Pegboard and grid systems

[Fat Guy]

Has anybody installed pegboard or a grid system in a home kitchen? I'm considering it as a way to de-clutter. I'd love to see photos, hear wit and wisdom, etc.

[weinoo]

Pegboard, a la Julia?

I don't know if I'd call this a grid system, but IKEA has some cool stuff for hanging kitchen items...

[Fat Guy]

Those are very sharp looking. I don't think I can do the exact same thing because the protrusion of something like a paper-towel roll is probably too much. I'm hoping to mount this in the kitchen entryway, so I don't want to narrow that passage any more than is absolutely necessary. That's part of why I find pegboard tempting: it has a very low profile so even when you add small kitchen tools on hooks you only come out three or so inches.

[JimS]

If you go with pegboard, unless there's something under it to keep you from getting too close like a counter, you'll have to be very careful not to snag the pegs on your sleeves and pants pockets as you walk by. When you do snag them, best case scenario is the peg falls off and the item drops. Worse case, you tear through the peg board and leave an unsightly crack in the material.

I'd consider gridwall instead. It's more durable, attractive and kitchen friendly. Plus you can get pegs that actually lock on (although most are held by gravity just like the ones for peg board). There's also a wide range of baskets and shelves that can be attached.

I owned a retail store for a couple of decades, and we got all of our grid, slat, pegboard and accessories for them from these folks: http://www.specialtystoreservices.com/product.aspx?category=3242&link=

[andiesenji]

How high is the ceiling in the entryway? You could mount the hanger rails up near the ceiling for long things, such as ladles & etc., with a panel of pegboard below it.

I don't have pegboard in my current kitchen but I did have in previous kitchens.

The first time my husband painted it and add the outlines of the various implements so I would know where to hang them.

For the last one, I got the pre-finished pegboard "decorative" pegboard that was washable and was supposed to repel dust (didn't completely) and came with cut-to-fit "frames" so there would be no raw edges.

That granite look is new - the finish I had was a herringbone pattern, pastel tints of earth tones that went with the kitchen.

Edited April 24, 2011 by andiesenji (log)

[Mjx]

I installed the beginnings of a hanging system like Mitch's, but bailed on it, when I realized that an excellent exhaust fan--which we don't happen to have--is necessary to keep the exposed tools free of a film of fat (and the dust that sticks to it). Definitely something to keep in mind when considering anything of this sort.

[Fat Guy]

The entryway is 9' high so there is plenty of headroom. I hadn't thought to use some of it for deeper items, though I guess my comfortable standing reach is only to about 7' (a couple of inches less for my wife).

The width of the kitchen entryway is 36", so I think it could still be comfortable with smaller tools hanging there.

[weinoo]

Before I'd hang anything in the entryway, I'd use it for a month or two and see how many times you or anyone else bangs into it.

[David A. Goldfarb]

I had a grid system that I used and transported from one apartment to the next for years, and it was very useful. I like having things out and accessible. It didn't fit the wallspace in our current place so much, so I left it at our last apartment, and our cookware collection has become more stable, so now I just have ordinary screws and anchors to hang the pots and pans I like to keep out.

[andiesenji]

The entryway is 9' high so there is plenty of headroom. I hadn't thought to use some of it for deeper items, though I guess my comfortable standing reach is only to about 7' (a couple of inches less for my wife).

The width of the kitchen entryway is 36", so I think it could still be comfortable with smaller tools hanging there.

Many people don't consider using the upper space on walls for either storage or hanging decorative items. That is valuable space that is often wasted. If you look at old country cottages (being a fan of the "country" decor, I have looked at a lot) they use the entire wall for hanging things, and often include a little folding wood step "ladder" for reaching the higher items.

In my former home, I had long shelving, with a small lip on the front edge, to prevent things from falling off in an earthquake, all around the dining room 12 inches below the ceiling, where I displayed my collection of tea pots. I had them installed by a carpenter with crown molding BELOW the shelves as part of the "invisible" support system.

Everyone who came to my home commented on how nice it looked.

Of course, I was much younger then and could get up and down a stepladder to get at the tea pots easily. And I had a housekeeper to do the dusting.

It isn't practical now but I did love the look of it and the display did not take up valuable space.

[weinoo]

Many people don't consider using the upper space on walls for either storage or hanging decorative items.

Gotta go up, for sure. Especially in a city apartment.

[Peter the eater]

Three words . . . rare earth magnets.

[Fat Guy]

Ooh. Interesting. Please say more.

Posted from my handheld using the Tapatalk app. Want to use eG Forums on your iPhone, Android or Blackberry? Get started at http://egullet.org/tapatalk

[andiesenji]

Magnets are a good idea, you can mount powerful magnets on a wall and hang stuff from them or you can get

magnetic boards for which you can get hooks, clips, note holders, towel holders &etc., are mounted directly to the walls so there is no need for the "hook gap" as you would have with peg board.

We had these in my office (before I retired) and we had various shapes and sizes, depending on the room - office, examining rooms, x-ray room, lab, etc., and the space available.

My boss had a big round black one mounted above the credenza in his office.

The company we used is no longer in business but the product was essentially the same as HERE.

[Lisa Shock]

Ikea has magnetic strips that are mounted in stainless strips designed to be wall-mounted. I use one to keep my 22" rocker pizza knife safe.

[David A. Goldfarb]

In my bottom photo above, I've got a mag strip over the sink on the left to hold the big cleaver, a 12" chef's knife that doesn't fit in any of my blocks, and a couple of spatulas, and long mag strips aren't terribly expensive, for things that stick to them.

[andiesenji]

Ikea has magnetic strips that are mounted in stainless strips designed to be wall-mounted. I use one to keep my 22" rocker pizza knife safe.

I've got edge guards on mine and it hangs from two hooks on the end of a wire shelving unit.

I tried it on two parallel magnetic knife bars but after bumping it once, while reaching for another blade, I put it in a more secure mount. It fell onto the butcher block counter and made a deep cut into it.

The mag bars are fairly strong but this blade does not seem to cling to the magnets as others do.

Is this one similar to yours?

Edited April 24, 2011 by andiesenji (log)

[RobertCollins]

I don't know if this is what you call a grid system but this is in my pantry. The wall hanging section is 4'x4', it has an 18"x 5' three shelf wire shelf below for Stock Pots, micro wave,IE heavy things that I don't need in the kitchen every day. The wall rack was purchased at a local retail fixture shop. It stands off the wall about an inch and a half.

[IndyRob]

Much more expensive probably, but potentially much better looking, you could look at storeWall. They have a good assortment of things you can hang on it including baskets, shelves, magnetic strips, wire grids, a variety of hooks, a garment hanger for your chef's jacket, and a garden hose hanger for cleanup.

Edited April 24, 2011 by IndyRob (log)

[gfweb]

This little rack holds about 8 pans in a very small space. Disadvantage is that some pots are atop others, but I like the thing.

[Fat Guy]

I have a ceiling-mounted pot rack elsewhere in the kitchen. I'm thinking of a grid-type system for all the smaller tools that are now a huge messy jumble all over the place: canisters taking up counter space, piles taking up drawer space, a few interfering with the smooth operation of the pot rack...

[Andrew Fenton]

I don't know if this is what you call a grid system but this is in my pantry. The wall hanging section is 4'x4', it has an 18"x 5' three shelf wire shelf below for Stock Pots, micro wave,IE heavy things that I don't need in the kitchen every day. The wall rack was purchased at a local retail fixture shop. It stands off the wall about an inch and a half.

I'm just impressed that you have a hacksaw as a kitchen tool.

[Anna N]

I don't know if this is what you call a grid system but this is in my pantry. The wall hanging section is 4'x4', it has an 18"x 5' three shelf wire shelf below for Stock Pots, micro wave,IE heavy things that I don't need in the kitchen every day. The wall rack was purchased at a local retail fixture shop. It stands off the wall about an inch and a half.

I'm just impressed that you have a hacksaw as a kitchen tool.

Doesn't everyone? I certainly do.

[RobertCollins]

Actually, I asked my butcher where in Seattle was a wholesale supplier for his equipment because I needed a bone saw. He told me and then told me to wait a minute, A couple minutes later he brings that one out and tell me they don't need them often anymore as they have band saws now. Then he told me to see him when I needed new blades.

[weinoo]

I have a ceiling-mounted pot rack elsewhere in the kitchen. I'm thinking of a grid-type system for all the smaller tools that are now a huge messy jumble all over the place: canisters taking up counter space, piles taking up drawer space, a few interfering with the smooth operation of the pot rack...

Can we see pictures of your walls? Then we might be able to offer even better solutions .