Anyone have Ikea Expedit bookcases?

[Sagginit]

i looked at these a few months ago. i passed and got two cheap shelf units from target since it was just for storage in the spare room. my brother and his fiance had an ikea bookshelf for almost ten years though and i think their stuff must be more durable. i still was thinking of one of these for my living room but it says it needs to be bolted to the wall and i can't do that as i'm renting. anyone not have theirs bolted down?

 

[sherry7]

i looked at these a few months ago. i passed and got two cheap shelf units from target since it was just for storage in the spare room. my brother and his fiance had an ikea bookshelf for almost ten years though and i think their stuff must be more durable. i still was thinking of one of these for my living room but it says it needs to be bolted to the wall and i can't do that as i'm renting. anyone not have theirs bolted down?

Maybe it's because they have to uphold safety standards in lots of different countries, but it seems like Ikea furniture always has that warning (even the chest of drawers, etc). I think it's a decision you need to make yourself. Do you have kids that could get hurt by a falling piece of furniture? Do you live in an earthquake prone area?

 

[tink576]

i looked at these a few months ago. i passed and got two cheap shelf units from target since it was just for storage in the spare room. my brother and his fiance had an ikea bookshelf for almost ten years though and i think their stuff must be more durable. i still was thinking of one of these for my living room but it says it needs to be bolted to the wall and i can't do that as i'm renting. anyone not have theirs bolted down?

They don't have to be bolted down, my sister has two in her bedroom and they're not bolted and they're fine, BUT if they were to be regularly used by young ones who might climb I would not hesitate in bolting because it could be dangerous otherwise. She got hers after the time when we would have to worry about her climbing. We have a ton of Ikea shelf units and most of them are not bolted and we've never had a problem with any of them.

 

[SaraJayne]

i looked at these a few months ago. i passed and got two cheap shelf units from target since it was just for storage in the spare room. my brother and his fiance had an ikea bookshelf for almost ten years though and i think their stuff must be more durable. i still was thinking of one of these for my living room but it says it needs to be bolted to the wall and i can't do that as i'm renting. anyone not have theirs bolted down?

Ours is not bolted down. Since it's turned on its side, it's only hip high. Plus, my kids (14 and 10) are past the age of climbing on the furniture ~ well, for the most part.

You'd have to work pretty darn hard to turn it over. It's very sturdy.

 

[jessrose18]

if i had kids i would bolt to wall....it is really high and heavy for that matter

 

[scrapquitler]

My Mom has them in her sewing room and they still look brand new after almost 8 years.
I would suggest that for in your playroom you should defnitely anchor them to the wall. I think they might come with that hardware included, but if they don't, the guys at Home Depot will know what you need.

 

[nilseks]

I have 2 white and 2 black, both the 4x2 kind. I have 2 side by side the long way and we use it as a long TV console. I put black foam core on the back (just throwing out ideas here) and it looks awesome, you would never know it didn't come that way and it hides all the cords!

I find them to be very durable and they don't scratch too easily. In our den I have some other white IKEA furniture that matches, as well as a long desktop that's made of the same material. My boys use their computers in there every day--it is probably the most used surface in our house and it has held up well for 2+ years!

 

[bumbershoot]

Any landlord who balks at letting a tenant bolt furniture to a wall doesn't deserve to be a landlord. It's not for fun, it's for safety.



We have three now. 2x2, 2x4, and 4x4. The latter is the oldest, and one cubbyhole is losing it's veneer because a certain son noticed a sort of rip in the veneer and slowly and secretly worked on it for over a year. Grr. But that's a bedroom one so it's not a huge deal with me.

 

[LisaR]

We've had these for years in our kids bedrooms and another one in our walk-in closet. We have all different types of bins for them.

They are great because they don't take up much room at all. They are in mint condition, no scratches at all. My son has black and my daughter has white. My daughter does not want to live in a dorm and I think this will be perfect to take along for her first college apartment.

 

[Sarah_Rose]

We have the 2x4 and the 2x2 ones in the dark brown veneer in our living room. The larger one is on it's side and neither are bolted to the wall. We have a toddler who is starting to climb, so that might change, but I can't really see either of them falling; when they're only 2 cubes high, they're pretty low and stable, particularly when filled. We LOVE them - they contain the clutter so well and they look great. One is filled with toys, and the other a combination of books and craft supplies.

We're starting to re-do our son's room as a "big boy" room and I think we're going to get another 2 x 2 Expedit for his room for his toys. That one will definitely be bolted to the wall - who knows that trouble a boy can get into in his room with the door closed!

 

[sherry7]

Thanks for the info everyone. I think I've decided exactly which Expedit units and what sizes to get for the new playroom. Now I just need to decide whether I want to get the white and black-brown color. I wonder if one will show less wear, scratches, etc than the others? Decisions, decisions.