Help with design for tool storage over a wide workbench.

[James W Glenn]

I posted this over on the Neanderthal section, but thought I'd give a try here also. My 20 foot long built-in bench looks like it will end up at around 33" deep. I have about 7 liner feet of wall space on one side of a window and and 3 feet into a corner on the other. Coming around the corner I have another 5 feet of wall space. I am looking for ideas on how build cabinets that will make use of the extra depth while still presenting tools at a comfortable distance from the bench face. I would also like to be able to close every thing up to protect my tools from humidity. I've been playing with the ergonomics a bit and am convinced that holding a a Stanley #8 at full extention is not the way to go. If I push out from the wall to have the same ergonomics as a 24" bench there will be 9" of space behind the tools. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Woody

[Dave Richards]

How about cabinets with doors designed to hold your tools. Hinge the doors so they can swing open 180° to reveal the tools. Organize tools so you aren't frequently switching from one cabinet to another. Put light weight and/or less frequently used items in the back of the cabinet.

[Charles Wiggins]

How about cabinets with doors designed to hold your tools. Hinge the doors so they can swing open 180° to reveal the tools. Organize tools so you aren't frequently switching from one cabinet to another. Put light weight and/or less frequently used items in the back of the cabinet.

More or less what I was thinking. You could place them high enough to keep the back of your benchtop available but low and deep enough to make things readily available. In addition Dave's idea about mounting tools in the doors you could also use trays or shallow drawers mounted on drawer slides to make it easier to store and reach larger items.

[Lloyd Nauss]

I built my cabinets out of 1x12 pine with a 3/4" plywood back for strength and meranti for the face. Essentially I built a box and cut the front to size on my table saw - the door depth ranges from 3/4" plus the meranti to 6" depending on what is stored in them. Some of the boxes with 6" depth doors I installed peg-board on the inside of the door to hang various tools with shallow shelving on the back face. I used a french cleat and rail system so I could adjust the cabinets along the walls. I also used the same box system but screwed the back to the ceiling and allow the front to hinge down. I did this to two cabinets - one holds my chisels/sharpening stones/carving tools et. and the other my hand saws. Some doors swing 180 as per Dave Richards posts and some swing 90 degrees, which allowed for more cabinets on the wall. 20' feet of bench is a luxury for me! Jealous...

[Brian Tymchak]

Not sure if this is along the lines you are thinking. I've seen on DYI shows cabinet hardware that facilitates people with disabilities to pull forward and down stuff stored in upper cabinets. Maybe a combination of that with the clam shell doors that have been suggested will give you that better and easier utilization of volume that you areceived looking for.