Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: Use of French Cleats to hang cabinets

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Durham, N.C.
    Posts
    11

    Use of French Cleats to hang cabinets

    Afternoon all,
    Not sure if this is the correct place for this question.
    I am going to hang two sets of four cabinets each (2 across x 2 down), on each side of a window in our home, to hold light weight craft stuff.
    Total dimensions for each set is approx. 40" across by 60" tall by 14" deep., made of 3/4" plywood with 1/4" backs.
    I want to use French Cleats but am unsure about a couple of things.
    1. Will a single cleat of 3/4" thick plywood running the width of the cabinets be sufficient to hold the weight?
    2. How wide should the cleat be (4,5 6"?) and should it be ripped equally or one wider than the other?
    3. Would using a 2x4 or 2x6 instead of 3/4" plywood be better?
    I have read that a 3/4" plywood cleat can hold a considerable amount of weight, but this nagging voice in the back of my mind is saying "I do not know"!!

    Thanks in advance for your insight?
    Tony.
    Tony Strother
    SFC, U.S.Army, (Ret., DAV)
    "It's not the fall that gets ya, it's the sudden stop?!"."

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Location
    Mandalay Shores, CA
    Posts
    2,690
    Blog Entries
    26
    I think the question is not so much in the cleat material but in how many studs will you fasten the cleat to and how are they anchored?

    I would want to hit at least 3 studs on anything wide and use a good fastener. Use lags if it were to hold much weight.
    Shawn

    "no trees were harmed in the creation of this message, however some electrons were temporarily inconvenienced."

    "I resent having to use my brain to do your thinking"

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    Central NJ
    Posts
    835
    I'm interested in this too for my shop. It seems to me that hardwood would be better for this application because of the potential shearing of plys. Maybe this isn't a founded concern or someone has used ply successfully?

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    SoCal
    Posts
    22,492
    Blog Entries
    1
    I have five racks like this hanging from 3/4" plywood cleats fastened to each stud with #10 x 3-1/2" wood screws along the wall.

    Cleat Clamp Rack V2 (8).jpg

    Other items also hang from these cleats including a cubby-box full of short cut offs.

    re-vamped wood stash (5).jpg

    No problems and they have been up and had fixtures relocated all along the wall for many years.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Location
    Lewiston, Idaho
    Posts
    28,504
    Like Glenn, I my hanging cabinets are hung using cleats made of 3/4" plywood that are screwed into every stud they cross.
    Ken

    So much to learn, so little time.....

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Durham, N.C.
    Posts
    11
    Thanks to all for the info. I am going to give the 3/4" ply, 3-4 inches high x the width of the cabinets a shot and see what I get. I think it will cross at least 2, maybe 3 studs, should work. Thanks again!
    Tony
    Tony Strother
    SFC, U.S.Army, (Ret., DAV)
    "It's not the fall that gets ya, it's the sudden stop?!"."

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    McKean, PA
    Posts
    15,595
    Blog Entries
    1
    Quote Originally Posted by tony strother View Post
    Thanks to all for the info. I am going to give the 3/4" ply, 3-4 inches high x the width of the cabinets a shot and see what I get. I think it will cross at least 2, maybe 3 studs, should work. Thanks again!
    Tony
    Cut your ply 6" wide and then rip it at a 45 degree angle down the middle, you will have two matching 3-1/4 cleats.
    Lee Schierer
    USNA '71
    Go Navy!

    My advice, comments and suggestions are free, but it costs money to run the site. If you found something of value here please give a little something back by becoming a contributor! Please Contribute

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •