Cabinet under a sloping roof: angle, sloping panel and support battens

Transcript

The spoken text of the video, per chapter.

A cabinet that follows the slope0:00

Under a sloping roof there is almost always a cabinet that does not belong there. Too low, too deep, or with a shelf you cannot reach. In this video we build a cabinet that follows the slope, using two numbers.

The attic cabinet0:14

We pick the attic cabinet. It has a straight section and a sloping section, left or right. By default fifty five high, forty wide, twenty deep.

High on the left or the right0:25

First the direction. Does your roof fall away to the right or to the left? Switch it and the whole cabinet follows: the layout and the sloping panel. Look at your own room from the doorway and you will know for sure.

Low height sets the angle0:41

Low height is the height on the low side, where the roof comes closest to the floor. Together with the normal height that fixes the angle. Set it lower and the slope gets steeper; you see it in the drawing right away.

A shelf with nothing under it0:55

Note the red message. The slope now cuts off the top shelf before it reaches the divider, and nothing supports it on that end: a sloping panel takes no shelf supports. Move the shelf down, or click Add divider. We set the low height back to thirty two.

Straight section1:15

If the slope does not start right at the high side, Straight section covers that: the top runs straight for a stretch and only then starts to slope. That straight piece is its own part in the cut list.

The sloping panel in the cut list1:28

In the cut list the sloping top is its own part. The size you see is the size of the panel itself, in its own plane, not its projection on the floor. On this cabinet that is more than eight inches.

The divider under the slope1:43

Now look at the layout. Under the slope there is a divider, and the shelves sit between that divider and the tall side. That way every shelf rests on a panel at both ends, and they are all the same length. On the low side an open compartment remains, for things that lie flat or need little height.

Support battens instead of dowels2:02

You cannot dowel a sloping panel onto a side wall; the angle is wrong for a square joint. That is why the build manual lists support battens under hardware: two strips against the inside of the side panels, and you screw the sloping panel onto them.

The assembly steps2:20

In the assembly those are two separate steps: first the battens on their line, measured from the bottom, then the sloping panel on top. That way the panel ends up at the right height by itself.

The angle in degrees2:34

The angle is given in degrees. Set your saw to it, or mark it out with a sliding bevel. Cut the ends of the sloping panel and the top edge of the battens with the same setting, in one session, so they are guaranteed to match.

Tip: measure the pitch yourself2:49

Two things from practice. Measure the pitch yourself with a digital angle finder against the roof lining; the builder's drawing is rarely right. And leave three quarters of an inch of clearance at the top, or you will never tip the cabinet upright under the roof.

Next video: pull-out pantry3:05

Two heights and a direction, and the slope carries through everything: the angle, the panel, the battens and the drilling plans. In the next video we build a pull-out pantry. Open cutlistlab.com and pick the attic cabinet.