Leaning ladder shelf plans, sized to your space

Parts

Cut list

Kerf 1/8″ included. Every cut runs edge to edge.

Steps

• Tape measure
• Speed square
• Pencil
• Drill/driver
• Clamps
• Safety glasses
• Hearing protection
• Dust mask
• Circular saw or miter saw
• Stud finder
• Level
• Table saw or track saw for ripping
• Miter saw
• Table saw or circular saw with a rip guide
• Sander, 120 and 180 grit

Underlined words have a short explanation: hover or tap them. All of them are on the glossary page.

1. 1Before you start

   Read every step once, start to finish, before you buy or cut anything. Each step names the parts it uses by letter; the parts list gives their sizes.

   Set up somewhere flat with good light. A pair of sawhorses with a sheet of plywood on top makes a fine work table.

   Wear safety glasses whenever a tool is running, hearing protection for saws, and a dust mask for sanding and for cutting treated wood or sheet goods. Tie back long hair and loose sleeves. Keep children and pets out of the work area.

   • Tip At the store, pick straight boards: hold each one up to your eye and look down its length. Skip boards that bow, twist or have big knots near the ends.
   • Tip Measure twice, cut once. Most mistakes are a misread tape, not a bad cut.

2. 2Cut and label the parts

   Cut every part on the cut list. Cut the longest parts first: if one goes wrong, it can still become a shorter part.

   To mark a cut, hook your tape on the end of the board, make a small V with its point exactly at the measurement, and draw a square line through the point with a speed square. Put an X on the waste side.

   Cut on the waste side of the line, so the blade's kerf (about 1/8″) comes out of the scrap, not your part.

   Write each part's letter in pencil on a face that won't show, and stack the parts by letter.

   Sand the faces before assembly while they're flat and easy to reach: 120 grit, then 180.

   ✓ Lay the parts out and count them against the parts list. Measure a few: if one is off by more than 1/16″, recut it now.

   STOP. Let the saw reach full speed before it touches the wood, keep both hands clear of the blade's path, and never reach under a board you're cutting. Support long boards on both sides of the cut so the blade doesn't pinch.

3. 3Cut the rails at the lean angle

   Set the miter saw to 10°. Cut one end of a rail (A): this is the foot, and the angle makes it sit flat on the floor while the rail leans.

   Measure 73 1/8″ along one long edge from the point of that cut and mark it. Without changing the saw, cut there so the second cut is parallel to the first: the rail looks like a very long, thin parallelogram, and the top end will be level too.

   Cut the second rail exactly the same, using the first as a pattern: clamp them together and check the ends line up.

   • Tip Mark an X on the waste side before every cut so the blade takes its kerf from the offcut, not your part.
   • Tip Lay both rails next to each other and mark "L" and "R" on the faces that will face out. The cleats or holes go on the other faces.

   ✓ Lean a rail against a wall: the foot sits flat on the floor, the top corner touches the wall 72″ up, and the top cut is level.

4. 4Mark the shelf lines

   Lay the rails side by side, inside faces up, with the feet lined up. From the foot, measure along both long edges of each rail and mark the underside of every shelf at 9 3/8″, 24 1/8″, 38 13/16″, 53 9/16″, 68 5/16″.

   Because both ends are cut level, the same number on both edges gives a level line. Join each pair of marks with a straightedge.

   • Tip Clamp the two rails together and mark across both at once; any small error then repeats on both sides and the shelves stay level.

   ✓ Hold a rail at its lean against the wall and set a level along one line: it reads level.

5. 5Screw on the cleats

   Under every line, on the inside face, centre a cleat (B) between the rail edges with its top edge exactly on the line.

   Glue it, then drive two 1 1/4″ screws through the cleat into the rail. Predrill first: the cleat is short and splits easily near its ends.

   ✓ Every cleat top is on its line, and the cleats on the left rail mirror the ones on the right.

   STOP. Use 1 1/4″ screws here. Longer screws come out through the outside face of the rail.

6. 6Rip and cut the shelves

   Each shelf is a different depth, deepest at the bottom: C 11 1/4″, D 11 1/4″, E 8 3/4″, F 6 3/16″, G 3 5/8″. Rip each from a 1×12, keeping the factory edge at the front, then cut all to 22 1/2″ long.

   Sand the faces and soften the front edges with 120 then 180 grit. Write the letter on the underside of each.

   • Tip Cut the deepest shelf first. If a rip goes wrong it can still become a narrower shelf higher up.

   ✓ Stack the shelves on the bench: each is narrower than the one below it, and all are the same length.

7. 7Assemble the ladder

   With a helper, lean both rails against a wall 24″ apart outside to outside. Set each shelf on its cleats, front edge flush with the front edge of the rails.

   Drive one 1 5/8″ screw down through each shelf end into the cleat below, predrilled and countersunk so the head sits just below the surface.

   Then drive two 1 5/8″ screws through the outside face of each rail into the end of every shelf, 3/4″ from the front and back of where they meet. Glue these joints.

   • Tip End grain soaks up glue: spread a thin coat on the shelf ends, wait a minute, then add a second coat before screwing.

   ✓ Measure the diagonals of the front, top corner to opposite bottom corner: they match within 1/8″ and the ladder doesn't wobble side to side.

8. 8Stand it up and fit the feet

   Stick non-slip pads on both feet so the ladder can't slide out from the wall. On carpet, skip the pads: the carpet grips.

   Set it against the wall where it will stay. The top touches the wall and the feet are 16 1/4″ out from it.

   ✓ Press down on the top shelf: the feet don't slide and the top doesn't slip along the wall.

   STOP. Strap it to a stud before loading it (next step). A leaning shelf pulled at the bottom can fall forward.

9. 9Anchor to the wall

   Slide a stud finder along the wall behind where the piece will stand and mark the studs.

   Fix the anti-tip kit's bracket to the back or top of the piece, then screw its other end into a stud with the screws supplied.

   Do not load the piece until it is anchored.

   STOP. Confirm the wall type first. Drywall on studs: use the studs. Plaster or masonry: use the kit's matching anchors or ask a pro.

10. 10Finish

    Ease every sharp edge and corner with 120-grit sandpaper so nobody gets a splinter.

    Sand all over with 180 grit, always along the grain (the direction the wood fibres run). Scratches across the grain show through stain.

    Wipe off the dust with a barely damp rag and let it dry.

    Paint, stain or a clear coat (water-based polyurethane is the easiest). Apply thin coats with the grain, let each dry fully, and sand lightly with 220 grit between coats.

    Let it dry for the time on the can before using it.

    • Tip Try your finish on a scrap of the same wood first: stain looks different on every board.