Reducing clutter under the bathroom sink

Last week I reported on the clutter problem under my bathroom sink, and how the quick installation of a sliding wire basket solved my problem. Well, partially solved it. Not all my stuff fit into the basket. So I needed to add an upper shelf.

Last night I finally got around to it and rapidly discovered why I'd put it off. Here are some helpful tips based on my experience. Irritation Factor: 11 out of 10.

• Start by buying a quarter sheet of "Russian Birch" plywood (3/8-inch thickness) from the home center ($15). Russian Birch plywood is a sweet, high-end plywood with multiple layers of birch veneer sandwiched together to provide superior stability and strength. It looks good too, because there are no pesky voids between the layers to sully the look of the edge.
• Your cabinet may not be square, so measure side-to-side at the back, and then side-to-side at the front to determine the dimensions of your shelf. If you're lucky enough to have a square cabinet, celebrate by cracking open a cold one in your mind. (You're using power tools here, so tally your recreational beverage allotment for later.)
• Decide how deep you want the shelf to be. Too deep and it blocks your view of what's underneath it. I went with a 12-inch deep shelf.
• Use a tablesaw, jigsaw or handsaw to cut the shelf out of the plywood. Err on the side of cutting the shelf a bit narrower than the actual width of the cabinet or it will bind horribly when you're installing it.
• Cut two pieces of cove moulding or quarter-round to carry the side edges of the plywood shelf. Because the plywood is quite rigid you don't need a back ledger unless you'll be storing iron ingots on the shelf.
• BEFORE you glue or screw the side ledgers in place, hold your shelf in position under the P-trap. Using a tallish pencil, not a little nub like I had, scribe an oval opening around the P-trap. Struggle to keep the pencil dead vertical or the resulting hole will be the wrong size.
• Before you cut out the oval, glue ONE of the ledgers in place. The best adhesive for this seems to be Power Grab. It works like permanent denture cream, sucking the board into position and curing so strong you don't need to bother with screws or nails. But let it cure for at least 3 hours before you horse the shelf into position. Otherwise the ledger will come flying off and you will hurl it into the hall as shards of insensitive language splinter the evening.
• TIP: If you're gluing the ledger to melamine or some other slick surface, sand it first to ensure a positive gluing experience.
• Clamp the shelf to a work surface and drill a large hole in the middle of the scribed oval. Insert the blade of a jigsaw into the drilled hole and start the motor, moving the blade out to the edge of the oval. Cut just outside the line so the hole is somewhat generous.
• Sand the inside edges of the oval. If you want to paint the shelf or put a clear finish on it, now's the time.
• Install the shelf by sharply tilting it so one edge slides in above the ledger that's already glued in place. If your oval is too small it will now get caught on the P-trap causing untold irritation, which you can only hope to forget by the time you're extremely old.
• Let the high side of the shelf drop down and rest on the installed ledger. Prop up the other side using some of the clutter under the sink (or a tall, irritating book about basic carpentry).
• Install the second ledger under the propped-up shelf. Give the glue time to cure. Remove the prop and drop the shelf into its final position. Load up.

Reader Tip

For my second bathroom cabinet I took a tip from attentive reader Steve Woods, who suggested installing symmetrical double-decker sliding baskets in awkward under-sink areas. I bought two under-sink units from Lee Valley ($44.50 each). They provide lots of storage space and tidily skirt the P-trap, sliding out on full-extension ball bearing rails and rapidly lowering blood pressure. Thanks, Steve.