Materials:

• Eight Foot 2X4s, (6 or 8)
• Box of 3” Phillips Wood Screws (For Exterior Use)
• 4” Tap-Con Screws, (6 or 8)
• Circular Saw
• Cordless Drill/Screwdriver (at least 12volt)
• Pencil
• “T” Level
• Bubble Level
• Tape Measure
• 6 pack

I’m sure there are plenty of fishermen out there with too much stuff in their garages.  I fall into that category myself.  It doesn’t make it any easier that my wife wants her van in the garage also.  The only way I could convince her that I needed a kayak AND a canoe was to make her realize it was not going to take up her parking space.  I needed a rack that would hold a couple of boats and keep them out of the way.  I didn’t have the money to buy those expensive fold-down types, so I fabricated my own…..with some help from the Home Depot guy.  My original rack worked great for two years, but now with a new addition coming (T-120, in sunset), I had to expand the rack for three boats.

The first thing I needed was to mount my wall studs to attach the rack to.  I put up two eight foot studs, five feet apart with three Tap-Con screws per stud.  I then measured how high I needed to put the rack.  Since this rack was going to accommodate three boats and still have room underneath, I put the top rack as high as I could and still allow the garage door clearance.  To make the shelf, you first have to decide how high you want it.  Step 1, screw in a small 2X4 block to the stud where you want your shelf (the shelf will sit on top of this block, so account for the extra two inches).  The shelf is screwed into the small block of wood (not the stud).  A 45 degree angle support arm, is then attached to the side of the stud and shelf arm.  None of my boats are over 70 lbs., but if yours are, then you may want two support arms (one on each side).

The most difficult part is deciding how long your shelf arms will be and how long your support arms will be.  My canoe has a beam of 35”, but my rack only has to be 32” to accommodate the canoe at the shelf point, because the arms are two and a half feet from the center of the boat.  The other crucial measure is the length of the support arms.  If they are too long, and you build your rack maximizing space as I did, they can get in the way of the rack below it.

As I built each rack, I put the boat it was going to hold on it.  This was to be sure it was correct before moving on.  This is critical for three or more boats, so you don’t have to fix more than one rack.  The only adjustments I made were to shorten some of the angled support arms, to give more clearance.  I tend to overbuild stuff, and I only needed the support arms to attach about a third of the way out on the shelf, not half.

When I was done I covered the rack arms supporting the kayaks with close cell foam to eliminate any scuffing.  Attaching carpet or something else would work, but DON’T nail it down on the top of the rack.  The nail can scratch the boat, so nail it to the side or underneath.  Good Luck.

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