Something I guess I picked up from learning all about electrical code is, one must be mindful of safety issues when installing, well… just about anything. You have to think about, not just what is likely, but what is possible.
One safety item you often see is a little bracket that comes with taller build-it-yourself furniture. The idea is, a little kid might pull out the drawers and start climbing up, not realizing that the thing might tip over and land upon them.
Something similar came to my attention a few weeks ago, I was in a client’s attic and there was a tall (as in 8 feet) old bookcase up there, laden with big books. The bookcase was less than a foot deep, and frankly not terribly stable, and it would not have taken much to tip the thing over onto someone.
So I thought about installing an Ikea type safety bracket but . . . where to attach it? Behind the bookshelf there was a chimney (brick wall) and a type of insulating wallboard on either side.
I didn’t really want to go drilling into 100-year-old brickwork, and the insulation, well, who knew how thick or strong it was.
I ran this by my guy Jack at the Home Depot pro desk, and he suggested finding the studs under the insulation and nailing maybe a 2×4 to THAT and then attaching my safety bracket. Sounded good to me.
Well when I got back on site I looked up (perhaps seeking divine handyman guidance) and there I saw– some perfectly good roof joists just sitting up there with nothing to do. So I gave up on the 2×4 idea and just drilled a few pilot holes in the existing joists and more in the bookcase itself, screwed in some eye screws, and secured it all with zip ties.
Not sure of the exact weight capacity of zip ties generally (note I doubled them up), but the goal was just to slow the tip-over of the shelf enough to give one time to get the hell out of the way. That said, I tried to tip it a little and the ties held strong, so . . . close enough anyway. Way better than what they had, which was a human sized mouse trap. Sometimes I am so clever I just can’t stand myself 🙂
