Shop organizing... (pegboard)?

[RickH]

I want to reorganize my shop this winter and I keep coming back to using pegboard. Mostly because it's a standard that has been around since the 1950's so it is very non-proprietary, IOW I'm not locked into clip hangars made by one manufacturer and there is a lot of variety available for hangars. I want to run 2 whole walls with the stuff about 48 linear feet in total 4 feet high. With 36 inch shelving units under it and a loft shelf suspended from the ceiling above it for bigger stuff. I was going to string a block and tackle and cargo net to make it easy to hoist junk like the lawn mower up to the loft shelf, about 7-8 feet up.

Is there anything else better and as universal as 1/4 inch pegboard available? I want to finally hang all my wood working and otherwise awkward to store tools, and clear some floor space. Any other ideas for shop organizing?

[JoeSpareBedroom]

Pegboard is great, but are there any little kids around who might run right into a peg at eye level?

[RickH]

No kids any more, the cabinet run under the pegboard will be about 12 to 16 inches deep also with 48 linear feet of countertop and shelving/ cabinets under the top. So anyone walking by will be a good 16 inches away from the pegwall. The loft shelf will protrude 24 to 32 inches away from the wall but be 7.5 feet above floor so you can stand under it, I will probably put lights on bottom side of loft shelf. Pegboard will form the "back splash" so to speak 48 inches high between the base cabinets countertop and the loft shelf bottom. Loft shelf will sit on top of the pegboard furring and lag bolted to the wall studs, with outer edge of loft shelf suspended from ceiling joists with either angle iron or just carriage-bolted studs.

[JoeSpareBedroom]

You've defeated my worst case scenario! :)

[DerbyDad03]

Have you considered Slat Wall? Much more versatile than pegboard and there are so many more accessories available, from hooks to shelves to baskets to cabinets to parts drawers etc.

Google slat wall for info.

etc.

[BillGill]

I will probably be shouted down. But I like nails. I just put up a few pieces off 1x4 and drive in nails. I find them much handier than peg board. I have peg board in the garage, it was there when I moved in. But when I started organizing I reached for the 1x4 and nails.

Bill Gill

[curmudgeon]

Smartest thing I ever did was panel all 3 walls in my garage with 1/4 inch pegboard. And when a local hardware store went out of business I bought 4 or 5 5 gal. buckets full of their commercial grade peg hooks, as well as most of their specialized tool hangers for things like shovels, rakes and the like. Can't recommend this concept highly enough!!!

[Joseph Meehan]

I don't think I would want a lawn mower (consider gasoline and oil as well) suspended in a cargo net over my head.

[JoeSpareBedroom]

I think he's saying he'd use the cargo net just to move the mower to the shelf, not store the mower in the net. However, this raises another issue. I've heard that garage rafters are not usually designed to hold a lot of weight. Disclaimer: This may be true for some garages, but not all.

[RickH]

The cargo net was just for hoisting Rubbermaid storage bins with the block rigging, I'll have a hook attachment for hoisting the mower. The mower would be drained and pushed over onto the shelf, there will be about 42-48 inches available from loft shelf to ceiling (~ 11 foot). No I wouldn't put gas on a shelf. But I want to alternate the small mower and the snowblower seasonally to get back more floor space.

[RickH]

etc.

Thanks, I thought of this but shipping is by expensive freight only because of the bulk and weight, if I can find a local supplier I may use a combination of peg and slatwall though.

[JoeSpareBedroom]

Unless you know for a fact that your garage rafters were specifically designed or modified for holding a lot of weight, you should do further research on the subject, even if it means taking some very clear, well lit photos and posting them at a site like

where we can view them easily. I'm not a home builder, but I'm sure others have enough experience to provide some advice once they see the pictures. I'd post the question here, and also in a newsgroup called rec.woodworking.

My concern is based on having a highly regarded home inspector comment on what I was storing in my garage rafters. He said most are not built for this type of thing, and the results could be disturbing.

[RickH]

It's 2x12 joists on 16 inch centers over a 22 foot span with 1/2 inch drywall, insulated. Since the loft shelf will pertrude suspended about 32 inches away from the wall and I'll angle brace it into the wall underneth I think I'm ok because all the force wont be on the upper suspension, some will be pushing into the wall under. I saw a nice old fashioned block and tackle set at Menards, that has a picture of a guy lifting an engine.

[JoeSpareBedroom]

I'd post this as a completely new subject in rec.woodworking. Subject line: "Are my rafters strong enough?" or something like that. The fact that you saw something on a package is 100% meaningless. I'm not being rude. I'm being realistic.

[RickH]

Thanks, the joist size is above, maybe someone here knows too.

[Jim Elbrecht]

-snip-

I'm with you, Bill. I'd put 1/2" sheetrock up for the fire resistance- then cover that with 1/2 plywood.

I prefer screws because they are easier to move around, but the theory is the same; Put one wherever you want- replacement is always available.

Maybe the pegboard of 30 years ago was different- but I switched because; the pegs never seemed to be quite where I wanted them to be to get things spread out to my satisfaction- pegs would drop out of their holes when I pulled a tool off without paying much attention-- I often managed to hang something too heavy for the fragile pegboard and rip the hole out.. . .

Maybe others- but I haven't used the stuff since the 70s.

Jim