Hermanus
Hermanus coastal shelves
Harbour shelves with salt-aware oil schedule.
Field notes: hermanus coastal shelves and site conditions
We were called to work in a sea-facing villa in Hermanus, where the Atlantic pushes salt and wind through every gap. The brief specified open shelving for a kitchen and entrance, but with a strict warning: salt corrosion eats cheap hardware and careless finishes. The Harbour Shelf made sense here, with its solid white oak and marine-rated fixings. The air carried fine spray, so we set up an outdoor bench for oiling and used microfibre cloths to catch extra drips. Every fitting and join had to be double-checked for exposure. On delivery, we packed each piece in thick canvas and timed the install for a calm afternoon, avoiding the full bite of the southeaster.
The shelves ranged from 1.2 to 2.1 metres in length, braced for heavy ceramics and glassware. The villa’s walls, built with a tough cement render, called for extra-long anchors and a steady hand with the percussion drill. Cleaning between coats of oil was vital, as windblown grit stuck to everything near the coast. The Veld Tray and a Canopy Pendant were also installed, but the real test was the shelf fixings. We left fresh linseed oil on site, with notes on reapplying every six months.
What worked and carried over
The Hermanus job shaped how we approach coastal installations, especially where salt and weather push materials to their limit. We took a few lessons to our later projects, making routine improvements in both prep and finish. The trick was to blend simple forms with practical resilience, never overcomplicating what should be easy to clean and maintain.
- Adopting a double oiling schedule between studio and site, adding a third coat for extra protection.
- Switching to marine-rated stainless steel fittings as standard for all exposed hardware.
- Designing shelves with a small drip edge underneath, keeping water off wall surfaces.
- Packing items in canvas wraps, not plastic, to avoid condensation during transport to the coast.
What we’d change for next time
If we were to take on another salty site like Hermanus, we’d start with a local test panel, left out for a few months to see how finishes fare in the wild. Some of the mounting points could have been trimmed to suit the villa’s uneven walls, so we’re planning a small on-site jig for marking up. We’d also invest in a mobile extraction unit for oiling, as the open air brought too much grit onto the tacky surfaces. Finally, we’d involve the villa’s caretaker earlier, making sure they know when and how to touch up the finish, instead of leaving instructions for the owner to relay. For those trickier coastal jobs, these steps should make everyone’s life easier.