I've got a couple in the basement and they'll hold gear just fine. The only downside is any noise that the gear makes (cooling fans, transformer hum, etc) isn't contained as it would be in a closed rack. If that's OK with you, they work fine. Want another one? I also have a 5' enclosed rack on rollers with a smoked glass door (ooooooh! Imagine how cool it'd look in YOUR basement!).