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Property/DIY

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Original poster

Wibbly Wobbly Billy Bookcases Anyone?

15 replies

MartinRohdesBellybuttonFluff · 26/01/2016 14:01

I have a few Ikea Billy Bookcases, but they seriously wobble. The backing that you slide in has come out of the grooves and they are wobbling without much force being applied.

I have a toddler who is a climber and loves to empty books off shelves so I am seriously thinking of putting the bookcases in a skip as I am very anxious he might pull one down.

Is this where I have an example of the disposable element of Ikea furniture, or do I try to strengthen and save them in some way?

Has anyone ever flipped a 2 x 3 Kallax or Expedit on it's side and used it for storing books? I would be able to afford them in the short term if I skip the bookcases.

Have you any experience or thoughts on this? TIA

OP posts:

NannyR · 26/01/2016 14:10

Yes, you can put kallax on its side.

I do find the Billy bookcases a bit wobbly - i have several of them and what helped make them more stable was screwing the units to each other. I also used the safety strap that's included to fix them to the wall so they couldn't topple over.

From a safety point of view, you should use those straps with all freestanding furniture, such as chests of drawers and bookcases when you have toddlers and young kids in the house.

romanrainsalot · 26/01/2016 14:14

We have Billy for cds and one for books. They were never wobbly as such, but wouldn't take much to tip them over, especially given the height of them. DH has bolted them to the wall so they won't move.

TyrionLannistersShadow · 26/01/2016 14:16

We have a Billy bookcase and it's bolted to the wall with the bracket thingy that came with it. Tbh I think it actually tells you in the instructions that you should fix it to the wall ;)

dynevoran · 26/01/2016 14:17

My Billy isn't at all wobbly but it's in a corner and fixed to the wall. I wouldn't dream of having any freestanding furniture not fixed to the wall. Kallax is great but very heavy you have to fix to the wall as well.

chipsandpeas · 26/01/2016 14:20

I have a billy bookcase and it's fine and sturdy never noticed it wobbly and it's not fixed to the wall

NickAngel · 26/01/2016 14:24

We have Billy bookcases and Almaty bolted to wall. Kallax on its side is fine but better with the fabric boxes for toy storage or kids books rather than paperbacks works for us

mrsmortis · 26/01/2016 14:36

Billy is quite sensitive if the floor isn't completely flat. We have bits of hardboard under one side of ours to level it out (1930's house and floorboards rather than a concrete floor). We also have a row of heavy books on the bottom shelf to stabilize it and it's strapped to the wall.

ouryve · 26/01/2016 14:39

I've never noticed them wobbling. Are you sure they're bolted together properly in all the right places.

Most IKEA stuff can be made more rigid by using their cross braces
www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/87749600/

ConesOfDunshire · 27/01/2016 12:07

We have Billys around two walls in my office. They are bolted together in an L shape which stops any wobbling.

PigletJohn · 27/01/2016 12:09

fixing to the wall, at the top, will not only prevent them from wobbling, but also from falling over if somebody climbs on them. You can get "L" brackets at any hardware or DIY shop.

officebairn · 27/01/2016 12:09

Same as PP, weighed down at bottom, bracketed to wall, yes wobbly and uneven at first but good value.

chemenger · 27/01/2016 12:13

They come with a safety strap, don't they, to fasten them to the wall.

JonSnowKnowsNowt · 27/01/2016 12:18

I have a large house and EVERY big piece of furniture is fixed to the wall, bar one small-ish cabinet

Last year, my 3yo pulled the small cabinet over on herself, trying to open the drawer. Very fortunately, the legs went right over her, so she wasn't crushed.

Now EVERY big/medium piece of furniture bar none is fixed to the wall.

No way would I have a book case that wasn't.

JustWantToBeDorisAgain · 27/01/2016 19:23

It is easily salvageable, first off you can tighten all the screws to ensure the joins are tight then retack the back board to the frame ( I ended up re tacking to the loose shelves when the back was beginning to go slightly astray. As other have said above you can also buy right angle brackets for each corner ( try bottom shelf first as will be hidden by books, if this isn't enough do the top corners as well but you may want to paint the brackets out.

But above all fix to the wall!!!

( I've dismantled my billy ready fir our immenent house move and will be rebuilding once we get there)

Cressandra · 27/01/2016 19:46

As everyone else says, tighten and tack but crucially fix them to the wall! Even if you are renting, it should be acceptable to put holes in the wall as long as you make good afterwards. The tricky bit of that is matching the paint, but that is a surmountable problem and not an excuse to risk an unsecured bookcase doing serious damage to your toddler.

Kallax are not great for ordinary books in my view, they are way too deep.

Think about securing chests of drawers to the wall while you're at it. Some can be easily tipped by a child trying to pull out multiple drawers out at once.

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