I need a DVD rack

[EvilYoda]

So 1.5 months after moving, all of my movies are still in boxes and I finally want to buy/build a DVD rack. The "problem" is that I have 400-500 (I stopped counting a while back but my buying has cut back a lot) DVDs and don't want the typical shelving system. I don't have a huge apartment and a giant towering case just wouldn't work.

I've always like the design that's similar to these:

1
2

This would be pretty simple to build, I just need to get the wood cut down to size and then find someone with a drill press. I planned on originally using threaded rod inside of a pvc tube (to avoid scratching the DVDs and for aesthetics) but does anybody have any ideas? I want a smooth finish to the bars and have no idea where I could get smooth metal rods that are cheap and could be fixed in place at the ends. Dowels probably won't handle the weight required w/o bending in the middle as I'll probably be putting ~25 DVDs per level.

Thanks all, it's time to get rid of these boxes...ask fuzzybabybunny and mjuscjaskzc, my place is still a mess.

 

[Kaido]

I went with a NAS. All my Audio CDs and Video DVDs are digitized and instantly accessible from my Xbox Media Centers and Vista Media Center

 

[TwiceOver]

The one thing I would recommend is NOT getting/making one of those. I had one, it sucked.

 

[EvilYoda]

Well the problem with a NAS is cost. I'm all for new fancy electronics, but I'm still spending left and right so a NAS is out of the question right now. That and I would have to make a proper HTPC since I would be concerned about quality - and, I'd have to sell the Denon DVD-3910 which I don't want to do.

TwiceOver, why do you say that? What was the problem you experienced?

 

[Baked]

Those will get your DVDs dusty very very fast. They're also flimsy and cheaply made. Get some wood from Home Depot and make one yourself. Something like these.

 

[sdifox]

I built my own similar to what you have pictures, except I used 1x2x4 instead of those round dohickeys and for place holder I just used vhs tapes I got sitting around. I also angled it so that there is a tilt.

http://picasaweb.google.com/fr...LA#5070544465418931074

So I used 1"x4"x6' (could be 1"x6"x6', it's been a while) as the sides and the 1"x2"x4' as the back/bottom for each of the levels. From the screws you can see the angling I did. I built 7 level per unit and I got 2 of these units.

http://picasaweb.google.com/fr...LA#5070544319390042946

it holds CDs and dvds, as long as you put a stopper at the end (I use vhs) you are fine. 1200+ DVDs (+200CDs) sit on this thing. the individual shelves do sag, but I don't care.

 

[TwiceOver]

Originally posted by: EvilYoda
TwiceOver, why do you say that? What was the problem you experienced?

It seemed solid at first, but after getting some weight on it and in a few months it was wobbly side to side. Also with all that weight in a slim tower it makes it somewhat top heavy. I ended up propping up the feet so it would lean back a bit.

Also the little slider things (on mine at least) that hold the dvds to one side were somewhat loose and also positioned at the bottom of the DVD so eventually they would fall over anyway.

ALSO: The dust factor listed by Baked.

 

[EvilYoda]

Hmph, that might be the easier and quicker way to do things. That's a sweet collection, BTW.

I'll swing through the local hardware store and see what I find. I had originally wanted to use the "make it yourself" furniture wood since it's aesthetically appealing but I'm afraid that all that drilling will screw up the finish (usually just a cheap laminate).

 

[ZOOYUKA]

Originally posted by: sdifox
I built my own similar to what you have pictures, except I used 1x2x4 instead of those round dohickeys and for place holder I just used vhs tapes I got sitting around. I also angled it so that there is a tilt.

http://picasaweb.google.com/fr...LA#5070544465418931074

So I used 1"x4"x6' (could be 1"x6"x6', it's been a while) as the sides and the 1"x2"x4' as the back/bottom for each of the levels. From the screws you can see the angling I did. I built 7 level per unit and I got 2 of these units.

http://picasaweb.google.com/fr...LA#5070544319390042946

it holds CDs and dvds, as long as you put a stopper at the end (I use vhs) you are fine. 1200+ DVDs (+200CDs) sit on this thing. the individual shelves do sag, but I don't care.

Do you live in an attic?

 

[lokiju]

I went to Costco and got a bunch of the wooden wine boxes over time that were empty, they let you take them for free as long as you don't go taking all the bottles out of a full box just to get the empty box.

I think took the boxes and laid them on their side and stacked one on top of the other. I used 5 boxes total IIRC and then attached them to each other with some wood screws and also got a cheap piece of scrap wood from Home Depot that I ran down the back of it all to keep it together and give it stability. I also took apart one of the books and formed a base for the whole thing.

All in all I think it came out pretty well, I think I might stain it one of these days...

Total cost of maybe $3. It holds about 130/150 DVD's. I should build another once since it's overflowing and I have DVD's all over the place...

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: ZOOYUKA

Originally posted by: sdifox
I built my own similar to what you have pictures, except I used 1x2x4 instead of those round dohickeys and for place holder I just used vhs tapes I got sitting around. I also angled it so that there is a tilt.

http://picasaweb.google.com/fr...LA#5070544465418931074

So I used 1"x4"x6' (could be 1"x6"x6', it's been a while) as the sides and the 1"x2"x4' as the back/bottom for each of the levels. From the screws you can see the angling I did. I built 7 level per unit and I got 2 of these units.

http://picasaweb.google.com/fr...LA#5070544319390042946

it holds CDs and dvds, as long as you put a stopper at the end (I use vhs) you are fine. 1200+ DVDs (+200CDs) sit on this thing. the individual shelves do sag, but I don't care.

Do you live in an attic?

not exactly... it's a house where the roof line cuts into the 2nd floor room a bit. There is still an attic on top.

These pictures are a bit dated, projector has been replaced, so has the screen.
http://picasaweb.google.com/fr...LA#5070544147591350994

that shows you the roofline better.

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: Baked
Those will get your DVDs dusty very very fast. They're also flimsy and cheaply made. Get some wood from Home Depot and make one yourself. Something like these.

dusting is not a big deal...

 

[EvilYoda]

Yeah, dust isn't a big deal...it'll just get cleaned with everything else. I'm constantly dusting off my equipment anyway.

lokiju - I wouldn't want to use that idea for DVDs, but I might take a look at how big they are for vinyl storage...thanks!

 

[ZOOYUKA]

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: ZOOYUKA

Originally posted by: sdifox
I built my own similar to what you have pictures, except I used 1x2x4 instead of those round dohickeys and for place holder I just used vhs tapes I got sitting around. I also angled it so that there is a tilt.

http://picasaweb.google.com/fr...LA#5070544465418931074

So I used 1"x4"x6' (could be 1"x6"x6', it's been a while) as the sides and the 1"x2"x4' as the back/bottom for each of the levels. From the screws you can see the angling I did. I built 7 level per unit and I got 2 of these units.

http://picasaweb.google.com/fr...LA#5070544319390042946

it holds CDs and dvds, as long as you put a stopper at the end (I use vhs) you are fine. 1200+ DVDs (+200CDs) sit on this thing. the individual shelves do sag, but I don't care.

Do you live in an attic?

not exactly... it's a house where the roof line cuts into the 2nd floor room a bit. There is still an attic on top.

These pictures are a bit dated, projector has been replaced, so has the screen.
http://picasaweb.google.com/fr...LA#5070544147591350994

that shows you the roofline better.

I figured that was the case. I was just giving you a hard time. ;-)

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: EvilYoda
Yeah, dust isn't a big deal...it'll just get cleaned with everything else. I'm constantly dusting off my equipment anyway.

lokiju - I wouldn't want to use that idea for DVDs, but I might take a look at how big they are for vinyl storage...thanks!

Vinyl storage=milk crate

 

[EvilYoda]

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: EvilYoda
Yeah, dust isn't a big deal...it'll just get cleaned with everything else. I'm constantly dusting off my equipment anyway.

lokiju - I wouldn't want to use that idea for DVDs, but I might take a look at how big they are for vinyl storage...thanks!

Vinyl storage=milk crate

Yeah, that's what I'm currently using but the plastic just looks tacky and wooden wine crates would fit in better with my apartment and the colors. Yes, I know that I sound quite gay right now

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: ZOOYUKA

I figured that was the case. I was just giving you a hard time. ;-)

Didn't even notice

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: EvilYoda

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: EvilYoda
Yeah, dust isn't a big deal...it'll just get cleaned with everything else. I'm constantly dusting off my equipment anyway.

lokiju - I wouldn't want to use that idea for DVDs, but I might take a look at how big they are for vinyl storage...thanks!

Vinyl storage=milk crate

Yeah, that's what I'm currently using but the plastic just looks tacky and wooden wine crates would fit in better with my apartment and the colors. Yes, I know that I sound quite gay right now

so wrap them in very thin velvet felt

 

[imported_Imp]

Those pics you linked don't look that good. Too much space between shelves. Also, that's a lot of open space on the back and sides (others said it, means a lot of dust).

I know you have your preference, but just to throw in some ideas, you could use a regular bookshelf and space the shelves for just enough finger room above the cases. Thats what I do, minus the equal spaced shelves. It should be pretty easy to build too. Or buy in fact:

Bookshelf

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: Imp
Those pics you linked don't look that good. Too much space between shelves. Also, that's a lot of open space on the back and sides (others said it, means a lot of dust).

I know you have your preference, but just to throw in some ideas, you could use a regular bookshelf and space the shelves for just enough finger room above the cases. Thats what I do, minus the equal spaced shelves. It should be pretty easy to build too. Or buy in fact:

Bookshelf

lol, they were never meant to look good.

 

[Blayze]

Originally posted by: Imp
Those pics you linked don't look that good. Too much space between shelves. Also, that's a lot of open space on the back and sides (others said it, means a lot of dust).

I know you have your preference, but just to throw in some ideas, you could use a regular bookshelf and space the shelves for just enough finger room above the cases. Thats what I do, minus the equal spaced shelves. It should be pretty easy to build too. Or buy in fact:

Bookshelf

I don't use Ikea ones, but this is what I do. There is a big space between the DVDs and the shelf, but it doesn't look too bad in my opinion.

 

[TheVrolok]

For large collections/space saving I simply have a few plastic bins that I bought at Staples. The bins were designed to hold three columns of 19 CDs each, but I put all my DVDs in 5mm slim jewel cases and put 38 in each column. I used DVD Profiler to make covers for each jewel case and a catalog to page through when I want to watch something. Then I just go through the collection alphabetically to grab a movie. It doesn't really present my collection well (I have a similar number of movies) but it does save a lot of space and keeps things very organized.

 

[EvilYoda]

Thanks for the responses guys...more than likely I'll end up buying/building more than one set of racks just because I'm bound to find something better in the future. I'll just start with the simplest methods for now just to get things organized and to get the boxes out of the apartment (they're taking up a lot of room!).

 

[Pepsei]

i think i drop $150 for an atlantic dvd rack, that holds about 405, but it is adjustable so that you can cram it with different stuff.

you can get one at bestbuy.

 

[cthulhu]

I built a dvd/cd shelf a couple of years ago. It's simple but it does what I want it to. I think it will hold around 300 dvds/cds.
link