Securing drawers inside a camper van

Secure drawer closure even during a bumpy ride

Author: Perla Werthmüller, Hedingen

Online since: 02/02/2011, Number of visits: 187886

I retrofitted my camper with a chest of drawers from Ikea and bolted it down. It works great in general, except the drawers constantly open and shut while driving. I didn’t find it visually appealing to secure the drawers with bungee cords or hooks, plus I find it cumbersome having to remove and replace them every single time. So I started searching for a “hidden” solution. While browsing the magnet applications on supermagnete.nl I had the idea to use super magnets. Here are my instructions for adding magnetic catch closures to a chest of drawers.

Required materials:

40 disc magnets, I used S-10-05-N
UHU MAX REPAIR glue
Drill
Masking tape, optional

Instructions

Remove the drawers and, on the inside of each drawer, drill holes in all four corners which will be used to countersink the magnets. Caution: If the holes are drilled too deep, the heavy magnets will drop in too far and won’t be flush with the drawer surface. Glue the magnets to the inside of the holes using UHU-adhesive.

This is best accomplished by placing the drawer face side down on a sturdy surface. Now the magnets will position themselves correctly, thanks to gravity. Let the magnets dry for one day.

Next, put the drawers back into their slot and mark the position for the counterpart magnets with a pencil. Remove the drawers again and drill the holes as marked. Again, avoid drilling too deep so that the magnets will fit flush when countersunk into the hole. Caution: It is very important to pay close attention to the polarity of the magnets when glueing them in!

It would be ideal if the piece of furniture could be laid flat when glueing the magnets. Mine was already bolted down and the masking tape proved helpful. Simply place the tape over the glued-in magnets and let dry for one day. Because the magnets are quite heavy, without the tape they will come loose and fall off the furniture. The masking tape keeps them in place and can be removed afterwards without any problems.

Replace the drawers, which will now snap shut quite nicely and won’t open on their own when the vehicle is moving. Yet, with a little force, they can easily be pulled open by hand. The snap closure system is not visible when viewed from the outside.

Other fascinating magnet projects for your camper van

In our customer project section, you will find many other projects to serve as inspiration. For example:

Need even more inspiration? Take a look at all projects related to the 'camper' topic.

Articles used

S-10-05-N

Disc magnet Ø 10 mm, height 5 mm, holds approx. 2,6 kg, neodymium, N42, nickel-plated

	5 pcs.	0,90 EUR ea.*
from	15 pcs.	0,78 EUR ea.*
from	40 pcs.	0,69 EUR ea.*
from	80 pcs.	0,64 EUR ea.*
Ask for a rebate from 650 pcs.

Available: 113 660 pcs.

UHU MAX REPAIR

magnet glue, waterproof, without solvents, shelf life of 24 months, 20 g tube
To glue on super magnets

1 pc. 8,08 EUR ea.* (404,00EUR/kg)

Available: 2 005 pcs.

Neodymium magnetic fitting round for furniture

holds approx. 600 g, set of magnet & metal plate to screw on

	1 set	3,21 EUR/set*
from	3 sets	2,88 EUR/set*
from	10 sets	2,57 EUR/set*
from	20 sets	2,42 EUR/set*
from	40 sets	2,29 EUR/set*
Ask for a rebate from 800 sets

Available: 169 sets

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