Lid Hanger

Another solution to the extreme lack of cabinet space in my kitchen.  The lids to pots and pans always seem to take up more cabinet space than they warrant.  They don't stack neatly, they slide out of the cupboard whenever you open the door. 

So, here I took the lids out of the limited cupboard and found some other unused space for them to occupy.

This vertical pot lid hanger is pretty heavy when it's loaded down.  As such, you should probably set the main hook into one of the studs inside your walls.  I chose a doorpost, so that the lids would have more than 180 degrees of space to occupy, and so that I'd be drilling into the larger, four-inch face of the 2x4 stud, rather than the narrower two-inch face.

If you choose a doorpost like I did, choose either a larger-than usual doorway, or one in an area that doesn't see too much traffic.  It just so happens that this four-foot doorway to our spare room and back exit is both. 

This is an easy one.

Tools you will need:
1. Drill and bits
2. Tape measure
3. Pencil

Materials you will need:
A. Large screw-threaded hook
B.  Assorted medium-duty hooks
C. A length of chain

Since you're putting a large hook into a stud, you will need to drill a pilot hole.  If you buy the hook new, the bin at the hardware store should tell you what size pilot hole to drill.  If you're re-using a hook you already had, compare your drill bits to the shaft of the threaded end, not counting the threads.  Use a drill bit that is slightly smaller than the shaft of the screw.

Put the pilot hole in the centre of the stud, somewhere above head-height.  As long as it won't poke you in the eye, it doesn't really matter how high you set it.  The lid hangers themselves are modular and can be adjusted as needed.  It is important to center it, to distribute the substantial weight of the lids.

Once you've drilled the hole, screw the hook into place.  If you have a pair of vise grips or similar, you can muckle them onto the hook to get better leverage. 

The hooks just slide into the chain links.  I originally had them evenly distributed and neatly alternating.  However, once I was using it, I realised that not all of the lids are the same size.  I miss the obvious, occasionally.  That called for me to re-distribute the hooks so that the larger lids had more room and the smaller ones took up less.

Hooks behind the chain fit around the flat bits of staple-style handles, ones in front of the chain grip the rims of lids with knob-style handles.

That was really all it took.  The pot lids are out of the way, yet handy, stored in a vertical format that doesn't occupy any scarce cabinet space.

Pans are also unweildy and hard to stack in cupboards.  I can't take any credit for this method of storing them-  I got the idea from watching Julia Child with my mother when I was a kid.  If you arrange the pots artfully, they can be a decorative element, as they were in Ms Child's kitchen.

While you've got the drill out, make some pilot holes for drywall anchors.  This is essential- even a small pan is heavy enough to yank a hook clean out of plaster.  Drive a cup hook into each anchor, and use it to support your pans.