picture (which actually looks quite interesting?...)
I think I will probably put it on the grey wall at the back

I know it isn't very pragmatic and perhaps not the best use of space, but I seem to have enough space for all my stuff so I have the freedom to get a bit creative and make it looks interesting

My questions

1. How to attach it to the wall? (I'm thinking I will fasten the whole structure together and then intermittently attach to the wall through the studs - but I don't really know how?).
2. Would birch ply be a good choice for material?
3. How to do the lighting? - maybe hold fire on that question as I will quickly do some CAD to show the different options I'm thinking of.
4. Am I mad?

thanks
Martin

 

[Stigmorgan]

Those look great, can't wait to see it done. For hanging you can get little brackets that look like upside down keyholes that attach to the back of the piece and mount onto screws in the wall, not sure how small they get though.

 

[eribaMotters]

How about gluing the whole lot up, laying it onto a sheet of ply, draw around it and then screw through the ply into back edges of each piece. This would stop any potential stress on the mitred joints when in use. You could use an angled split batten on the back of the ply to hang the unit. The void behind the sheet would also make it easy to run and hide any wiring for the lighting side of the project.

Colin

 

[Molynoox]

Those look great, can't wait to see it done. For hanging you can get little brackets that look like upside down keyholes that attach to the back of the piece and mount onto screws in the wall, not sure how small they get though.

I'm liking that idea - in my head I was totally overengineering it with threaded bars into the wall and such like, your idea is much simpler.

 

[Hornbeam]

You have 2 issues to get a realy good end result
First is cutting the sides accurately to length at an angle of 30 degrees which should be OK with a track saw
Second is stopping the joints moving while gluing up. I made a jig for fitting 4mm ply splines in 45 degree mitres which are hidden when glued uo and also prevent movement so you could do the same
I think backs would look neatest set into a groove or rebate

 

[Molynoox]

How about gluing the whole lot up, laying it onto a sheet of ply, draw around it and then screw through the ply into back edges of each piece. This would stop any potential stress on the mitred joints when in use. You could use an angled split batten on the back of the ply to hang the unit. The void behind the sheet would also make it easy to run and hide any wiring for the lighting side of the project.

Colin

I wasn't planning on having a back to it - I wanted the light to spill out onto the wall behind. But your approach would add strength and I think I might need it because I want to just glue the hexagon joints as I don't have a fancy domino etc

Is the split batten like a french cleat?
that could work

 

[Molynoox]

So the more I think about this the more I think that I need to think about the lighting right from the start as I have quite specific (and totally unrealistic no doubt) expectations for the outcome.

• I really want the light to spill out onto the wall behind the shelves - I think this will look cool
• I would also like some light 'inside' the hexagons and 'inside' the shelves, but that may not be essential, its not really functional lighting its just to create an ambience more than anything, so I am willing to compromise on the 'inside' lighting part if needed.
• to get light onto the wall I would need a minimum 30mm gap. My experiments with the LED light strip showed that you only get a smooth light pattern at >30mm, any closer and you can see 'dots' of light on the wall and that looks very unrefined to my eyes

So the questions come down to:

1. how do I mount the shelves to create the 30mm gap (some suggestions above already)
2. where do I mount the LED light strips
3. do I want backs on the shelves and if so how to get the lighting effect

Here is a sketch showing one possible location for the LED strip, in a rebate at the rear of the hex units (they would have to have a diffuser in front, probably mounted into conduit

Here is one idea to get the 30mm spacing - but I have no idea how this would work, I was trying to come up with a very minamalist look without clutter behind so that the light isnt blocked, but its not been thought through in terms of how to actually fix it to the wall and the unit

here is some conduit with a diffuser that could work

Martin

 

[Molynoox]

I really wanted to mount the LED strip to the back of the units but I am pretty sure it wont go round the 30 degree bend - they dont bend well, thats why I came up with the interior lighting option in the rebate

Martin

 

[paulrbarnard]

From the drawing it looks like you can walk round the back of the wall and drive a screw though into the shelf.

For the light strips keep in mind the defusers that come with the aluminium conduit vary immensely in quality. I watched a video a while back that tested a number of them. I’ll see if I can find it.

 

[paulrbarnard]

I wasn't planning on having a back to it - I wanted the light to spill out onto the wall behind. But your approach would add strength and I think I might need it because I want to just glue the hexagon joints as I don't have a fancy domino etc

Is the split batten like a french cleat?
that could work

If you paint the back the same colour as the wall it will look like the wall. The eye won’t notice the difference in depth.

 

[Torx]

Love it, false backs to hide fixings? Great suggestions above. Make the fixings rock solid, even if it does seem a little over engineered…it would just be annoying if you had any doubt over what it might hold. I did a shelf spanning about 3m between 2 walls and didn’t want any visible fixings so used rods fixed into the wall, then threaded inserts in discreet locations allowing grub screws to bite on the rods. Tricky to line up.

Came here to start a thread on a different subject with a very similar title!

 

[Inspector]

I'll be the unheard voice of reason for a few minutes.

While you may think you have lots of room it won't be long before you don't. For that reason I urge you to adopt a more traditional design with vertical sides, perhaps a tool cabinet with the tools displayed and at hand maximizing the storage. You can still backlight it to feature the tools in it if you like.

The design you have would look great in any number of rooms in the house or even outside on the patio by the barbecue. Sometimes function is as beautiful as form. Your place so do what makes you happiest.

Pete

 

[stenik]

Would these be useful. Placed at strategic points for weight distribution. seem to be flush fitting.
I've used similar to hang a display unit. Z Clamps,
https://amzn.eu/d/9x118ot

 

[Richard_C]

Addressing your question 4 - in my view, yes. If it really is shelving not just a decorative item or an open display case.

I go along with Pete, Inspector, above. Dr Who's Tardis is bigger on the inside than it is on the outside, but is fictional. Your proposed shelves give you minimum function from maximum material use. A sort of reverse Tardis.

There is very little flat space with useable height, you will acquire more stuff as time goes on and the sloping sides will drive you mad, there are many places for dust and grime to gather and in a workshop it will be hard to keep clean. If you must have a lit up lattice, why not make it with cubes not hexagons so you get far more functionality. Paint some hexagons on the wall or back panel if you want, a trompe d'oiel. Look at the design rationally. it's a workshop. Say to yourself "I am using x sq m of wall space and y linear m of timber to give me z sq cm of useful shelf space. Is that a good use of resources?" Visualise it with books or boxes of screws on it.

I am in favour of interesting structures in the right place, but the best designs combine that with efficiency.

 

[baldkev]

Just to add to other's suggestions, if you do as colin said and draw round your hexagons, you can.pilot drill through to the back side for perfect placement , but when you put the screw through, use short offcuts 9f copper pipe as spacers to allow the light a gap to get up behind the shelves.....

As others have said, eventually you'll want to utilise the space, so why not do it as a cool project with the possible idea of relocating it to the house somewhere in the future?

 

[Torx]

Addressing your question 4 - in my view, yes. If it really is shelving not just a decorative item or an open display case.

I go along with Pete, Inspector, above. Dr Who's Tardis is bigger on the inside than it is on the outside, but is fictional. Your proposed shelves give you minimum function from maximum material use. A sort of reverse Tardis.

There is very little flat space with useable height, you will acquire more stuff as time goes on and the sloping sides will drive you mad, there are many places for dust and grime to gather and in a workshop it will be hard to keep clean. If you must have a lit up lattice, why not make it with cubes not hexagons so you get far more functionality. Paint some hexagons on the wall or back panel if you want, a trompe d'oiel. Look at the design rationally. it's a workshop. Say to yourself "I am using x sq m of wall space and y linear m of timber to give me z sq cm of useful shelf space. Is that a good use of resources?" Visualise it with books or boxes of screws on it.

I am in favour of interesting structures in the right place, but the best designs combine that with efficiency.

So where is he supposed to keep his hexagonal objects?

 

[Inspector]

So where is he supposed to keep his hexagonal objects?

You mean all his screw driver bits from the battery tools? In the combs of a bee hive.

Pete

 

[Terry - Somerset]

Open shelves, hexagonal, rectangular or any other shape also collect dust - at least they do in my workshop despite some efforts at dust extraction.

Having just moved house, I am in the process of working out how to fit out the workshop - but a given is that all storage will be fitted with doors. I appreciate it may be less visually appealing (boring) than your proposal.

 

[Fergie 307]

Personally I would have thought the main problem here is structural. Without some support you are going to have goodness knows how many fixing points, and an awful.lot of skinny joints which will pop apart in time. I would probably look to fit a single board to span the whole thing, rebate the edges of the sections that form the perimeter so you can't see the board. Every piece can then be fixed solidly to the back board, and the board itself held to the wall very simply.

 

[Fergie 307]

And in answer to the question in the thread title, yes, utterly bonkers!
But hey, whatever floats your boat