Slanted Shelves work GREAT

[Groovy2]

Over the last few monthsI have been testing the use of Slanted shelves
that have No doors to stash my stuff-

the Slanted shelves has worked Great - even Better than expected-

I made several shelves that are slanted UP between 17 and 22 degrees-
so far I have not had a single thing fall off the shelves-
even with stuff stacked ( piled Up) on shelves-

the way slanted shelves work is that  because the stuff
on the shelves is forced More against the shelf when it wants
to move in a turn so stuff is fighting against gravity -

You will never get even close to 1 G in a turn so the stuff 
on the shelf just stayes in place -

going down the road viberation also forces stuff against the van wall
instead of viberating off the shelf-

Right now I am rebuilding All of my shelves to have a Slant
in them-

I have found the a slant of 17 to 20 degrees is enough to 
hold stuff in place -

if you are building shelves to install in van Remember that most
van walls are tilted inwards so take this into consideration 
when building shelf - add 1 to2 degrees more to shelf slant

Dont go with to much of a slant because it is not nessarry and
ends up waisting space up against van wall if boxes are use
to store stuff in -

for those who dont want to mess with degrees 
raise inner shelf edges by 1.5 to 2 inches Higher than shelf
edge that against van wall - for a 12 inch wide shelf -

Try the Slanted shelf - You will Like it - Jay

 

[Deb_A]

Yep, works great, until your vehicles gets knocked over by the wind or flipped in an accident, then, unless you have a sturdy bulkhead, all that stuff comes down on your head.

 

[Matildas mate]

I think i saw someone utilizing slanted shelves with wire frames of some sort in one of Bob’s profile videos but i can’t locate it to provide a link. The idea of a wire frame was to allow the user visual access so he could fine things at a glance. Anyway, i think this is a great idea and i would like to see photos if available.

 

[Matildas mate]

Here’s something that i have been thinking about since i saw the video with the guy who used slanted shelves in his van build. It may be a good alternative for someone who, for one reason or another, couldn’t build a shelf. Using a hook of the right length, one could hang a milk crate from a wall to a certain point on the crate that would cause the crate to hang at an angle, creating a slanted shelf.

Here’s a drawing of the idea...

 

[highdesertranger]

we need pics of these slanted shelves. highdesertranger

 

[Groovy2]

slanted shelf works similar to a slanted nail put into a wall to hang something on -


if nail is Slanted the stuff you hang on it tends to stay on it becauuse the stuff
has to overcome the pull gravity to fall off -

Slanted shelf has the similar effect as the nail being slanted -

for stuff to fall off shelf it has to overcome gravity (go up ) to fall off-


simple but it works amazingly well -

will post pictures soon - Jay

 

[Groovy2]

here is pictures of new slanted shelves-
shelves are 12 inches wide and 42 inches long
these have a 20 degree slant -

this amount of slant in shelves Holds stuff on shelf amazingly well-
Nothing has fallen off shelves or even moved around at all in the 
 300 miles of  stop and go travel around town 

the large middle shelf has bags with some cloths that
stay in place and have not moved at all -

the bottom shelf holds tiny baskets from walmart -
I should have put a inch more space above the baskets and higher shelf
 but I made these on a Laser cutter and did not know
how to change the spacing between the shelves at the time -

17 to 20 degrees of slant works well --

doors can be added just like a flat shelf if wanted - Jay -

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[highdesertranger]

that's pretty cool. highdesertranger

 

[wayne49]

Add a lip to the shelves, though an additional complication.
Useful for lighter, softer stuff. Clothes for example.
Keep heavier, harder stuff close to the floor.
Or avoid rolling your van.
I've only rolled a vehicle once. A race car, with all mandatory safety equipment in place, on a race track, during a sanctioned event. It was a 360 degree roll, landing with the dirty side down. I got out and took a bow for the crowd.

 

[Groovy2]

a lip on edge of shelf is not really needed but easy to add on if you want /-

what gave me idea to try this I read a article on car crash safety devices -
one device that was considered was a car seat that went UP a Slant -
going up Slant / incline / absorbed crash energy - the device worked well but
needed more space than available - Air bags was better design 

then I remembered years ago I was on a airport shuttle bus and it had 2 slanted
shelves on a rack to store luggage - i remember seeing that
luggage did not move around at all - 

anyways got me thinking about making a slanted shelf

Its really surprising that something this simple works so well -
U kind of have to See it to believe it -

Try this --
make a small temporary slanted shelf in your van just to try it out -
put some stuff on the shelf and drive around -
results will speak for them selves -

this is a new shelf made with laser cutter-
Laser is Amazing machine - makes super smooth cuts -
Im using design from Boxes PY .com 
cool site -

this shelf is going above my office table to hold eye glasses
and small stuff - going to put dividers on bottom shelf 

measures 
17 "long 
14 "tall
5 "wide

shelf slant is 18 degrees  
looks More slanted in picture than it really is -- Jay --

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[Putts]

Looks good to me. :thumb

 

[ValerieP]

This is interesting because, after spending the summer in my van, I have definitely decided that some fine tuning is needed. I saw some show dressers at IKEA that open at a slant, are not as wide as the shelves I have, and I thinkn could screw them into the walls of the van. I certainly am tired of things falling!

 

[travlinman and wife]

Please make sure every thing is bolted or tied down really good. I had 2007 chevy express with every thing bolted down. I was doing 60 when a drunk that cops said was doing about 100 or110 when he hit me in the rear. Every thing in my van came loose nothing  was bolted down when I got stopped. even the bolted down microwave came loose and hit my wife in the head which sent he to the ER.

 

[Groovy2]

Tiny shelf installed  -

good view of how much slant is in shelf -
its not much but it works well -

also shown is Eye glass holder - 
will hold 6 to eight pair at once -

wood is Nose width so glasses dont move around-
also slanted -

if anyone has better idea for glasses folder 
post a picture of it 

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