Metal cabinet, pros and cons, possible shapes and sizes

Increasingly, along with the usual cabinets made of wood and its analogues, you can find a metal cabinet, which is very convenient for offices and shops, sports facilities and schools. Modern metal storage cabinets are distinguished by their beautiful design and high quality, so they are liked by a large number of people.

Advantages and disadvantages

Metal cabinets, regardless of their purpose, have a huge number of indisputable advantages:

durability - especially in comparison with a case from a chipboard. Iron elements of the cabinets are not afraid of almost no external impact, therefore, the furniture will last longer. Especially good two-door metal models have proven themselves in rooms with high humidity (pools, fitness centers, pharmacies);
strength - iron shelves can withstand heavy loads and are not afraid of damage;
ease of collection (or if necessary parsing), which facilitates transportation. An important indicator, if there is a need for frequent moving;
ease of operation - it is convenient to wash the metal surface, and in case of breakage the parts change without much difficulty;
fire resistance - if the office has safes, metal cabinets for storing important papers can be eliminated, and the metal distribution box protects the wires in case of fire;
ecological cleanliness - the manufacture of metal cabinets does not include surface treatment with resins or other hardening chemicals.

However, with all its advantages, metal sliding wardrobes are not without drawbacks:

cold surface - it plays a role if a two-door iron wardrobe is placed, for example, in a garage that is not heated in the cold season. In such a situation, things will not please their owner with pleasant warmth. The problem disappears if you use it to store things that are not meant to be worn;
a meager selection of colors - as a rule, initially prefabricated metal cabinets for the most part have a light gray color, which suits not all potential owners of this piece of furniture. However, with the help of special polymer paint the cabinet can be given absolutely any color, thereby harmoniously fitting it into the interior of the room. And for lovers of the loft style, metal painting is not at all a drawback, but rather an advantage.

Varieties

Design features (all-welded or collapsible model) and the degree of protection of iron storages directly depend on their purpose and manufacturing method:

metal wardrobes, which are used to store outerwear. They are installed in offices, locker rooms, educational institutions, are widely used for production needs (for storing employees' work clothing) or may be the highlight of a loft-style home. Clothes storages are, as a rule, a two-door option, which they try to make with shelves for shoes and hats, as well as provide doors with ventilation holes;
metal coupe models that have wide functionality are equipped with metal sliding doors;
a metal cabinet for shoes is a narrow version with folding shelves for storing shoes. Usually 3-4 sectional cabinets with shelves of the same size;
accounting models are used to store documentation in relatively small volumes. They can be single-section, two-section, and so on, with or without shelves, which allows you to place documents both vertically and horizontally. The advantage of multi-section models is that a two-section metal cabinet can be used for the needs of two employees at the same time, because each section is individually closed. Such a clerical cabinet can be ordinary or with increased security, it is better to choose the two-door option if there is free space;
archival - analogues of accounting, but for storing large volumes of documentation, which increases their size;
file or file models allow compact storage and sorting of files. These items consist of drawers that are mounted on sliding rails. Typically, such office vaults are equipped with a central lock, which closes all the drawers of the file cabinet at once. There are models with locks on each drawer, as well as an anti-tipping device that prevents furniture from falling when the drawer is full;
lockers (case for bags) - metal floor cabinets that are used to store things in shopping malls, supermarkets, medical and sports facilities. In such cabinets, narrow sections are closed separately;
household cabinet - a two-door copy designed to store clothes, household equipment and cleaning equipment, detergents. Household metal cabinet is widely used for maintenance of various institutions;
cabinet with roller shutters - a design in which the function of double-leaf doors is performed by roller shutters. Ideal for personal garages as well as for large parking lots. Used to store tires and other equipment;
laboratory cabinet - furniture for storing chemical reagents, laboratory glassware. It is used for light appliances, documents and other equipment. If necessary, the two-door version is equipped with glass doors. It is customary to consider a cabinet for a gas cylinder as a subspecies of the laboratory, in which cylinders for gas burners are stored.

The modern metal sectional cabinet has many modifications for different purposes. In addition to the most popular ones listed above, there are also: weapons (equipped with a safe), subscriber, drying, distribution cabinets, a separate group of metal furniture in the garage.

If, among the presented variety, it is still not possible to choose a suitable model, you can always find a production that manufactures metal furniture for an individual order. Combined storages can be made according to individual sizes, which will combine all of the above types. For example, individual design will easily provide the customer with a sectional option, where in the metal storehouse you can combine a clothing compartment, a place for household supplies, as well as a system of trays and shelves for documents.

“Let's make furniture to order” - such an announcement from manufacturing companies can be seen quite often. Before choosing a manufacturer of custom furniture, you need to familiarize yourself with examples of work, evaluate the quality of finished products, because metal furniture is not an acquisition for one year.

Archival

Accounting

File

Laboratory

For shoes

Coupe

Locker

Economic

Dressing rooms

With roller shutters

Sizes and shapes

The shape and size of iron furniture is dictated by the type of specific product. So the wardrobe closet has an oblong shape, the wardrobe for bags - the shape of a rectangle, the difference in sides of which is insignificant, the shape of the distribution models resembles a square.

A standard bivalve with a clothing compartment has the following parameters:

height 1860 mm;
the width of one clothes compartment - at least 300 mm;
wardrobe cabinet has a depth of 500 mm;
the weight of two-section models is from 20 to 70 kg.

Bivalve products allow you to put full length items of clothing in the closet. If it is necessary to equip preschool institutions with lockers, then the height should allow the child to reach the upper shelf

The distribution instance has a minimum height of 300 mm, a width of 600 mm and a depth of 500 mm. The lightest exhibit will weigh 25 kg, but individual manufacture will help to carry out wall boxing in lighter weight. The anti-vandal distribution variant necessary for the placement of electronic equipment and telecommunication systems can be designed so that it cannot be opened from the outside without using a cutting tool.

Bicuspid accounting and archival models have a minimum width of 600 mm, a height of 850 mm and a depth of 400 mm.

Types of cabinets by placement method

The mounting method divides the storage into the following categories:

hinged - limited by the maximum load, but leave the floor free, which is sometimes especially convenient (for a garage, laboratory and industrial premises, high-tech and loft interiors). The most common types of wall-mounted furniture are distribution boxes and wall mezzanines;
floor - the most popular modification. At floor placement, as a rule, a large metal cabinet contains a huge amount of documents, devices or tools;
mobile - mobile two-wing constructions equipped with wheels, due to which installation work is simplified, because business models with tools easily move to the place of work (for example, gas cabinets in a garage or laboratory models).

It is important to understand that when choosing a floor instance, you should pay attention to the floor level. Due to the lack of legs in most models, it will be difficult to level the cabinet with a metal double-wing in dressing rooms, for example, if the floor is uneven.

Mounted

Floor

Mobile

Selection tips

Before choosing a metal storage, it is necessary to clearly understand the specific final purpose of use, the requirements for the technical part in the cabinet, and also calculate the load. This will affect the design, type of steel and fittings.

An important role is played by the place and conditions of placement of a garment. So for rooms with high humidity (in a garage or basement, for example), it is better to choose a cabinet for a gas cylinder made of galvanized steel, which is not afraid of moisture. The degree of burglary resistance should be considered if a large flow of people is planned in the room (applicable to safes in enterprises or when the bag case is installed in a store or gym).

For storing documents, it is better to use a metal cabinet with a collapsible design. It is easier to transport, and, as a rule, it can be trimmed with a variety of decorative elements, which will make it possible to fit a metal double-wing or single-door cabinet into the design of the most modern office. However, you need to take care of the performer of the installation work - a person without experience may encounter difficulties. Welded storage facilities should be large archives and heavy goods (for example, cabinets for cylinders or laboratory wall furniture, distribution cabinet).