Shop Cabinet on castors?

[radhak]

I need a shop cabinet to allow some much needed organization, but did not see a place to stand it.

I had an epiphany yesterday - the utility-door (where the water-heater and AC is kept) has space in front of it. I feel it should be free of encumberances, to allow the door to open and all, but what if I have a shop cabinet with castors? I was thinking dimensions of 14" deep, 24" wide and 72" high, and might want to put simple doors on it. Would that make it too 'tippy' with castors? Would I need to reduce the height? I don't think I could increase the depth too much.

Anybody done that before, or have comments in general?

[softop41]

radhak,
Everything in my shop is on double-locking casters. I don't move things often but when I want to , I can for cleaning(only occasionally) rearrangement, etc. Be sure to use double-locking casters for anysurface you may ever want to work on; they're a bit more expensive but worth it.
YMMV,
Jerry

[radhak]

radhak,
Everything in my shop is on double-locking casters. I don't move things often but when I want to , I can for cleaning(only occasionally) rearrangement, etc. Be sure to use double-locking casters for anysurface you may ever want to work on; they're a bit more expensive but worth it.
YMMV,
Jerry

Thanks Jerry. What's the tallest castor-ed unit you have? As in, height from the ground?

I am thinking what I should do to make sure the cabinet does not tip over when rolled out - maybe a couple of bricks in the lowest shelf... ?

[LarryG]

Speaking offhand, in general I think I'd limit the height to about 3x the narrowest dimension of the footprint. For your 14" depth, that'd be 42". You could probably stretch that to 48" without much drama.

But the 72" height could work -- there are just a whole bunch of variables. How quickly you try to roll the cabinet around (slower is better), how it is loaded (the lower the CG, the better), the point at which you apply the motive force (again, lower is better), how heavy the cabinet and contents are, how good the casters are, how smooth the floor is. And probably others.

Another option that may or may not work ... build a unit that is on wheels but has one side hinged to the wall. The wheels will still allow you to swing it out of the way when you need to get into the utility closet, but the hinged connection to the wall will keep it from falling over. You might even be able to build something that would replace the door(s) entirely. Obviously this approach is NG if you need to be able to move the cabinet completely away from its parking place.

[LCHIEN]

i think Larry's advice is good. If you want to build somethoing 6 ft tall you should make it 24" deep, a 14" wide unit would tip over too easily when rolled around since you tend to push from up higher on it. Besides a 24" wide storage unit would give you a place to put smaller bench tools like OSS, disk/belt sander, scroll saw, etc.

[Mr__Bill]

ah, why not just mount a cabinet on the door? when you open the door it will move out of the way all by it's self.

[LCHIEN]

ah, why not just mount a cabinet on the door? when you open the door it will move out of the way all by it's self.

if the shleves have any depth than you can't open the door more than 90 degree. that might be a problem when it comes time to replace the Water heater.

[radhak]

Thanks guys.

I went out and measured the area again, particularly the constraints.

I think I could go upto a max depth of 16". The limitation is another door (from house to garage) abuts it, and it would not open all the way because of this cabinet. I could live with what a 16" cabinet would allow, but not less.

But, the width could increase to 29", making it more stable, i guess.

I really liked the idea of hanging/attaching the cabinet to the utility-door, but again, did not find it feasible : my workbench sits very close, leaving no 'swing space' for the door/cabinet combo. Aah well... .

if the shleves have any depth than you can't open the door more than 90 degree. that might be a problem when it comes time to replace the Water heater.

True - and I'd have been happy with even that 90 degree...

[LCHIEN]

Thanks guys.

I went out and measured the area again, particularly the constraints.

I think I could go upto a max depth of 16". The limitation is another door (from house to garage) abuts it, and it would not open all the way because of this cabinet. I could live with what a 16" cabinet would allow, but not less.

...

in that case make it no taller than 48"-50"

[LarryG]

Is there any free space available inside the closet? Even if it's only a few inches?

If there is, you could remove the door and stops, and build a rolling storage cabinet that would fit within the door opening and extend into the closet a little ways, in order to gain additional depth. The thickness of the wall would gain you about 4-1/2" of depth. If you could steal as little as 3-1/2" more inside the closet, that's 8" total. Now your 14"/16" cabinet is a much-more-stable 22"/24" deep.

Dust infiltration into the closet is one potential problem with this idea, but a strip-like "flange" applied on both sides and top of the cabinet (and the suggested locking casters to make sure it stays where you park it in the door opening) could be made to seal as well as the door itself does.

EDIT: Here's a Q&D sketch that illustrates what I'm proposing, above:

[radhak]

Wow Larry - that's a great idea. I should nip out and check that out rightaway.

[cabinetman]

Wow Larry - that's a great idea. I should nip out and check that out rightaway.

Before you get yourself out of whack, consider this. Swivel casters need to rotate to the pushed direction in order to roll. While moving in one direction, they need some turning radius to swivel in another direction. Mounting the cabinet as a door may not allow enough freedom due to the precise arc created by the cabinet being hinged, to change directions.

If you use swivel casters on a push in cabinet, they will offer resistance in making the return trip out. They could invariably lock in the "in" direction. You could probably only use rigid casters in that arrangement, which would limit directional movement.
.

[LCHIEN]

Wow Larry - that's a great idea. I should nip out and check that out rightaway.

I think you said there's a Water heater in the closet. If its gas, then you need to not seal the doorway off, it will need to be vented for combustion air for the flame. Gas or electric, there may also be some clearance issues that need to be obeyed. If the closet was intended for the water heater, then the door may already be at the clearance limit since they don't usually waste space for water heater closets. Something to think about, anyway.

[TheRic]

......
Dust infiltration into the closet is one potential problem with this idea, but a strip-like "flange" applied on both sides and top of the cabinet (and the suggested locking casters to make sure it stays where you park it in the door opening) could be made to seal as well as the door itself does. .....

Would also have the open space under since the thing would be on casters. I'm sure that area could be closed off also.

Before you get yourself out of whack, consider this. Swivel casters need to rotate to the pushed direction in order to roll. While moving in one direction, they need some turning radius to swivel in another direction. Mounting the cabinet as a door may not allow enough freedom due to the precise arc created by the cabinet being hinged, to change directions.

If you use swivel casters on a push in cabinet, they will offer resistance in making the return trip out. They could invariably lock in the "in" direction. You could probably only use rigid casters in that arrangement, which would limit directional movement.
.

Since they are double locking casters couldn't you lock them in place, acting as straight / non-swivel. Then once you get it out, you unlock it and turn it as needed.

I think you said there's a Water heater in the closet. If its gas, then you need to not seal the doorway off, it will need to be vented for combustion air for the flame. Gas or electric, there may also be some clearance issues that need to be obeyed. If the closet was intended for the water heater, then the door may already be at the clearance limit since they don't usually waste space for water heater closets. Something to think about, anyway.

I don't think having a cabinet in the door way with a flange as Larry said / showed would cut off more than a door closed. Unless there is a big gap at the bottom. A cloth skirt at the bottom would help keep the dust out, and still breath for the combustion.

[radhak]

unfortunately, i did not remember a structural impediment : the garage floor is about 10 inches lower than the house - which also means from the utility-closet (and it's door). Dunno if i want to complicate my cabinet design so much (to have the front portion lower by 10 inches than the back portion ).

Also as it stands, I see that I'd gain only about 7 inches total by discarding that door and replacing with the cabinet, and that would have it's back touching the water heater. Too close for comfort, methinks.

Instead, I'd rather go with my original, traditional cabinet and plan for heavier items in the lowest shelves and employing great care while moving the cabinet. Unattached to the door too.