One of our best (and cheapest) home improvement projects was this "floating credenza" made from IKEA's Akurum Cabinets and inspired by the living room storage in Andreas' Greektown Loft. It hangs from the wall and holds our books, so we had to account for a lot of weight on the piece. Our wonderful friend, and professional handyman, Dave stopped by to help us install it. (Thanks, Dave!) Click below to see the step-by-step...
Warning: This is a big project with a few safety concerns including avoiding live wires and accounting for weight placed on the cabinets. If you're not particularly handy (we're not), ask a professional handyman to install the cabinets for you.
Materials: We purchased three 30 x 24 inch Akurum Cabinets with white Applad doors. The IKEA installation kit came with 2 cabinet rails (that had to be cut to size), 3 cabinets, 6 shelves, 6 doors, 12 door hinges, and cabinet screws for around $250. To help us with the installation, Dave brought a power drill and stud finder. We used our own heavy duty stud screws, toggle bolts, and saw.
Step 1: IKEA gave us two guide rails, 80 inches each. Our "credenza" is 90 inches long, so we had to cut down one of the rails to provide the extra 10 inches of support.
Step 2: We measured the height of the credenza, placing it 38 inches high and giving it clearance over our electrical outlets.
Step 3: Dave looked for studs behind the wall using an electronic stud-finder. Studs are usually placed 16 inches apart behind drywall. Dave also used the stud-finder to search for any live wires so we could avoid them during installation.
Step 4: Dave drilled holes into the studs to make sure they would work for our wall-mounted cabinet rail. He also planned where to to add extra support with toggle bolts.
Step 5: These are the toggle bolts. The two hinged wings are pushed through a hole in the wall, then they snap open. As you turn the bolt, the wings push up against the inside of the wall, adding extra support for heavy objects. Dave marked on the cabinet rail where the stud screws and toggle bolts would go, then he threaded the toggle bolts through their corresponding places on the guide rail before inserting them into the wall.
Step 6: The holes for toggle bolts were big; the holes for stud screws were smaller. We used a level to mark the guide line for the cabinet rail.
Step 7: Dave drilled the guide rail into the wall using heavy-duty stud screws and toggle bolts.
Step 8: We put together the Akurum cabinets according to the IKEA instructions. They hung from the guide rails using bolts that came with the installation kit.
Step 9: The cabinets weren't hanging perfectly level, so Dave leveled them and used wood screws to attach them to one another and keep them in place.
Step 10: We installed the shelves inside the cabinets and the cabinet doors using the IKEA instructions. Inside, the cabinets hold books. We used all our white books along the top shelf to keep it looking organized, but we might change that look once we get the rest of the room together.
Step 11: (Which we haven't yet done.) The top of the shelf currently shows the screws. We're going to have a piece of cork cut to act as a countertop. We also still need to tweak the alignment of a couple cabinet doors.
We're happy with the new look - it provides lots of storage, and the streamlined piece will be a nice compliment to our more colorful furniture once the whole room is finished. Thanks again, Dave!
Photos: Sarah Coffey
Re-edited from a post originally published 5.27.2008
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Comments (33)
Thanks for the step-by-step!
We have been looking to do something similar in our entry way!
Love this - now I need to befriend a professional handyman
mdeathstar,
YOU CAN DO IT, really.
Get thyself to a home improvement store and pick up a drill, and a level you'll be so glad you did!
Very awesome. Great tutorial!
I did a similar project, but went with the Besta model because the tops are finished. Also, they have a slightly beefier cross-section if you want to leave parts exposed:
http://www.unplggd.com/unplggd/flickr-finds/flickr-finds-ikea-wall-console-044428
i've wanted to do this too ever since seeing Andreas' place-- but I'm 90% sure my apartment walls would'nt be able to support the weight!
thanks for posting this. i have wanted to do something like this too, but i couldn't explain it well enough or find pictures of it anywhere to convince my wife.
they also make little peg-like feet that could be used to take some pressure off the wall. but I like the floating look.
Oh how I envy these people with actual STUDS in their walls and no dreaded plaster...
Amen, complicatedshoes. I can't even mount my tv.
There are studs behind that plaster!!!... They may not be evenly spaced, and hard to find, but they are there... I used a small drill (1/16th) bit and drilled a row of small holes into the plaster till I hit studs. It took a bit of work, but I found them. Then I patched the extra holes.
that stud-finder is kind of a stud himself
Thanks for posting this. I always go back to Andreas' image gallery to look at that loft. I love everything about it especially this credenza. Great job. (btw: I agree with secretadmirer, dave is cute).
love it too! but wonder why they recommend using only one rail instead of two parallel rails? maybe why trouble w/leveling perhaps?
hey i know you people. you guys are totally famous these days. in my maginzes, on my internet, and so on and so forth.
I love the Holmbo doors that come with the Besta cabinets. But the Besta cabinets bodies seem to be paper covered whereas the Akurum are laminate. Are the Besta holding up well?
anniepeanut - They used one rail as per the IKEA instructions. I have an IKEA kitchen, and all of the upper cabinets are hung this way.
I'd also like to add that I live in an older house with plaster walls. Plaster doesn't mean you can't install the Akurum rail system! You screw into the studs. It' amazing to think that all the upper cabinets in our kitchen are hanging from these rails. It's amazing, and it works!!
is a very good idea and simple, and the outcome once it is finished it will be fantastic
besides this very well explained step by step
a greeting
A little late to the party but....thought I'd try.
Does anyone have advice about installing this same set up on a wall with metal studs ... like I have?
"Does anyone have advice about installing this same set up on a wall with metal studs ... like I have?"
Toggle Bolts.
Installing these cabinets a foot from the ground is exactly the same as installing them above base cabinets in the kitchen - The only difference is that you'll probably want something to cover the tops of the cabinets such as a sheet of glass, or a shallow countertop to finish of the top and hide the exposed camlocks and joints.
I think more pictures of that guy Dave would have improved the article.
I think you might want to rethink step 11. If the screws are showing, I think you have installed the horizontal top piece upside down. If you invert it, the screws will be face down and be inside the cabinet where you can't see them.
I think you might want to rethink step 9. It is better not to use wood screws to join the cabinets together. There is a two part screwed joiner that is used for cabinets.
Choose an empty hole that is used for the pins that hold the shelves together and drill through it. Do the same for the corresponding hole in the other cabinet.
You put one side of the joiner into one hole and the other in the corresponding hole in the other cabinet. You then screw these together. They pull the two cabinets into perfect alignment, and will not leave a gap between them.
my husband did the same thing in our place. it's totally do-able by a nonprofessional!
http://gallery.apartmenttherapy.com/photo/111308jacoblaurie/item/54498
Great job & thanks for the step-by-step!
Nice idea about having a piece of cork cut to fit the top. You could also use cork shelf paper.
Thanks for the instructions and like the idea of the cork top!
OMD. Seriously? Is it really so difficult to follow the VERY CLEAR instructions that come with the cabinets from IKEA that we need an AT post about it?
YOU DON't EVEN NEED TO BE ABLE TO READ to hang IKEA cabinets. A drill, a level and a studfinder are basic life skills 101, not rocket science. I will never understand why people insist on finding this so intimidating.
And yea, there is a special sleeve bolt for ganging the cabinets, the presence and installatio of which is crystal clear to anyone who bothers to look at the instructions.
I love this idea, I dream of doing something similar one day. I would love to see this entire room, it looks like there are lots of great elements. But, I do have to say I think the row of boxes on the floor ruins the look of the floating cabinets.
LOL I've had this in my dining room for years...except they're the last remnants of the Ikea Vattern bathroom line. So they're only 7" deep (great for martini glasses and alcohol bottles!). Oh and they only cost me $38 for the 72" span!
I did this in my house to use as an entertainment/storage cabinet and to support a large tv. I used IKEA cover panels to hide the hardware on the top, and to match the doors.
If you have plaster walls you'll need a studfinder that has a 'Deep' setting to find them. The regular studfinders don't go deep enough to find 'em. Use toggle bolts as sparingly as possible if there's studs available. Just make sure the wood screws you use dig into the studs enough ( 1.5" at least). I recommend using Spax brand screws (avail at Depot & Menard's) in predrilled holes to attach.
splatgirl: I agree with you on this one - If you're buying IKEA you should have some basic DIY skills - BUT if you're the one with the house in MN, you have more skills than the average DIY'er...a brick outdoor wood-fired oven? c'mon! :) I do plan on showing that idea to my father-in-law to build though - he's a mason.
This is the perfect solution for my future workspace. I don't have a lot of floor space (that I want to give up, anyway) and I have a lot of stuff that needs to be stored. And let's face it, a lot of the stuff involved with letterpressing is kinda ugly. I don't want to stare at cans of ink.
Thanks, guys!
wow I was about to do something like this ( floating bookshelves on top) in a couple of days, this tutorial is super timely - as are all the comments re: plaster walls, esp. 337's - the details are appreciated!
Oh man, we just tried installing besta cabinets on our walls and failed miserably. In fact, the screw broke off in the stud and another screw was stripped and it took us an hour to get it out. I guess we're not as smart as you, splat!
Anyways, I am guessing we need stronger screws. Can anyone specifically recommend a screw to use for wood studs?