Scavenger Chic

Super Sturdy Wooden Bench DIY

• By Joan
• July 11, 2019
• 4 Comments

I have another project from son #2’s house.  You may remember that he and his wife moved into their house back in December and have been trying to update it and make it theirs ever since.  With a one year old and both working full time jobs it’s a very slow process.

That’s where I come in.  I’ve been babysitting once a week and when junior takes a nap that is my time to find a project around the house that hasn’t been tackled.

For the last couple weeks I’ve been working outdoors.  Kevin (#2 son) had made a picnic table for his old house.  It was super sized, perfect for eating crabs on (hey, we’re from Maryland), perfect fit for his last deck but way too large for his current deck.  He needed a picnic table, but was thinking he would have to start over and build or buy a new one.

So, my project a couple weeks ago was to shorten his old picnic table which I did by 20″ to make it fit better with his new house.  You should know by now that I hate throwing anything away and the wood was still in good shape.   I didn’t take pictures of my table shortening project because I’m pretty sure interest in shortening a table by 20″ is a fairly small niche market.

How I came up with the new table length was based on this bench that the previous owners had left behind when they moved out. I now had a  bench and a table, of course I needed one more bench to make a matching set.

See that little fern on the end of the bench?  That little fern was preventing me from starting this project weeks ago.  A little wren decided to build it’s nest underneath the fern and I didn’t have the heart to evict the guy.  She only had one little egg, which did hatch and the nest now has a VACANCY sign above the door.

The reason I needed the little birdy to move on was because I wanted to turn the bench over to see how it was made and to get all my measurements.  This bench is super solid and maybe even a little wide for a picnic table but I think it will still work.

And now for my scavenging.  This was the stash of wood underneath their deck that the previous owner had also left behind.  Lots of goodies here.

Didn’t find any 4×4’s for the legs in the first stash but I did find one here (also under the deck).  The 4×4 here was only long  enough for 3 legs, still needed an extra 15″ for one more leg.

Continuing my scavenging I found one more 4×4, probably an old mailbox holder, tossed in the woods behind their house.

Total scavenging score…that really is a lot of wood for just one bench!!

Those dark pieces of wood, were super heavy and I assumed were stained and waterlogged since it was a rainy day.  Upon closer scrutiny, that was leftover TREX decking.  This bench will never rot.  OK, a few pieces may, but most of it will outlive me.

These were all my measurements.  You could probably read it better if it hadn’t been crumpled inside my pocket.  I would suggest not cutting any of the 2×6’s ahead of time but measure to fit your bench.

• You will need  4,  4×4 legs each measuring 15″
• 4 2×4’s    13 3/4″
• 2 2×4’s     61 5/8
• 2 2×6  6ft each
• 2 2×6  20″ each
• 3 2×6  68 3/4″ each for the bench top

Cut all the 2×4’s and screw together with deck screws.

Start more deck screws in the inside corners of your 2×4 frame.

 Once the screws are started, attach the 4, 15″ 4×4 legs, with those deck screws aligning the 4×4’s with the top edge of the 2×4’s.

Measure the length of your bench from 4×4 edge to 4×4 edge. It should be somewhere around 68 3/4″ if you’ve been using my measurements.

Cut 3 2×6’s using your last measurement.

Use more deck screws to attach your bench top to the 2×4 frame and legs.

With the remaining 2×6’s cut a skirt to frame  your bench.  If you have a miter saw, miter the edges, otherwise a straight cut will work just as well.  Use more deck screws to attach.

Sand corners, rough edges and any splinters.

Delivered!  In order to get it in the car, I did have to remove the skirt but luckily I didn’t use nails and I was able to remove the screws then reattach.

A coat of solid color stain covers up all my different woods and makes the table and benches a set.

Normally solid color stain sells for almost $40 at Home Depot.  Check the ooops or sale cans first, this one was $9.

This was the original bench which also got a coat of stain to match the table.

One more upcycled project.  We put the patio umbrella in without an umbrella base, within a half hour the umbrella had blown over.

Lo and behold there was a lonely cinderblock also under the deck.  A chunk of 4×4 holds the umbrella upright.  Perfect solution until an umbrella stand can be found or maybe even forever.

Brand new picnic set for about $19.  Nine dollars for the can of stain and $10 for deck screws.

Stay inspired.

You can find my last outdoor bench here just to give you options.

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It Takes a Village to Build a Bench Scavenged Treasures by the Stream Upcycled Feedbag Ottoman Maryland Flag DIY Table