FAQ

All of our shelves are carefully hand-made and individually manufactured to your specifications. Our current lead time is approximately 15 working days from the date of order and, while we are working hard to keep to this, your order may take a little longer to be dispatched. We will process orders as quickly as possible and in strict date order and we thank you for your patience. When your order is ready for dispatch, we will email you with your delivery information.

We are now able to offer an expedited shipping service; this ensures that your order will be dispatched within 5 working days of you placing your order. You can choose this service at the checkout; please feel free to contact us if you'd like any further information. 

Please note: We are a small, family-run company and, while we do all that we can to ensure the most prompt delivery possible, circumstances outside our control (such as problems with suppliers) can sometimes lead to delays and extended delivery times. Please be assured that we are working at all times to manufacture and deliver the highest possible quality products and sometimes this takes a little while longer! Please bear this in mind when placing your order. 

Courier Delays: we can't be responsible for delays caused by couriers; we always use national, reputable couriers but their services are not guaranteed and may be subject to delays which are beyond our control. Where expedited shipping has been selected, the excess charge will only be refunded when an order has not been dispatched within stated lead times; we are not able to refund the excess when the delay is due to courier failure.

At ShelfDirect, we want to deliver the best quality at the lowest possible prices, so we always aim to match any online quote for bespoke shelving, provided that:

• You are able to show us a like-for-like, full quote for bespoke shelves (the quote must include any charges for shipping, VAT, fixings, finishing etc.)
• You are able to show us evidence of the quote, including a link to the relevant website

Just drop us an email with your requirements and the details of the quote you have and we’ll get straight back to you.

Contact us for more information; we’re always happy to help!

If you have any particular size requirement, we will always do our best to help and make your shelves to your exact measurements. For example: if you require a shelf at 25.5cm long, simply order your shelf at 26cm long and then let us know the exact measurements you’d like in the order notes section at checkout. We will then make the shelf at 26cm long and trim the .5cm off. Please note: we will endeavour to get this measurement exact, but slight differences between your measurements and ours are inevitable! Please feel free to talk to us before ordering if you are at all unsure; we’re always very happy to help!

If you are not able to calculate the shelf you want on our website, please contact us and we’ll be happy to make your shelves to suit your requirements.

We deliver anywhere in the UK; shipping orders going to Mainland UK addresses are subject to a flat fee for standard deliveries of £16.50 Deliveries to Highlands & Islands and remote areas are charged at £37.50 as courier charges rise significantly to those areas. We now offer an expedited service which you can choose at the checkout; this ensures dispatch of your order within 4 working days of the date of order. Please feel free to contact us for further information..

As standard, we deliver on workdays, to the address of your choice, and can arrange Saturday and morning deliveries at a small additional charge; please contact us for further details.

We want to ensure that you are delighted with your shelves, so once your shelves have been delivered, we recommend that you follow these steps to ensure the best possible outcome:

• Unwrap the shelves as quickly as possible. This is particularly important if your shelves are solid wood or wood veneer finish as the bubble wrap around the shelves can lead to a build-up of condensation inside the packaging. This can lead to the shelves sticking together or the bubble wrap sticking to the shelves.
• Store the shelves on a flat surface; leaning them up against a wall can lead to the shelves bowing, making them more difficult to install
• In the event of any query, please make sure that you let us know promptly!

The weight-bearing capacity of every shelf depends very much on the type and quality of wall into which it is being installed. Our twin slot shelves can hold up to 100kgs for each pair of brackets and uprights. If you need your shelves to hold more weight, simply increase the number of uprights and brackets to give maximum support to the shelves. Please note: any weights quoted include the weight of the shelf.

If you have any particular requirements, please feel free to contact us and we can advise you; we're always happy to help!

All of our shelves can be fitted to solid or plasterboard walls.

It is difficult to be precise about how easy our shelves are to install, as it depends entirely on your level of experience and expertise! We would say that a skilled, experienced DIY enthusiast would find them straightforward to install. If you are in any doubt, you may wish to consult a skilled tradesperson.

As a starting point, any twin slot shelving system will need a minimum of two uprights and two brackets. We recommend using an additional upright (and bracket!) for every subsequent 50cm of shelf length over 100cm. So, if your shelves are going to be 75cm long, you'll probably only need two uprights. If your shelves are going to be 125cm long, we'd recommend three uprights. As with any other queries, if in doubt, just drop us an email or give us a call; we're really happy to help!

Solid Wood or Wood Veneer Finish

Our standard finish is a clear Danish oil. This is a blend of natural oils and resins that penetrate wood to provide a tough, durable and waterproof finish, enriching the wood’s natural patina and providing protection from the inside out. To keep your shelf in good condition and maintain the finish, we recommend the regular use of clear Danish Oil, which can be purchased from most hardware and DIY stores.

Your shelf will benefit from an additional treatment with Danish Oil approximately 3 months after installation, when the wood may start to lose its lustre and may begin to appear slightly ‘dry’. Following this treatment, you can apply the oil at any time in the future when you feel your shelf might benefit from it. (It’s hard to be exact about this, as it depends on the location of the shelf, the warmth of the room etc.)

Application:

• Shake the tin of Danish Oil thoroughly before use
• Pour a generous amount of the oil onto a lint-free cloth and wipe over the wood
• Rub the oil well into the grain of the wood (alternatively the oil can be applied sparingly using a brush)
• When the final coat has dried, an improved sheen can be achieved by buffing with a clean, lint-free cloth

Our ready to paint shelves are made from MDF and come to you finely sanded to give a nice clean finish. They are lovely and easy to work with and we recommend the following:

• Use a glossing roller kit to help ensure a good smooth finish. These are available in a pack which includes the roller, heads and a small tray from most good DIY shops.
• Apply two primer coats, sanding lightly in between. You can use an acrylic primer to give your top coat a good base, but if you have any spare emulsion you can use that.  If you are using expensive, thick emulsion it’s worth watering it down slightly (around 10% water:90% paint); if the emulsion is a cheaper, thinner type there’s no need to water it down.
• Sand the shelves lightly between each coat.
• For your top coat, use any paint suitable for painting interior wood, choosing the colour and finish you prefer (gloss, matt, silk etc…)

It is important to use a primer, as the MDF will be very absorbent and the primer gives a good foundation to get a good finish when you apply your top coat(s). As you’ll see from the information above, you don’t need a specific product; a bit of watered down emulsion does the job really well!