How to Make a Clothes Rack on Wheels

Assemble the plumbing fittings for the front wall

Before you even begin cutting any wood, I highly suggest you put together all your pipe fittings. Doing this will ensure you have the right couplers in place and allow you to accurately determine the measurements for the support wall (A) and base (B). This will set the course for the rest of the build.

I put together the whole plumbing configuration on a table. That way when it came time to screw it to the base and support wall (A),  I simply moved it into place and screwed it in.  By doing this first, you can confirm the size you want for the base (B) and the support wall (A) and you’ll have most of the figuring out done right away.

Note: I did not add any adhesive to my threads but you may choose to do so.

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Assemble the plumbing fittings for the shelves

Assemble the pipes for the two shelves on the backside of the clothing rack. As compared to the large configuration on the front side, these each consist of only a couple flanges, elbows, 12-inch pipes, and a single 36-inch pipe.

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Cut the plywood

Crosscut the 4×8 sheet of 3/4-in. plywood into two pieces: 72-in. for the support wall (A), and 23-1/2-in. for the base (B).

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Stain and condition the wood

For a high-quality finish, it is best to stain the wood components before assembling them.  Stain the base (B) and support wall (A) as well as all trim pieces (C – J) and allow them to dry.  You can cut the trim pieces after the 1x2s have been stained and do quick touch-ups on the ends after the unit is put together.  By going in this order, you will save yourself from much more particular and stressful process.

Pro tip:  Before you apply colored stain, I recommend you brush a stain conditioner on all the wood. Stain conditioner opens up the grain and allows the stain to soak in evenly. It also gives you more “open time”, or more time to brush on and wipe off the stain before it starts to dry and set up.

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Screw together the back and base

To make this process easier, I first glued and brad nailed the base (B) and support wall (A) pieces together and then install the screws. Doing it in this order secures the wood in place and prevents having to fumble with angles while securing the screws. Be sure to pre-drill pilot holes for your screws using a countersink bit. This will ensure your screws are buried flush to the surface and wood does not split open when installing screws.

Author’s note: Do not rely on brad nails alone to hold the unit together. Screws will give the unit strength and longevity.

Be sure to secure the support wall (A) as close to center as possible to prevent the unit from tipping over. Take into account where the flanges and pipe will line up by measuring the distance from the front horizontal pipes to where the back of the flange will rest on the wood.

You don’t want your pipes to overhang the edge of your base. With that in mind, I placed the support wall (A) 15-in. from the edge – not quite center but, good enough to keep the unit well balanced and less likely to tip over.

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Trim the plywood edges

To give the plywood a finished look and hide all the seams, I applied a trim all the around the unit.  I prefer to cut as I go when I am installing the trim to ensure accurate measurements and tight joints. Start from the bottom of the unit, cutting and installing side base trim (C) followed by the front and back trim (D). Then, work your way up to the side trim (E) and end with the trim on the top of the wall (F).

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Install casters

Make sure the placement and full rotation of your casters doesn’t get caught up on the trim around your base (C & D), I had to hold my particular casters in four inches from the base trim.  I placed a block of wood (H) under each caster to allow me to use longer bolts and give me enough wood to secure those bolts tightly.

Mark four holes for placement of each caster. Pre-drill with a drill bit corresponding to the size of the hex bolts you will use to secure the casters. For my project, I used 5/16-in. x 2-in. bolts.  Insert the bolts and secure them with washers on the top side and nylon nuts on the bottom. If all your wheels don’t have a brake, be strategic by placing a caster with a brake on opposite sides of the rack.

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Install flange support rails

Lay the configuration of pluming pipes and flanges (which you already put together before you started cutting wood) on the unit and center it where you want it to line up on the base (B) and support wall (A). This will determine where the flanges will line up and where you should install the flange support rails (G) to screw the flanges into.

Slide the wood flange support rails under the flanges. Then add glue and brad nail the rails to the support wall (A).  These rails will give you more wood thickness to secure the flanges with longer screws. Using 1-1/4-in. screws to secure the flanges will be important to the weight it will support with clothes and wood shelving.

Note:  Wood rails on one side will work to support flanges on both sides of the unit as long as your pipe configurations are the same width.

Secure pipe configuration

Install the flanges through the rails (G) in the support wall (A) using 1-1/4-in. screws. Secure the bottom flanges to the base (B) using 3/4″ screws. Use a speed square to make sure you have an accurate right angle at all your corners and from the side bar flanges to the support wall (A) before screwing them down. It is very easy to pull out a pipe and lose that right angle.

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Install the shelf pipes

Screw in flanges with support pipe for shelves on opposite side. Remember the wood rails (G) on the front side will allow for 1-1/4-in. screws to install these.

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Install the wood shelves

Cut the three wood shelves (J). One shelf for the bottom of the larger pipe configuration and two shelves for the other side.

Center the shelves across the pipe support and secure them with a pipe strap on each end. You may have to use a right angle drill or driver attachment to secure the pipe straps on the lowest shelf.

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Seal the unit

Seal all wood and any plywood pieces on the unit with a polyurethane or varnish. Use a quality brush and carefully cut in around the flanges.

FAQ

What pipe dimensions should I use for a clothes rack?
The most common pipe size when making a clothing rack is 1/2-in. pipe.  However, you may also choose to use 3/4-in. I chose to use 1/2-in. because, the thicker the pipe the more expensive it is and 1/2-in. is strong enough to support a lot of weight.

Can you use PVC pipe for closet rod?
I would not recommend using PVC pipe for a clothing rack.  It is not strong enough and with weight it will sag over time.  Some people choose to use PVC run a metal pipe through it to serve as the support for the weight. I see it as an extra cost, but if you like the clean look of white PVC you could consider running metal pipe through it for the longevity of your clothing rack unit.

What kind of metal pipe should I use when making a clothing rack?
When searching for metal pipe options for a clothing rack, the most common metal pipe fittings and flanges you’ll find are galvanized or cast iron. Copper is available, but very expensive.  The main challenge I faced was that I could not find the right fittings in the same metal.  I searched several stores but did not find all the galvanized fittings I needed. So I then decided to mix in some cast iron fittings with my mostly galvanized pipe fitting. Because I was going for an industrial look, it all worked well together and didn’t affect the final design. Galvanized metal and cast iron have different strength ratings but for a clothing rack it doesn’t make a difference. Both metals are strong enough to support the weight of storing your clothes and the wood shelves.