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A customised solution for storing garden tools on a brick wall.
The project
I needed a convenient, strong, and dry storage solution for my garden tools and after stumbling across StorEase I knew its heavy-duty, rust-proof, highly customisable set up was exactly what I needed.
Steps
Step 1
I needed a space to store my garden tools and wanted them to be accessible enough that any could be collected, used, and returned to their rightful place without having to move various tools around. I had recently been playing with some pegboard ideas, so thought that's where I would go with this. I calculated the dimensions available on the wall and mapped out the space on the grass to arrange the tools and see them laid out and organised.
Step 2
I then took a trip to Bunnings and had a look in the storage and shelving aisles. I needed something that would work for the heavy weight of some of my tools as well as remain rust-free over time (as the storage is on an exterior brick wall, under a deck on the Coffs Coast - lots of sub-tropical humid weather, and close to the beach).
Rack-It wasn't flexible enough for my needs and Pinnacle and other pegboard systems just didn't seem like the right choice long-term.
I stumbled across the StorEase hooks and decided they were sufficiently heavy-duty for the project. Then when I discovered their rack system could be individually mounted and cut to size, I was sold. I stood in the aisle looking at the different types of hooks available and made a plan for which hooks I'd use for which tools.
Step 3
My first step at home was to clean out the storage area, ready for work. Here is the before photo - what a mess!
Step 4
Once clean, I started installing one rack at a time. Each rack has six holes to mount with screws (two directly above each other at each end and two directly above one another). The racks come with really good quality screws and 8mm masonry wall plugs.
I drilled a pilot hole with my masonry drill and 8mm bit for the provided plugs. Chose one of the top end drill holes of the rack first, then swivelled the rack on the wall to level it before marking a drill hole at the other end of the rack and fixing that.
Once the two levelling screws were fixed I drilled the other four pilot holes with a 4mm masonry bit through the holes in the rack so they were correctly placed. It seems to be a more accurate method for me than marking the holes with a pencil, measuring them out, or taping them.
I removed the two fixing screws and took the rack off the wall, then using the 8mm masonry bit, drilled larger pilot holes on top of the smaller ones I marked out earlier. Then fixed all six screws back in place.
After the placing of each rack, I added in the hooks and tools for that section before placing and securing the next rack above it to ensure the rack had enough space between them to fit the tools. I started with the rack at the bottom right adding three above it, then the top left followed by the bottom left.
I also added a bracket in the middle of the wall to mount my portable swivel wall fan for when I'm working in the area. The types of hooks and accessories I used are below.
Step 5
All four racks on the right side use two Dual Utility Hooks. Bottom right houses three parts of my metal hammock frame. Second bottom right; the bottom hooks hold a crowbar and the top extended bars hold three different sized rakes and a Cyclone Hole Digger. Second top right holds a heavy shovel on the bottom hooks and a variety of tillers and weeders on the top racks. On this rack there are also three Cradle Hooks. The Cradle Hooks sit lower than the bracket which means it allows for additional hanging space. They hold the remaining two posts for the metal hammock brackets. The top right houses a post shovel on the bottom hooks and the top racks hold a broom, soil leveller, and a hoe.
The top left rack uses (from left):
- A dual utility hook housing a shovel and a pick
- A horizontal hook housing a mattock
- A 10cm double hook holding a fork
- A horizontal hook housing a Fiskars Weed Puller
- Three more double hooks with a large, short shovel; a cyclone grass edger, a long handled hoe.
The bottom left rack uses (from left):
- A wheelbarrow hook (I didn't end up wanting to hang the wheelbarrow so I kept the hook and used it for my kneeling mat)
- A horizontal hook for my fruit picking attachment
- A 20cm double hook for my step stool and dustpan and brush.
Step 6
Another important detail is installation of the hooks onto the brackets as the instructions do not provide clear directions. The hooks can be inserted anywhere along the length of the bracket. You slip the top tongue into the top groove at an angle, push the bottom middle tongue into the bottom groove with the two outside tongues at the bottom on the front of the groove, then pull the hook vertically downwards until you hear a click which locks them into position. It's important that the direction of pull is perpendicular to the rail otherwise the hook may twist sideways instead of locking. I found using small taps with a rubber mallet helped with alignment.
Tools and materials
Materials used in the project:
Tools used in the project:
How to build a garden tool storage rack
More inspiration for tool storage
Experienced community member Jess (@prettyliving) made custom heavy-duty brackets for floating timber workbench and shelves in her garage.
Pegboards allow you to display and store tools easily while maximising storage space. In a garage storage makeover, Lauren (@lcooksey88) used Pinnacle pegboards to mount her tools, as did Ratboy with his workshop build.
Afternoon @Emma-Lee
So handy! And way better then having your tools lined up against the wall as I have 
lol
I love the way you explained about how you mounted the rails and made them level. Thats a perfect way of doing it.
The idea is filed away for future use, tho the one I have in my head is made from timber. But maybe not as your project really fits all the bits I want.
Nice work
Dave
