Solid Red Oak Floating Shelves
Step-by-step guide made from Indy Farm Life's YouTube video.
Build heavy-duty, solid wood floating shelves by planing down rough red oak beams. The shelves are mounted using Shepherd Brackets for a clean, hidden-hardware look, and finished with a dark walnut stain.
- Difficulty: intermediate
Safety
- Always wear hearing protection when operating a thickness planer, as they are extremely loud.
- Use caution when operating power tools like planers, table saws, and miter saws.
Must know before you build
- Start with very shallow passes on rough, cupped lumber to avoid straining the planer.
- Mount brackets to studs *before* tiling for flush fit and easier installation.
- Widen bracket holes slightly if misaligned; never force the shelf to avoid sticking.
- Use a 13/16 inch auger bit for deep, clean bracket rod holes.
- Router a recessed pocket in the shelf back to fit brackets flush against tile.
- For planers without dust collection, vent chips directly outside with a long hose.
Tools
- Thickness Planer (DeWalt, DW735)
- Hearing Protection (Over-ear hearing protection)
- Table Saw
- Miter Saw
- Cordless Drill/Driver (DeWalt)
- Drilling Template Guide (optional)
- Auger Bit (Wood Owl, 13/16 inch)
Materials
- Red Oak beams (2, Red oak lumber, Roughly 4x10)
- Shepherd Brackets (2, Floating shelf brackets)
- Wood Stain (Penetrating Stain, Minwax, Special Walnut 224)
- Polyurethane finish
Step by step
Step 1: Plane the Red Oak Beams
Run the rough red oak boards through the thickness planer multiple times to mill them to a smooth, uniform thickness.
- Set Up and Safety. Put on hearing protection. Adjust the planer for a very shallow first pass, especially if your wood is cupped or warped.
- Watch out: Thickness planers are extremely loud; always wear proper hearing protection.
- Plane the Boards. Feed the board through the planer, alternating sides with each pass. Continue making shallow passes until both faces of the board are smooth and flat.
- Tip: To flatten a cupped board without a jointer, you can build a simple planer sled. However, for this project, simply planing shallow passes is sufficient.
Step 2: Drill Holes for Brackets
Mark the locations for the support rods on the back of the shelf using a bracket as a template, then drill the corresponding deep holes.
- Mark Hole Locations. Lay the bracket on the back edge of the shelf. Center it vertically and horizontally, then use a pencil to mark the center of each rod location.
- Drill the Holes. Use the provided drilling template guide to start each hole, ensuring the drill is straight. Drill about 3 inches deep, then remove the guide and finish drilling each hole to its full depth using a Wood Owl or similar auger bit.
- Tip: The manufacturer recommends a Wood Owl auger bit for drilling clean, deep holes for the brackets.
Step 3: Test Fit the Shelves
After drilling all the holes, slide the shelves onto the wall-mounted brackets to check for a proper and level fit before finishing.
- Slide Shelves onto Brackets. Carefully line up the holes on the shelf with the rods on the wall-mounted bracket. Gently slide the shelf all the way on until it sits flush against the wall.
- Tip: If a hole is slightly off, you can use the drilling guide again to carefully widen the opening in the direction needed.