Spice Rack

[nelsonic]

at present our spices are not very well organised / displayed

And spread across two cupboards …

As a result I will regularly have to hunt for a particular herb/spice and it wastes a lot of time! ⏳🙃

I propose we create a permanent solution to this problem.

[nelsonic]

"Spices and herbs should be kept in airtight containers in dark, cool places." https://www.spicejungle.com/the-jungle/how-to-properly-store-spices So storing them in the cupboard is good for the "dark" requirement. Let's go with that.

[nelsonic]

I made this sketch at the time:

But then there were (many) other priorities ... 🙃 The problem persists. Finding a particular spice/herb in the cupboard always takes much more time than it needs to.

So I'm going to build a quick prototype to attempt to fix the issue.

[nelsonic]

Using 5mm Acrylic for the shelf front: https://www.leroymerlin.pt/produtos/madeiras-e-acrilicos/vidros/acrilico-e-vidro-sintetico/placa-de-vidro-sintetico-bricolagem-transparente-1000x1000x5mm-81902548.html

[nelsonic]

Made a quick prototype:

Sadly, I didn’t measure the turning angle quite right so the cupboard doesn’t close:

…

not to worry. I will make a better version with what I have learned. 👌 I also think it makes sense to build 4 of these immediately so that we can easily store + see 28 (4 x 7) glass herb/spice containers at a glance. 💭

[iteles]

Really loved the transparent strip across the front though 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

What did you use to affix it to the inside of the door? I see two short (I assume) screws and wondering if there's anything else?

[nelsonic]

Mounted with two screws for mechanical fixing and high strength double-sided (3M) tape either of which holds 7 50g jars easily

[nelsonic]

Managed to shave off a bit of material on both sides of the spice rack and repositioned it so that it fits and the door closes:

@iteles do you want to test it before I make the other 3? As you can imagine, I’m pretty keen to get this done so I don’t have to waste more time looking for herbs/spices each time I need one … But I can easily work on of the many other P1 tasks. 💭

[iteles]

The only thing I think we need to test is the distance (height) between the racks.

[nelsonic]

I tested & optimised the height between shelves. 👌 Made 3 more and installed/mounted them:

Much easier to find what I need. ✅

[iteles]

Tested!

These look fantastic and are actually incredibly useful 😅

I can't reach the top one at all and it's not quick for me to reach the third one up, so can I do a little rearranging if needed?

Bugs from testing:

• If we close the door quickly (i.e. just swing it shut), then the second from the bottom (I think) spice rack catches o of the cupboard with a bang before closing
  • We might want to consider making future racks 1cm less wide for future iterations - it looks like it wouldn't reduce the number of spices/herbs on the rack from this test and would ensure no friction on the cupboard even if the hinges for the door start to wear a little

To be done:

• On this: we show add tightening that top door hinge especially every couple of months to our systematic approach #113
• The wood glue has made a number of the bottles white (this can be scratched off the glass ones but not the plastic ones) - we just need to wait until it dries a bit more I imagine before putting in the spice bottles
• The door feels very heavy when you close it and already is a few mm's from fully closing (I'll take a photo) unless you manually close it all the way. I would suggest that we shouldn't add any more racks to his door!

[nelsonic]

@iteles thanks for the feedback. 👌

I didn't expect you to be able to reach the top ones. (though I didn't deliberately make them "too tall"...) But just knowing where the herb/spice is saves considerably more time than having to hunt for it.

As for the glue on the bottles, they are all glass and will all run out eventually and be replaced. The glue is cyanoacrylate ("Super Glue") and it's on the glass spice bottles because I put the bottles in/on the shelf before it was fully dry. 🤦‍♂️

The door does not fully close because of the bottom shelf touching the hinge. If we replace the bottom shelf it should close fully. But it's a millimetre so I didn't waste any time thinking about it.