Shop Tip Concrete Tube Storage

What's the best way to store dowels, 2x4's, and long items? A concrete tube form is the answer. They are four feet long and come in diameters of 8", 10", and 12".

One of my next projects will be constructing a lumber cart and cutting down scrap wood to 4' lengths to fit on the cart, but there are dowels, pipes, and 2x4's that I'll want to keep at 8' lengths.This shop trick is how to keep long items out of the way.

I opted for a 12" diameter tube as I will be storing a few 2x4s. If you're just storing dowels, a smaller size will be fine.

You'll need the following supplies:

• Concrete tube form
• Joist hanger hooks
• 12 gauge wire

You can find joist hanger hooks for cheaper, but they aren't going to support as much weight. This storage tube is going to see a fair amount of weight and I don't want it falling down.
While I could use rope or another method to hang instead of wire, the wire will stop the tube from sliding and allow me to tie it very tight.

Joist hook and 12 gauge wire

The joist hook attaches directly to the joist.

I looped the wire tight around the joist hanger, wrapped it around the tube, hook and looped the ends, and twisted it with pliers until the wire was snug around the tube. It's not going anywhere.

Concrete form tubes comes in sizes of 8", 10", and 12".

Loop the wire around the tube to determine how much you need to cut.

I looped the wire around the tube about 8" from the end to distribute the weight.

If you have a space with ceilings as short as mine, you'll want to find a place for the tube that's out of the way. I later shifted the tube to behind the light and against the wall as this decreased the brightness of my shop by a large margin.

Loop the wire around the hook, then around the tube and
twist the end with pliers to remove any slack in the wire.

 With this storage trick you maximize storage space and keep those eight foot 2x4s out of the way.