If you are considering installing a floating shelf, likely the most important decision you will need to make is the choice of the hardware you will hang that shelf with.
Your floating shelf bracket is what gives a floating shelf its ability to well… float – as well as to hold the keepsakes, plants, books, televisions, or whatever it is you want to place on it. If you choose the wrong shelf hardware, the process will become much more difficult and much less adaptable to where you would like to put the floating shelf. This can make the difference between a conversation piece that you are proud of, to something that no one notices and become an annoyance.
Sheppard Brackets is proud of the heavy duty, highly adaptable, floating shelf brackets that we manufacture right here in the USA. Some of the characteristics of Sheppard Brackets floating shelf brackets that we feel set us apart are as follows:
1. High-quality, Heavy-duty Steel Backplates and Rods.
Sheppard Brackets floating shelf brackets are cut to perfection using high-end CNCs, hand-cleaned so that any slag is completely removed, and professionally welded and individually inspected before shipment so that each bracket is solid and square and is of the highest quality. Our backplate is made of 3/16 inch heavy duty steel and the rods are ¾ inch diameter. Our rods are perfectly fit into holes in the backplate and welded 360 degrees from the back of the plate. This ensures strength and stability.
2. True Mount Anywhere Design
Sheppard Brackets floating shelf brackets are the first of their kind that are pre-fabricated to be able to mount anywhere on any wall that will fit the shelf. No more worrying about where the studs are and lining them up with only a few pre-drilled holes in the floating shelf bracket. With Sheppard Brackets MultiMount shelves using the first-of-its-kind StudLock design. With mounting points every 1/2 inch on the top and the bottom of the backplate for true mount anywhere status. Made from 3/16" steel and professionally welded, this floating shelf hardware (mounted to studs using #8 – 2 1/2 inch general purpose wood screws) will hold over 100 lbs. So, feel free to let your floating shelf hold your most treasured possessions.
3. We manufacture all the tooling you need to drill perfectly straight and lined up holes and to router a perfectly shaped and sized recess in the rear of the shelf for true invisible brackets.
Sheppard Brackets Floating Shelf Hardware
Sheppard Brackets has thought of just about everything when it comes to installing a floating shelf. We have designed and manufactured perfectly sized and squared drilling plates for each size of bracket that we sell. Using this drilling plate and drill bit will ensure perfectly placed and perfectly square holes for your Sheppard Brackets floating shelf bracket to fit into.
Sheppard Brackets Floating Shelf Tooling Kit
We also have designed and manufactured the perfectly sized router templates so that the floating shelf hardware will be completely hidden and the wood of the shelf will lie completely flush against a square wall.
Our drilling plate and router template kits come with a drill bit and a router bit for perfection in your installation process of your floating shelves.
4. Appropriate Number of Rods for Your Floating Shelf Width
Some of the other sellers of floating shelf brackets will use only two rods to support a shelf, whether that shelf is 12 inches wide or 70 inches wide. More rods equals more strength and 70 inches is a lot of width. Sheppard Brackets floating shelf brackets ensures proper spacing for ideal strength and workability. Look for brackets that have multiple rods added as the bracket gets longer. Sheppard Brackets floating shelf brackets puts the rods on almost all of our shelves at 12 inches apart: See the below table for the number of rods on each length of bracket:
5. Properly Sized Floating Shelf Bracket
It is vital to use a bracket that is sized appropriately to your shelf. It is best to have as much steel behind your shelf as possible without it showing. Think about sizing two ways: width and thickness. First consider width, which is the wide dimension of any given floating shelf bracket. Ideally your bracket should be 2”-4” shorter than your shelf width, as a rule. This will ensure that it will cross as many anchor points (studs) as possible on your wall. More studs to anchor to the shelf means more strength. Put 2 screws in each one (one in from the top of the bracket and one from the bottom). Next is thickness. This is the thickness of the wood shelf. This dimension is very important and is an integral part of what gives a floating shelf bracket its strength. You want as much height to that back plate as possible while still allowing for the router to create a recessed pocket in the back of the shelf for the floating shelf bracket to nest in. A good rule of thumb is this, keep the floating shelf bracket backplate ½ inch thinner than your shelf is thick. For example, if you are floating a 2 inch thick shelf, the ideal shelf bracket should have a backplate that is 1-1/2 inches tall. See the below table for Sheppard Brackets standard backplate heights:
At Sheppard Brackets, we manufacture brackets in 6 different backplate heights, each height comes in many different widths in each thickness. We can also custom make any floating shelf bracket that will fit your unique situation.
In short, Sheppard Brackets floating shelf brackets and tooling hardware make it so installing a beautiful and stylish floating shelf is as easy as it can possibly be. And it is as strong as you would ever need it.