Free build guide
How to build
industrial pipe shelves.
By Jon, Farmhouse Urban Design · Updated
How to build the industrial pipe shelf we sell: one ¾″ pine board on ½″ black-pipe brackets, with a paper towel holder under it if you want one. A drawing for every step, every part named. Free, no ads.
- Skill
- Beginner
- Time
- About an hour
- Steps
- 4
- Lengths
- 24–60″
Rather have us build it? We build it to order, from $87.
Building it later? Save this guide to Pinterest (opens Pinterest in a new tab).
Before you start
Seven lengths, one build.
The pipe shelf comes in seven sizes: 24″ × 8⅝″ × 3″, 30″ × 8⅝″ × 3″, 36″ × 8⅝″ × 3″, 42″ × 8⅝″ × 3″, 48″ × 8⅝″ × 3″, 54″ × 8⅝″ × 3″ and 60″ × 8⅝″ × 3″. The steps are the same at every size; the parts’ sizes change.
Three ways to set it up
Two brackets
Shelves up to 48″ long.
Three brackets
54″ and 60″ long, the third in the middle.
With a towel holder
Hung under the board, just outside an end bracket.
- 01
Find the studs first
Space the brackets along the wall to land on studs where you can, keeping the end ones well in from the board’s ends. Where you can’t, use anchors rated for the weight of the shelf and what goes on it.
- 02
Two brackets or three
A shelf up to 48″ long takes two brackets; 54″ and 60″ shelves take three, the third in the middle. A towel holder is an option on any length.
- 03
Know the skills
It’s a beginner’s build: one board cut, sanded and finished, and the pipe screwed together by hand. By our shop’s estimate it’s about an hour of work, plus the finish’s drying time.
The parts
Meet the parts.
Each group is built on its own, then goes into the pipe shelf in the steps below. Drawn from our model at 36″ long, all to one scale.
01
Board
¾″ pine, its front edge and ends eased, sanded and finished.
02
Bracket
½″ black pipe: a floor flange at the wall, a nipple, and a cap on its front end, with a one-hole strap holding the board. Two, or three at 54″ and 60″.
03
Towel holder (optional)
A floor flange under the board just outside an end bracket, a short nipple down, a 90° elbow and a longer nipple along the wall, capped.
Tools & materials
What you’ll need.
A checklist: tick each one off as you gather it.
Tools
Measure and cut
Drill and fit
Sand and finish
Install and stay safe
Materials
Wood
Pipe and fittings, ½″ black
Towel holder (optional), ½″ black
Screws, cleaning and finish
Step by step
How it goes together.
Each picture shows the pipe shelf so far, drawn at 36″ long: the parts the step adds are shaded, and the ones already built are ghosted.
Step 01 / 04Board 
01Cut and finish the board
Rip a pine 1x8 to the shelf’s depth and cut it to length. Ease the front edge and ends, then sand it and finish it.
Tip
Test the stain on an offcut first: on pine, a pre-stain conditioner evens it out.
Step 02 / 04Brackets 
02Assemble and hang the pipe brackets
Wipe the pipe and fittings clean. Thread each nipple into its floor flange and cap its front end. Screw the flanges to the wall, level with each other, into studs where they land.
Tip
Black pipe comes coated in oil: wipe every piece clean before you handle it, or it marks the board and the wall. Hold each flange level and mark its holes through it before you drill.
One we built. Step 03 / 04Board on 
03Set the board on the brackets
Lay the board on the pipes, between the flanges and the caps, and strap it to each pipe from underneath with a one-hole strap.
Tip
The pipes hold the board front to back, between each flange and cap, so it should drop in between them; if it’s tight, back each cap off a turn. The straps only hold it down, so short screws are all they need.
One we built. Step 04 / 04Towel holder 
04Add a pipe paper towel holder (optional)
Screw a floor flange up under the board just outside an end bracket, halfway back, so the roll clears the wall. Thread the short nipple down into it, the elbow onto that, then the long nipple along the wall toward the middle, and cap its end.
Tip
Leave the bar’s end cap hand-tight: it comes off to change the roll.
One we built.
Built for you
Build it yourself, or we’ll build it.
Free build guide
This page
- Every step, in order, with a picture
- The parts, named
- Tools and materials
- A tip for each step
Built for you
From $87
- Built to order in Flushing, Michigan, in any of the 7 sizes
- Raw wood, oil-rubbed, stained or painted
- Shipping to the lower 48 included
Questions
Good to know.
Something else? Email sales@farmhouseurbandesign.com. We reply usually within an hour or two, always within 24 hours.
How does the board stay on?
It rests on the pipes between each flange and its cap, which hold it front to back, and a one-hole strap under each pipe holds it down. No screws go through the top.
Can I add a pipe paper towel holder?
Yes: step 4 builds one from the same black pipe, hung under the board just outside an end bracket. On a shelf from us it’s a custom option: ask for it with your quote.
What size pipe do the shelves use?
½″ black pipe: each bracket is a ½″ floor flange at the wall, an 8″ nipple and a cap, with a one-hole strap holding the board. The shelf stands 8⅝″ from the wall.
How do you clean black pipe for shelves?
Black pipe comes coated in oil. Wipe every piece clean with a degreaser or mineral spirits and rags, wearing gloves, before you handle it, or it marks the board and the wall.
How do you hang pipe shelves?
Screw each bracket’s floor flange to the wall, level with the others, into studs where they land, with #10 × 2½″ screws. Where you can’t reach a stud, use anchors rated for the weight of the shelf and what goes on it.
Is there a guide for a shelf with no brackets on show?
Yes: our rustic floating shelf hides its wall cleat inside a hollow knotty-pine box. Its guide is free too. How to build floating shelves.
Can I buy one built instead?
Yes: we build it to order in seven lengths from 24″ to 60″, raw, oil-rubbed, stained or painted, with its pipe brackets. Wall screws and anchors aren’t included. See the pipe shelf.