This product is great if you are looking to clean and organize your space. Once installed onto the wall, you can use various hooks and attachements to your preference.
The only tricky thing is finding the studs behind your wall. Since the pre-drilled holes within the FastTrack rail are spaced where they are looking for an evenly spaced 16" between each studs.
As you know, while 16" stud spacing is the norm, this is not always the case. I have found that my garage did have mostly 16" spacing between studs, but sometimes a stud could have a 14" spacing.
My solution is to use a drill bit and to actually drill a new hole into the FastTrack rail. This works wonder since you do not have to rely on the pre-drilled holes if your studs are not spaced perfectly.
This way, you can ensure that you have at least 4 studs to attach this rail with. This would permit a maximum load capacity of 1500 pounds!
Oh, and to find a stud, it's best to use a stud finder and mark the "LEFT" and "RIGHT" edge of a stud. Then use a small nail and hammer it in between the "LEFT" and "RIGHT" edge. If the small nail "sticks" to a stud, you will feel resistance. If the small nail goes right through the drywall with no resistance, then you know that the stud is not there.
Don't worry about making too many nail holes since the FastTrack will cover it up. Just make sure that your nail holes are within the area that you wish to install the FastTrack.
Have fun decluttering!
To reinforce earlier comments: I installed tracks of several different lengths. Each track came with instructions advising that, to achieve the rated weight capacity, the first and last set of holes of the track should be mounted to studs. In each case, however, the track as supplied by the factory makes it impossible to follow the directions. The first and last mounting holes of the 48 inch track are 47 inches apart, the first and last holes of the 32 inch track are 31 inches apart, and so on. In each case, one but not both ends could be solidly anchored to a stud. It is difficult to imagine how this idiocy would have gone unnoticed during the planning for the product roll-out. This is not a product from an amateurish company operating on a shoestring budget. I have not been in a Home Depot or Lowes on the East Coast that has not had multiple in store displays of the Rubbermaid FastTrack system, complete with color brochures.
Nonetheless, the problem is not fatal. You can, as noted by others, drill extra holes in the metal, or you can add multiple sets of expanding metal hollow wall anchors or toggle bolts in the areas where you miss a stud. The tracks that I installed seem solid.
Another correctable problem you might run into: On some exterior garage walls, studs might have their long sides parallel rather than perpendicular to the drywall. That means that the 2-inch screws supplied in the Rubbermaid kits will have you drilling into brick or some other material that is better left alone. 1 3/4 inch screws, along with extra anchoring per above, should give you tracks that hold a substantial amount of weight. (Overall, the Rubbermaid hardware kits were mostly useless to me. I could not use many of the 2-inch screws, and I found metal hollow wall anchors to be much more secure than the plastic toggles provided by Rubbermaid.)
In sum: Though designed by some person (or team) who forgot that the standard spacing of studs is 16 inches on center, the product works fairly well. It is versatile, uncluttered, reasonably attractive, and it seems like it can survive the extremes of cold, heat, and humidity that one might find in a garage or basement. There is some talent that went into the product--and some stupidity. I am glad that its designer or designers decided to work on home organization systems rather than roadways, medical equipment, or troop carriers.
Buy Rubbermaid FastTrack Rail Now
I have been searching for a durable, easy to use garage shelving system and found one in the Rubbermaid fasttrack system. I previously purchased Rubbermaid configurations closet systems with great success and so I was glad to see Rubbermaid had a system for the garage. I am a woman who enjoys do-it-yourself projects but I am by no means a pro at it. After finding the fasttrack system I designed my garage around using it. I really wanted shelves to get items off the garage floor. I was very dismayed to see that Amazon's prices for the system were expensive. For six shelves I was going to pay almost $500 (when you add everything together--it is all sold separately). I went to Home Depot and by chance found everything for half or more than half the price. I did have trouble with the studs and aligning the rails. I had to go back to the drawing board and make changes since my studs didn't match up with my design. It all worked out. Know that each piece for this system is sold separately, including the brackets (For example,th brackets are sold one to a package and you will need three to hold up one shelf--$4.97 each at Home Depot.) Likewise the uprights are sold separately but you will need three to hold up a 4' shelf. I love the ease of just clipping on whatever accessories you are using directly onto the rail. Very easy and eliminates more drilling. I included a picture of the finished product under customer images. I am very pleased once again with Rubbermaid. Just be sure to shop around for the best price!
Read Best Reviews of Rubbermaid FastTrack Rail Here
Great product which offers a lot of options thanks to the various accessories developed by Rubbermaid. I've installed 2 of these tracks & been very satisfied with the ease of installation as well as the quality and finish of the product; especially when compared to Closetmaid version which I've also installed & will never use again. You will need a 4'level, drill, and 2-specific size drill-bits, & screwdriver to install it; but it's very simple & straight forward. Mounting screws & hardware are provided.
Want Rubbermaid FastTrack Rail Discount?
Very easy to install. Very stronge wall anchors provided. Looks very clean after installation. i would strongly recommend this product
Save 50% Off
This shelf is very modern looking, saves space, and keeps the room looking brighter and more open by eliminating the tradition boxy shape of a bookshelf. I'm enjoying it very much in my bedroom, but other buyers should take note that this bookshelf absolutely CANNOT hold heavy items on the bottom shelves. Because of the positioning of the screws on just one side of the bottom two (largest) shelves, heavy books will cause these shelves to rotate backwards to the point of breaking. I partially solved this problem by wedging 3 old textbooks underneath the bottom shelf, which now is holding about 60 pounds worth of my school books. The second shelf I could do nothing about, and is now holding a box of tissues and some magazines. The upper shelves are more stable (ironically, since they're the smaller ones), because of the more central positioning of the screws. So YES, it looks great! But be aware that this is not the most solid of bookshelves.
