Are IKEA Built-Ins REALLY Worth It?

[DonTrell]

First off - total respect for the hard work and skills involved here. I just think that if you're going to that much effort you might as well not use IKEA stuff lol.

[rabczanska]

For the book cases, three easy steps,
1. Choose the shelf heights and make them then bondo and sand all other holes prior to assembly.
2. Also way easier to primer before assembly.
3. Just buy better backing material and use one large sheet. Then add shelves.

[Purdue_Pharma]

IKEA furniture doesn’t take paint well because you’re attempting to paint a thin layer of laminate. If you are going to do it this way, scuff it up with sandpaper before applying a layer of primer that the paint can adhere to and so it doesn’t crack as easily down the road - especially if it’s being used as a bookcase. It’s way, way, way easier to do this right out of the box when everything is flat instead of having to sand a ton of vertical pieces.

[allih]

I love your designs! Just wanted to offer another option for the bookshelves - cover that backing with wallpaper or contact paper. I have white Billy book shelves as well and I picked a grey toned wood grain contact paper that coordinated with other furniture in the space and it turned out SO GOOD. It was pretty easy too and I was able to roll it on and trim it out before I secured it on the back of the shelving unit. It's been surprisingly durable too! The shelves just made a four state move and were in storage for about 5 months and they still look perfect.

[ejcastro]

The additional depth you added is probably a good thing depending on what will be stored on the shelves. This is because the shelves will bow under the weight over time w/o a fronting piece anyway. I don't know about filling in all the extra holes cuz the shelves are meant to be adjustable and I personally would like the ability to accommodate larger books or items

[Tommy]

I got IKEA wardrobes for my elderly mum. The glass fronted pull out drawers are easy to see into and slide out on rollers, previously she couldn't manage old style chests of drawers. Then being able to choose the height of rails ensures she can reach them easily. Even racks for shoes, keeps the floor clear. Higher shelves are good for off season storage, travel cases, as help can move them when necessary.

[Oddrick]

What you accomplished is really impressive. I agree that their customization options make it great when designing for others. Well done!

[BloominDaffodilseva]

We have ikea Pax wardrobes, which have been "enhanced" with trim, custom doors, height extenders and an additional section to fill in a gap. It worked beautifully. My only advice to anyone would be, if you want shaker doors, to make sure the base is thinner than you want - if you don't, the frame will make the doors thicker than Ikea allows, and they'll scrape against each other. Definitely worthwhile though, for the flexibility of the pax system.

[MelmackProductions]

They make shelf peg hole caps, so you can still have the adjustability while hiding all of the extra holes

[GiSoldier]

What future flexibility if u covered up all the holes? Staples in the shelves? I agree about maybe just building custom

[mwoz]

how did you anchor to the wall? this has the potential to tip and fall if you didn't secure it

[LSCoosCounty]

I haven’t gotten them built yet, but I have a library wall that is 1” shorter than 6 of the Havsta cupboards with glass shelves above. They are pine and the upper shelves are glass. It will cost $3, 000 before I have cupboards added to the top so they go to the ceiling and I will probably have to pay about $500 to have help assembling them since I can’t. I was quoted $16, 000 and $12, 000 for the same thing custom built except these are white which I prefer. Totally worth it.

[pikchu]

Yea we did a builtin bookshelf using ikea bookshelves and they turned out really good. However we already knew that the depths didnt match so what we actually did was just put up face boards on everything but the shelves and it still looks good. And still built a platform underneath. As well as caulking the seams in the shelves helps with the backing issue. And with stuff in the shelves you really cant see any folds at all. It is also affected by color and lighting so that may not work for everyone the same way. We jave also gotten much better at building our own shelves and cabinets and will be doing that for the next one but the flexibility of storage options.and doors is still a big advantage especially for closed cabinets

[TheUglyPrimadonna]

Great build! What was your total build time?

[christianschulz]

I just finished a master closet remodel and going for a similar design, I used melamine board from home depot. 23 3/4" depth and 8ft tall, no filling in bookshelf holes.

[NewEnglandWitch]

I just priced out wood for a custom built in library and no… I will not be doing that. I will be doing the Ikea hack. Most of what you listed as not worth it was entirely subjective and not really relative to the cost (which would have been more helpful for viewers). I’d happily fill sand and prime holes and seams given I will be anyways wood or no. But using Ikea shelves also makes my specific project 1/3 of the cost in materials alone.

[caroltz]

What a beautifully-done project! Very nice!

[graemesyme]

Looks awesome. You did a brilliant job!

[laurakastrup]

Hi. Someone who 1) worked in ikea for years as a younger person 2) have done a lot of diy wood working

Ikea is good for- in my opinion - short term projects. I’ve used Ikea in my rentals due to the lack of money (I was 18-20 years old) and lack of time to do a long term project

When I bought my house and my partner and I were getting into it most of our stuff were either second hand, bought for cheap money (I’m Danish so about 200-400dkk (27-55USD)) or IKEA, now I’m a little older I usually custom build stuff and replace the IKEA stuff, selling the ikea furniture on the same low cost used furniture website I bought my original on. Nothing wrong with using ikea. Much of it lasts a long time and is very versatile for the most part.

IKEA is basically the fast fashion of the furniture world. Lasts about 10-20 years (which is short considering true wood pieces are 70+ years) can do a lot and fit MOSTLY into most people’s homes and budget

[Abaris]

Great job, and beautiful and tasteful solutions to where the problems were.