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Instructables: Project Question Answered

Workshop organization: Max racks for all the stuff you use. And might use someday.

So we’re really lucky and get to share our DIY and projects with the awesomeness known as Instructables.

And one of the things we love about sharing is questions and new ideas from the community of DIYers and makers. Sometimes they get buried in a trillion comments, though. Here’s a great one from Fred about a workshop organization project I designed:

I love working with wood and store lots of pieces not knowing when I will use them. Question, for long term storage, do you know whether it is best to store lumber vertical or horizontal? Thanks for the ‘ible.

Instructables workshop organization: Max racks for all the stuff you use. And might use someday.

Fred—

Love this question. And I’m interested to see if you’ve started an Instructables Ford v Chevy debate. While there are good reasons for both, my answer is neither. Straight is what you’re after. And for most shops, at least where we are, that usually ends up meaning ‘horizontal’. But as the project shows, things need to be kept separated (-ish) so you can get at them.

Visit any lumber yard or big box store and you’ll see items, especially wood, stored vertically. This is to maximize storage space, but also because inventory turns over. There’s a third reason: A tall ceiling.

If I could maximize space by storing items vertically, I would. The key to making this work, though, is to make sure the items are stored straight, which means they’re racked and supported top, middle and bottom. Not, leaned against a wall with no center support where they’ll eventually sag. Also, I hope it goes without saying, they should be stored so they can’t tip over and hurt someone.

The same is true for horizontal storage. Store something without support in the middle and it’ll eventually sag. Heck, I even run a center support under lumber piles when I’m building a project like a deck or framing a basement.

So, short answer: Straight. How ever you can make that happen. Thanks for the ‘ible question Instructables Fred.

Mark

Mark is a licensed contractor, tool expert, wood and outdoor enthusiast, and elite Spartan Race competitor. He writes about home improvement and tools for national magazines and websites, and teaches hands-on clinics for other remodeling professionals. Check out his book, The Carpenter's Notebook.

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