How I added 13 square feet to my pantry for only $63!

When we bought our home three years ago, our kitchen was really tiny.  There was a laundry room and “pantry” area beside it that led out to the garage.  We ended up knocking out the walls for that room, closing in the coat closet by the front door, and adding all of that space to the kitchen.  But I still just don’t have enough shelf space to store food for all eight of us.

I saw a post in the past about a roll out pantry that goes beside the refrigerator.  Our old fridge was too wide to do something like that, but we recently got a new fridge that was thinner, leaving us with about 8 inches of space between it and the wall.  So I decided a few weeks ago that it was time to get to work and make a roll out pantry for our home.

I started with a set of plans from Classy Cutter, but modified them to fit our family’s needs.  We need to have enough room for 2 rows of cans, as well as larger boxes of pasta, so I doubled the depth of the shelves to eight inches instead of four.  So instead of buying 1×4 pieces of wood, I got 1×8.  I just bought the cheapest wood available, as I’m on a pretty tight budget.  I also chose to make the bottom two shelf spaces slightly taller than the rest, so I can fit in larger items.  For the back I got a 4×8 piece of thin hardboard, it was about $12 and was in the plywood section.  Be sure to check out Classy Clutter to get the full details about how to make your own, their directions are really easy to follow!

Rollout pantry extra food storage

Since I already had all of the screws and nails on hand, all I had to pick up was the wood, casters, dowels, and handle.

Supplies I purchased:

3 1x8x12 boards (cut on site into 2 64″ boards and 8 20.5″ boards)

1 sheet of 4×8 hardboard (cut down to 31.5 x 64 on site)

4 casters (2″ stationary 125 wheels, don’t get the swivel wheels, they make it hard to roll out the shelf)

7 dowel rods (I used 3/8″ rods, and just cut them down to size at home with a hacksaw)

1 cabinet handle (There are tons to choose from under $3.00 at Home Depot)

shelf wood

hardboard

Dowel rods

casters

handle

 

I didn’t want to bother with cutting each piece myself, so I had the associates at Home Depot cut them all for me.  Our local store will make several cuts for free, although they may charge a small fee for multiple cuts (ours is $0.25 each for anything over 2).  Even with the additional charge, it’s still worth it to me because I don’t have to spend the time to do it myself at home.  (Bonus: They didn’t charge us for the extra cuts, so I saved a few dollars!)

I’ve posted a few pictures below, but I will give you two big tips.  Make sure the wood you get from the store is STRAIGHT.  I thought our wood was, but once I started putting the shelf together, I realized there were some bowed pieces.  It still came out okay, but it took some extra screws and elbow grease before it was all said and done.  Also, for cheaper wood, be sure to check to cull lumber section of your store.  Home Depot often sells leftover cuts of wood for $0.51, so you may be able to save some more money that way.
I chose not to paint or decorate the shelf, as I really don’t care what it looks like, as long as I have the extra space for my food.  Maybe I’ll paint it eventually, but for now, I’m fine with the plain wood look.

For about $60 and a few hours of my time, I was able to add over 13 square feet of storage space to my kitchen area.  That’s a deal in my book!
Cost of supplies:

3 1×8 boards: $30
7 dowels: $7
Hardboard: $13
4 casters: $10
Handle: $3

Total spent: $63
Is your pantry area too small for your family?  What do you do when you can’t fit everything in the space you have now?
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