ambenz
Well-known member
Well it all started with a dumpster find.
I found a table that fit perfectly for a planter bench near the water spigot as it fit right over the basement window well, my wife and I loved it!
This table was made for the indoors and eventually the top got compromised and it needed to be thrown out.
It was made of pressed wood and had a plastic covering that cracked and water soaked the press board, but the metal legs were good!
So I disassembled it and kept the legs.
And we wanted that table so I figured we would use the legs and build a new one "on the cheap!"
So I got some coated steel studs for a little over $5 and figured this would be cheaper than treated 2x4 for outdoor use.
And let the engineering begin!
It was my second time in a while using the studs and I just worked it like I would making a wood frame.
I liked the ease of using my tin snips, a drill and my rivet gun I hardly use.
I also bought a plastic pan for $2 I figured I could use as a recessed dry sink...just sizing it up to my frame...
The metal legs off the old table, figuring out how to mount them....
Moving a long...more rivets....
Light bulb moment figuring I could have saved a few steps and some rivets if I would have kept the corners together and bent them in place and used one rivet to secure instead to cuting the pieces and riveting it back together....duh!
got all the leg mounting brackets in place and riveted.... This frame is pretty beefy and super light...would be great as a cart...just add some wheels and a handle!
Even though the frame metal is coated, I decided to rattle can the finish.
I had some leftover plastic composite deck board from the front porch built and thought it would be a excellent choice to replace the press board top....so I test fitted the deck boards....
I mounted the saved legs to the riveted frame using self tapping sheet metal screws I had forever.
Then instead of cutting a hole for the dry sink, I decided to use the pan as a drawer that could be removed and used on the bench....just too nice to have a full top....
After I got this far, I realized those deck boards are friggin heavy!! Too heavy...like they were made with concrete heavy! I wasn't happy.
So I made a decision not to use them....and went on the hunt to see what scraps I had and what I could jury rig. I still may go back to using the deck composite boards but I gonna try this first.
I had an old wood futon I threw out but not before I saved all the wood slats.
I didn't have enough of the right sizes but eventually I got it figured out what I could do...it isn't a perfect option but this wood is much lighter and prefinished too.
Got them cut....and used black silicone to "set them in place." I will go back and screw them in from the bottom if I can live with this setup.
Sprayed the pan...
And quit for the day....I still have to screw in the slats, finish cut them all to length, and paint or stain, seal the ends...and place it back outside near the water spigot so we can fill water in bottles and cans without bending over all the time....kind of set this up for intended use...you get the idea.
After seeing and going through the pictures, I think I will paint the legs black.
I enjoyed working with the metal studs to make the frame...much lighter than wood, is just as strong, and should last outdoors for a long, long, time!
I found a table that fit perfectly for a planter bench near the water spigot as it fit right over the basement window well, my wife and I loved it!
This table was made for the indoors and eventually the top got compromised and it needed to be thrown out.
It was made of pressed wood and had a plastic covering that cracked and water soaked the press board, but the metal legs were good!
So I disassembled it and kept the legs.
And we wanted that table so I figured we would use the legs and build a new one "on the cheap!"
So I got some coated steel studs for a little over $5 and figured this would be cheaper than treated 2x4 for outdoor use.
And let the engineering begin!
It was my second time in a while using the studs and I just worked it like I would making a wood frame.
I liked the ease of using my tin snips, a drill and my rivet gun I hardly use.
I also bought a plastic pan for $2 I figured I could use as a recessed dry sink...just sizing it up to my frame...
The metal legs off the old table, figuring out how to mount them....
Moving a long...more rivets....
Light bulb moment figuring I could have saved a few steps and some rivets if I would have kept the corners together and bent them in place and used one rivet to secure instead to cuting the pieces and riveting it back together....duh!
got all the leg mounting brackets in place and riveted.... This frame is pretty beefy and super light...would be great as a cart...just add some wheels and a handle!
Even though the frame metal is coated, I decided to rattle can the finish.
I had some leftover plastic composite deck board from the front porch built and thought it would be a excellent choice to replace the press board top....so I test fitted the deck boards....
I mounted the saved legs to the riveted frame using self tapping sheet metal screws I had forever.
Then instead of cutting a hole for the dry sink, I decided to use the pan as a drawer that could be removed and used on the bench....just too nice to have a full top....
After I got this far, I realized those deck boards are friggin heavy!! Too heavy...like they were made with concrete heavy! I wasn't happy.
So I made a decision not to use them....and went on the hunt to see what scraps I had and what I could jury rig. I still may go back to using the deck composite boards but I gonna try this first.
I had an old wood futon I threw out but not before I saved all the wood slats.
I didn't have enough of the right sizes but eventually I got it figured out what I could do...it isn't a perfect option but this wood is much lighter and prefinished too.
Got them cut....and used black silicone to "set them in place." I will go back and screw them in from the bottom if I can live with this setup.
Sprayed the pan...
And quit for the day....I still have to screw in the slats, finish cut them all to length, and paint or stain, seal the ends...and place it back outside near the water spigot so we can fill water in bottles and cans without bending over all the time....kind of set this up for intended use...you get the idea.
After seeing and going through the pictures, I think I will paint the legs black.
I enjoyed working with the metal studs to make the frame...much lighter than wood, is just as strong, and should last outdoors for a long, long, time!
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