Wine Bars get improved wall bracket

I have been installing more Wine Bars in the past few weeks, and I'm happy to report that all of the installations are doing fine, and they look great!  I have made one design improvement, however: I added a 1/16" thick sheet of fine cork to the back of the wall bracket, where the bracket meets the wall.

This improvement is part of an ongoing pursuit of "heirloom quality" for all of Wine on Deck's products.  While I have seen plenty of wall-mounted products, from mirrors to wine racks to shelves, I haven't seen many products that combine good looks with long-lasting mounting systems.  I'm proud that the Wine Bar has achieved this difficult balance.  But there is always more room for improvement.  After all, heirloom quality might mean a product life of 150 years.  But it could also mean a product that lasts for 1,000 years, or more.  I strive for my creations to last as long as possible.



The Wine Bar - to - wall interface has been a major focus of my design work.  It's a very important part of the Wine Bar system, since a solid interface is required for a wiggle-free Wine Bar.  Since many walls are drywall or plaster, they're not an ideal substrate for fastening.  Therefore, it's important that support for the Wine Bar comes primarily from the screw/stud joint, and not from the wall.  But the wall still plays a critical role: as a spacer.  If the wall deteriorates behind the Wine Bar bracket, then the bracket can become loose.  Therefore, it's important to protect the wall from impacts.  The cork protects the wall from impact, such as when a bottle is banged against the side of the Wine Bar.  It also distributes pressure over the whole surface of the Wine Bar bracket, which should keep the wall from crumbling over time. 

I have also been counter-boring the mounting holes at angles, so as to spread the locations of the screws in the stud.  By widening the "stance" of the bracket in the stud, the Wine Bar is more stable.

This Wine Bar (pictured) is right at home in a corner of a dining room.  It's a shorter model, holding six bottles.  The bracket is mounted to the wall with four 3 1/2" washer-head screws.   The home is a 100-year-old Somerville two-story, and has walls of lathe and horse-hair plaster over studs.  I was able to get a very firm connection between the wall and the bracket, and the cork compressed nicely, giving me hope that this Wine Bar will remain firmly attached to this "antique" wall for a very long time. 

Stay tuned for my post on installing an extra-long custom Wine Bar in Five Horses Tavern in Davis Square, Somerville.