Hey i"m Bob at I Like to Make Stuff
today were gonna make a quick and easy outdoor storage bench
*intro music*
several years ago i made an outdoor storage bench, actually in the same spot and it lasted for a long time
but it was time to replace it so i thought i would show you how i did it.
It's really easy, you don't need many tools, and it uses dimensional lumber from the hardware store
Alright! Let's check it out
I'm using pressure treated lumber for this, so that it will last quite a while outside
It's a lot easier, in this case, to bring out a miter saw (or if you have a circular saw that would work as well)
to bring it to where you're working outside, because this piece is going to be big
I started by cutting down all the 2x4s to their final length to make a couple of frames
There's going to be one frame that goes on the top of this, and one goes on the bottom
I'm just putting these together with butt joints (yes, they're called butt joints) and I'm gonna use decking screws
The decking screws have a coating on the outside so that they last and won't get all rusty
This bench is going to be 10 feet long to fit in between these two bushes
And so added one support across the center
I used the same size and the same construction for the previous one I made
and it worked just fine
I cut down some more 2x4s to use as the uprights to connect the two frames from the bottom to the top
I wanted these to have a little foot underneath the whole thing, so I cut some 1 inch scraps to use as an offset to hold the bottom frame off the ground
Then I put the legs on the ground, right up in the corner and drove in screws from all three sides to tie each one of these together really strong
With all of the uprights connected, I stood it up on its end and then laid the top frame down
I flipped this whole piece over so that I was working on it upside down
and this let me connect the top of the uprights to the bottom of the top frame
Super confusing, I know, but once you flip it over, it makes more sense
The long 2x4s were purchased at 10 feet, so I didn't have to cut those
But the 1x4s I used to face the whole thing were 12 foot, so I did have to cut off some extra from them, and use those extra pieces to cover the ends
I screwed one piece in, used a couple of screws as a spacer, and added the next one, and the next one, and followed that all the way up the sides
I did the same procedure for the front, and the back, and the other end
No matter how good you are at picking out pieces of lumber, none of them are going to be perfectly straight
I find it's best to start at one end, put one screw in, then your spacer right in the middle, screw the middle piece in, and then work to the other end
That allows you to bend it as you need to to get all the way across, and get it as straight as possible
Then go back and add a second screw to each one of these connections
After this was completely wrapped in 1/4s, I laid out some decking boards across the top
Then I took them off and cut them in half
These were also purchased at 10 feet, so I didn't have to cut them to length, just right down the middle
I laid them back in place, matching them up with their off cut, and used 2x4s to span all four pieces
You have to make sure to drive in screws from the bottom and from the top side
because once these start to warp they will separate unless there are screws coming in from both directions
I cleaned up the end of each one of these pieces with a circular saw so that it was nice and straight
To close the bottom of this in, and keep critters out, I used some wire mesh that I got at the home center
I actually bought it in 5 foot sections, so it fit perfectly in
I forced it down into shape, and used a staple gun just to attach it every couple of inches
This is the same thing I did last time, and I never had an animal inside this thing
Finally, it was time to add some hinges and I used some large galvanized hinges
I screwed them right on the inside, and then into the back of the box
This thing is heavy, but it's not so heavy that I couldn't move it into place by myself
Obviously, if you were on uneven ground that might be harder
I added some eyes, both to the inside of the door, and to the inside of the box before using some chain to connect them
This will stop the door from slamming all the way open
But you still have to be careful when closing it
To make it easier to open though, I used a square to mark a little area and cut it out with a jigsaw
This is just a hand hold right in the middle of each one of these sides
I put a little bit of an angle on it, but you could always use a router to round it over if you wanted to make it even fancier
Then I could finally hide away all the noodles and pool cleaning supplies
There it is! Super quick and easy!
I did this in an entire day, and I was filming - so if you weren't filming, this would only take you a couple of hours
Obviously you can always change the scale of this to fit your space
I just made it so that it would fit between these two bushes in this one little area
And if you needed to put heavier things on the inside, you could put some slats of wood across there, just to give it a solid bottom
In my case, though, I'm going to be storing mostly pool noodles and supplies, so it doesn't really need to be strong down there
Because this wood is treated, it is a little wet, so I have to wait for it to dry out before I can sand out the markings on the top of it
Those will come out pretty easily, and then once it fully dries out you can stain it, you can paint it, you can do anything you want
I hope you liked this one! Let me know what you think about it down in the comments
I've got lots of other types of videos that you might want to check out
and don't forget to subscribe
That's it for this one guys!
Thanks for watching!
I'm gonna go get in the pool
Several years ago, meow