Wine is often displayed in attractive racks that are designed to be securely mounted to a wall. Because wine is heavy, most wine racks are also designed to carry a lot of weight, and also to hold the wine so that the corks are kept moist. This means that the rack should be level and mounted according to the manufacturer's directions. In all cases, a wall-mounted wine rack should be screwed directly into studs or other substantial wall materials so it won't fall and cause injury or damage. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Examine the installation requirements of the wine rack to determine the load weight of the rack when it is at capacity. This load weight will be your guide to the type of mounting cleat you will need to support that weight on your wall.
2. Select a French cleat--type mounting system that is designed to hold the capacity of the wine rack. A traditional French cleat is a board that is cut lengthwise at a 45-degree angle. The bottom half, or upward-pointed board, is mounted to the wall studs with the pointed edge away from the wall. The upper half --- or downward-facing part --- of the cleat is mounted to the back of the cabinet or object. Modern cleat systems are often made of metal but function in a similar manner.
3. Determine the location where you want to place the wine rack. Mark the width of the rack on the wall in light pencil. Move a stud finder between the marks to locate the studs behind the drywall. Mark each stud.
4. Look at the back of the wine rack. If the rack has a solid wood back, you should mount the cleat one-third or one-quarter the length from the top edge. If the rack has an open back, you may need to mount the cleat at the top edge or where there is enough substantial wood to screw in the cleat. Measure a level horizontal line, and mount your downward-facing cleat to the back of the wine rack.
5. Transfer your height measurements to the wall. Mark where you want the top of the wine rack to be and how far down the cleat is located on the back of the rack. Draw a horizontal line between your width measurements on the wall, and mount your upward-facing cleats to the wall studs. Screw into each stud with long wood screws so the cleat is very securely mounted.
6. Add rubber bumpers to the bottom corners of the back of the wine rack if the cleat will cause the wine rack to hang unevenly or tip forward along the top front. The bumper should be the thickness of the cleats added together. Bumpers can be a screw type or have an adhesive, and they are commonly sold in home improvement stores as bumpers for glass-top tables or as rubber lifts.
Tags: wine rack, back wine, back wine rack, wine rack, cleat will, each stud, horizontal line
