An idiot level expensive mistake.

[MaryN]

Just read your post, NR. Disaster. I don't know how old your house is, but modern houses are not meant for people who want to survive for a long time in them. How about more freestanding units, just attached to the walls to keep them stable; a nice larder, perhaps? You can buy ready made ones that do hold quite a lot - we had one in France. Welsh dressers converted to all-shelves? If your walls are all made of plasterboard then there is really not a lot you can do to make them much stronger. We have a larder and it is lined with industrial metal shelving. Cost a bomb put would probably resist one!