Hello All - please forgive me as i am totally new to this RV thing. I recently bought a 1997 fleetwood tioga 31... I want to convert th "closet area to have more shelves and screw into the outside wall and the inside wood. The inside peice is no big deal it is particle board and that is easy enough. But the outside wall is my question.Can i run a screw into the outside wall, what kind of screw should i use, and how long of a screww should i go with. I basicaly want to make a extra shelf fr storing clothes...Thanks

I'd use 1/4 or 3/8 plywood and "line" the closet and hang my shelves from that.bumpy

You might get some ideas of what to use by looking at other hardware screwed into the outside walls, such as window blinds/curtains, dinette table brackets, etc. On my motorhome, these are generally about inch long screws.Don't expect a vast amount of holding power from the wall structure; it's probably just luan (cheap thin plywood) attached to a styrofoam core. A well nut or some other sort of expanding fastener would give greater holding power. (It sounds as though your stress will primarily be in shear across the screw, parallel to the wall surface, which doesn't require too much holding power.)

Measure the thickness of the wall at the outside door frame. You DON'T want any screws longer than that on an outside wall.I "second" the idea of lining the inside of the area with another board and screw into that. Use Liquid Nails to hold the boards to the wall. The weight of the cloths will then go down the board and not the wall, which is very flimsey and thin.

I don't understand why this requires doing ANYTHING with the outside wall.....and think that probably would be a BAD idea.

We wanted shelving in our wardrobe cabinet as well. I simply fastened small 1x1 pieces of wood to the backside of the wall that the wardrobe door was on. This supported the 1/8" plywood framed on the underside with 1x2. To support the back of the shelf (on an outside wall as well) I ran 1x2 strips of wood in a vertical position from the floor to the bottom of the lowest shelf and between each subsequent shelf thereafter . To hold these blocks in place I used sticky back velcro. I liked this method because they can be easily removed. A little over 2 years of use like this has worked out great.

Screwing into outside walls | Good Sam Community

Bumpyroad
Explorer
Apr 08, 2017
another reason I would hang the shelves on plywood cut to fit the sides of the cabinet is that once those boards are cut, you can measure and screw the shelf supports in from the back side, making it easy to square things up with the work lying flat on a surface, not having to squeeze up into the cabinet, etc.
bumpy
DutchmenSport
Explorer
Apr 08, 2017
ReReading the post, I remembered, on my previous camper I added shelves using the wire shelves. I had to cut them to length with bolt cutters, and used the plastic U shaped clips that screwed to the wall. I was successful, because I used a lot of screws and used the existing wood whenever possible to attach to:
leukass
Explorer
Apr 08, 2017
Butch50 wrote:
I wouldn't even think of drilling holes into the outside wall. When I installed shelves in one of my closets I used the brackets below fastened to the cabinet walls but not on the outside wall.

Wall Bracklet

Just to clarify - wasn't planning on screwing thru the wall - i meant putting a screw into the paneling that is on the outside wall. I would never screw al the way thru. i like the idea of liguid nil - only issue is those walls have that wonderful wallpaper stuff on it. I might go with the plywood frame idea...

Thanks for all the help!
Butch50
Explorer
Apr 07, 2017
I wouldn't even think of drilling holes into the outside wall. When I installed shelves in one of my closets I used the brackets below fastened to the cabinet walls but not on the outside wall.

Wall Bracklet
D_E_Bishop
Explorer
Apr 06, 2017
While Bumpy's suggestion is very good, it is a pain to accomplish in many of the cabinets in RVs. I think that the horizontal ledgers to support the back edge and sides of the shelves is a great idea.

I would modify that somewhat if the sides of the cabinet carcass can support some adjustable shelving strips. In both of the rigs we have owned, this system was used for adjustable shelving. I have used it in cabinetry and in furniture such as stereo cabinets.

The strips are usually 1" wide and protrude from the side wall about 3/16". Simple supports can be moved up or down in increments of 1" or so should you want to change spacing.

With this type of support, it is necessary to use a higher grade of plywood for the shelves. Baltic birch while more expensive, it is much stronger than standard US made ply and it will also allow for a furniture grade finish. I would not use Fiberboard or MDF material. It set with the application of load and is miserable to try and finish.

If the sides of the cabinets are 1/10" or 1/8" ply of Masonite or other composite, use the ledger method. When I use this method, I rip a piece of 1" X 1" into two triangular pieces. I just feel that they look better and you don't have that sharp edge sticking out below the back edge or sides below the shelf. I have used 1" X 2" pieces and this does allow more glue area.

Just my take.
fourthclassC
Explorer
Apr 06, 2017
Just want to reiterate the same warning. It is suprisingly easy to put a screw right through an outside wall.
Sam_Spade
Explorer
Apr 06, 2017
ronfisherman wrote:
No screws into outer walls.

I don't think you will find ANY of the factory "stuff" on the inside walls have screws going through to the outside. Just using a bigger bracket with multiple screws in each one should work fine. Or the similar solution of wood mounts glued/screwed to the inside wall as was mentioned by a couple of posts already.

If you do insist on going through to the outside, please use stainless steel. If you don't, the screw heads will rust causing streaks down the siding.....maybe in less than a year.
Cobra21
Explorer
Apr 06, 2017
Bumpyroad wrote:
I'd use 1/4 or 3/8 plywood and "line" the closet and hang my shelves from that.
bumpy

Make an insert, and attach to the side walls if possible. Screwing to an outside wall is most likely a Hale Mary hope this works.
ronfisherman
Moderator
Apr 06, 2017
Put shelves in our closet 10 years ago. Using screws and glue to hold 1"X1" horizontal supports to put shelves on. Shelves are made with 1/4" plywood. No screws into outer walls. Not one has failed.
ScottG
Nomad
Apr 05, 2017
The walls are about 1/8" thick wood and then pretty much air behind it. Screws wont hold much and are easy to strip.
I like the idea of lining it.