A wooden magnetic knife holder is surely going to add convenience and aesthetics to your kitchen while saving your knives from unnecessary scratches. The kitchen knives are no simple and cheap investment since you will need several high-end knives for cutting, slashing, smashing, and other purposes.
You can safely store them with a magnetic knife rack and access them easily whenever need be. But for this, you have to know how to make a magnetic knife holder firstly. Thankfully creating a DIY magnetic knife holder isn’t a difficult task given that you follow our instructions properly.
So, let’s jump into it-chefs and cooks at home.
Knife Block Vs. Magnetic Knife Holder
Before we get into with knife holder magnetic manufacturing process, let’s have an insight into the age-old debate between a magnetic knife rack vs. knife block.
When it comes to utility and ease of access, cooks worldwide are divided between the effectiveness of knife block and racks. Thus, both have varying levels of support and counter-logics. To begin with, a magnetic knife rack is nothing except decorative wood mounted on the kitchen wall and features a magnetic strip on the front. Mostly, these wooden materials have neodymium magnets.
On the contrary, a knife holder comes with vertical or horizontal slots. You can store knives inside these slots and each slot has a fixed size for a specific knife. Sure, it holds the knife better and has a lesser chance of the knives falling from it.
But you are limited to put a specific knife in a block and also, these blocks are expensive. Plus, the chunkiness of the wooden block is a big problem.
On the contrary, a knife holder permits you to store all types and sizes of kitchen knives safely into it. You won’t have to find the right block for the specific knife. What’s more, you can try a DIY magnetic wooden knife rack manufacturing at home and it is easy.
The advantages of a magnetic knife rack include-
- With these magnetic kitchen racks, space isn’t a problem. You can mount it on walls or may even consider under-cabinet kitchen storage.
- You can also use it to store any magnetic kitchen tools such as shears, cooking utensils, pizza cutters, etc. Thankfully the strong magnet will hold all items safely.
- The magnetic strip on the wall is easier to clean than the knife blocks. It is free of bids of food and so, is hygienic.
- Since the magnetic holders for knives are exposed to air, it helps the knives to dry quickly after you clean them. It prevents germs build-up to boost your hygiene.
- A knife holder easily accommodates knives of all sizes and shapes. You aren’t limited to any specific shape or size for storage likewise the knife blocks.
Hence, you should choose a magnetic kitchen knife holder over the knife block any day, anytime.
How To Make A Magnetic Knife Holder
Now that we know the importance of a wooden magnetic knife holder, it’s time to build one. Luckily, the process isn’t difficult. You would need to start with collecting the essential tools and materials firstly, prepare the wooden rack and then attach magnets into it for the DIY magnetic knife rack.
Things you will need:
- A wooden piece ( approximately ¾” thick at least)
- A few pieces of disc magnets
- Drill and drill bit ( ¾” drill bits as our wood thickness is the same)
- Heavy-duty magnets ( The number will vary depending on the length of your woodblock)
- Superglue, nails, and brackets
- A hammer or nail gun
Required time: Approximately 30 minutes
Step 1: Preparing the wooden piece
You can get the wooden block from any woodshop. We used a block of walnut wood for our knife racks. The wood has an attractive wood grain which looks superb in any kitchen décor. You may need to use a saw to cut the woodblock according to your required size.
A standard wooden rack with a magnet for knives can be anywhere from 8” to 12” witch ½” to ¾” thickness. The actual width and height of the woodblock will depend on how many knives you want to store and their required space.
If you don’t have a saw, you can always borrow one from a friend or get the job done from a local wood store.
Step 2: Create the holes
Next, you need to drill holes at the back of the wooden block which will hold the magnetic blocks. You can drill a long strip and use a magnetic strip inside it. Or, you can drill multiple holes and insert magnets into each of them.
We prefer the latter one since it comes with better durability and stronger magnetic bonds to hold bigger knives at ease.
For this, attach the ¾” drill bits into the drill. Then, make two rows of drilled holes at the back of the walnut woodblock. You need to depress the drill bit for up to ½” and make sure you don’t penetrate the wooden block from the back to the front.
Be aware of the fact that the ideal distance between the magnetic discs and the knife shouldn’t be more than 3mm to 4mm. or, the magnet loses a major chunk of its capacity and only holds lighter and smaller knives.
The idea is to keep the magnetic blocks as close to the knives as possible. If you penetrate the woodblock the magnet will be visible from the front. Although it will still work fine, it ruins the aesthetics of your kitchen décor.
Step 3: Add glue and magnet
On the newly drilled holes, apply the super glue first. You can also use any strong adhesive but super glues will do the job faster. After dabbing in the glue, insert the magnet blocks into each hole with a similar orientation.
The strength of the magnetic block is crucial and so, you need to pick the right number for it. Ideally, we recommend you using S-20-10-N or S-15-08-N disc magnets. Also, you need to be aware of the fact that in the wall hanging position, the magnet is only able to hold 1/5th weight of its actual strength. So, using stronger magnetic discs will be helpful.
For a complete guideline on which magnet is better for which type of kitchen racks, you can read this article.
Finally, make sure the magnetic alignment is in the same direction. If you misplace the magnet direction, correct it before the glue gets dry and the magenta sticks to inside the block forever. So, you have to work swiftly in this case.
If you don’t know which disc magnet you should buy, here’re our three recommendations for the best neodymium disc magnets that you can use for the purpose.
- LOVIMAG Super Strong Neodymium Disc Magnets: The pack includes 20 pieces of disc magnets. It is built using strong neodymium and holds up to 18lbs. You can use it for kitchen racks, refrigerators, shower doors, or any craftwork. Thus, it will serve many purposes for you at home with its powerful capacity to hold steel materials at ease.
- Greatmag Neodymium Disc Magnets: This set of neodymium magnets includes 12 disc magnets and is half the price of the Lovimag disc magnet set. So, it could be an affordable option for you. Plus, it comes with strong adhesive on both sides which would make your knife holder making easier. It features a triple coating to prevent rust and corrosion as well.
- DIYMAG Powerful N52 Neodymium Disc Magnets: The package includes 10 pieces of strong neodymium magnetic discs. So, it could be a great fit for your small knife holders. Each disc can hold 18lbs of weight and is rust-resistant for durability. You need to use adhesives to stick them inside the drilled holes, however.
Step 4: Adding brackets and nails
You will need to add brackets at the back of the walnut woodblock, to hang it from the wall with a hanger. Add two brackets at two ends of the wood bock. Use a nail gun to attach the nails swiftly through the brackets for a permanent setup.
If you don’t have a nail gun, you can still do it with a good-quality hammer. Make sure your fingers are safe as you hammer down the nails through the bracket and the woodblock. Also, don’t put too much power on the hammer or it will damage the nails.
You should use a smaller bracket with short nails for the purpose.
Sep 5: Adds screws on the wall and mount the knife holder
Take the distance measurement between the two wall brackets at the back of your knife holder properly. Then, attach two screws on the wall at the same distance at a convenient height. It will hold the brackets and as a process the magnetic knife rack.
Hang the holder on the screws, then, arrange the magnetic knives into it one by one. Also, make sure the knife rack is clean. You may also paint the magnetic holder if you want. But that’s not an essential part since walnut wood grain looks beautiful even without any paints on it.
Final Words
Be it a Japanese kitchen knife or a western kitchen knife, it is part and parcel of your cooking life. When you are about to cut or slice anything and don’t find the knife close to your hand, it can be incredibly frustrating. Thus, arranging the kitchen knives in an accessible place is a must.
This guideline on how to create a magnetic kitchen knife would enable you to DIY a magnetic knife holder and place it on kitchen walls. So, you can access the right knife at the right moment. Plus, it is easy to clean and so, hygienic for your foods.