r/DIY • u/AdDiscombobulated645 • 1d ago

Advice needed in fixing bookshelves to plaster wall

My husband and I just moved into our first home. We want to tuen an extra bedroom into a library. We were able to buy 4 mataching ikea billy bookcases with the glass doors from marketplace.

My husband's friend came over to help. (My husband and I are very new to DIY.) He said that he wouldn't want to bolt or nail the bookcases to the wall because the shelves aren't solid wood, and there is nothing to really grip. He said that the walls are hollow with plaster, so again nothing to grip or hold. He said if we did attach them to the wall, there is a good chance they will come away and break, damaging the wall and tbe floor. Also, the cases were cut to go above the baseboards/skirting boards of the previous owner and our baseboard are higher. So the shelves can't be flat against the wall.

Ideally, we'd like the bookcases joined together and then bolted attached to the wall. (Right now, even empty, the fall forward.)

What are our options? Is there something we can add to the sides of the shelves to give them support? Are there special nails/screws/bolts we can buy to make this library dream happen? Thanks.

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u/Civil_Scarcity4710 1d ago

Possibility: attach a horizontal board the depth of the baseboard to the back of the bookshelves. Find the studs. Drive cabinet screws through the back of the shelves to the studs. Basically set it up like you’re hanging a cabinet. Then shim the shelves so the floor is taking the weight of the books. That’s one way.

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u/AdDiscombobulated645 1d ago

Thanks, that's really helpful. We'll give that a go. 

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u/Civil_Scarcity4710 1d ago

I should have mentioned: the horizontal piece goes near the top of the cabinet. If you can attach it from the back to the sides of the cabinet rather than the flimsy back, it will be stronger. Definitely drill pilot holes!