Furniture made from pallets: practical ideas for a summer house

Design features and benefits

Pallets (pallets) are simple devices for transporting and storing goods. The transport structure is a rigid lattice rectangular platform made of wood or plastic. Metal pallets are very rare.

Metal pallets are not suitable for making garden furniture due to their heavy weight and susceptibility to corrosion. Plastic ones are difficult to fasten, but wooden ones are very easy to use and can be easily converted into various objects. Even a novice master can handle this. Just watch the video or photo instructions to understand how to make furniture from pallets with your own hands.

The term “European pallet” is often used. This is a standard wooden structure with the following dimensions:

• length - 1200 mm;
• width - 800 mm;
• height - 144 mm.

The size of Euro pallets is not accidental; it correlates well with the internal dimensions of trucks and the grips of electric forklifts. There are also so-called Finnish pallets, made according to standards common in Finland:

• length - 1200 mm;
• width - 1000 mm;
• height - 144 mm.

Pallets can be:

• single-deck - the load can be placed on one side;
• double-layered - on both sides.

According to the placement of the side openings into which the loader grips pass, pallets are available in two-way and four-way types. Wooden pallets of any configuration and size are suitable for making furniture. Used pallets can be purchased. Organizations wishing to get rid of them post advertisements on free boards online. The average cost of a Euro pallet in good condition is about 150 rubles, so homemade furniture from wooden pallets will be very inexpensive.

Pallet sizes

Single deck

Double-decker

From pallets you can make:

• garden kits;
• sofas;
• tables;
• coffee tables;
• podiums;
• beds;
• storage systems for equipment and clothing;
• bedside tables;
• cabinets.

Advantages of wooden pallets:

• suitable for creating furniture according to individual projects;
• available material;
• environmentally friendly;
• easy to use - no welding machine required;
• practical - you can paint it any color, change or update the top layer if necessary;
• save time - a full-fledged garden set for arranging a recreation area can be made in 1 day.

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Garden kit

Sofa

Table

Coffee table

Podium

Sunbeds

Storage system

Nightstand

Closet

Furniture made from pallets. DIY bench.

Let's look at the example of a bench to see the sequence of work for making furniture from pallets.

We clean the pallets, recess any protruding nails, and smooth out any uneven surfaces.

From one pallet, cut into two parts, we make the seat and backrest for the bench. From the other - the side parts of the bench.

For convenience, we decorate the upper part of the bench with a horizontal bar.

You can make another version of a bench from pallets - with storage boxes.

This is a more labor-intensive process, because it requires disassembling the pallet, and those who have ever encountered this will forever remember what huge nails they were knocked down with, and disassembling the pallet is not easy.

We always consider ourselves which models justify the cheapness of the pallet and which do not.

Preparation of materials

Before use, pallets must be cleaned of dirt and dust. All parts should then be sanded to remove rough edges and fibers that could become a splinter when the furniture is used. Using a sander, cleaning the tray will be quick and with a minimum of effort. If there is no electrical device, defects must be removed manually using abrasive paper.

When sanding by hand, to save time and effort, you can limit yourself to only those parts that will be in direct contact with the human body.

Pallets are not always needed in their entirety. Then they need to be disassembled into planks and then sorted. Very old, dilapidated, broken boards will have to be thrown away. Those suitable for further use must be coated with a composition with a moisture-repellent effect:

• primer;
• paint;
• varnish.

If the material is not treated, furniture made from Euro pallets will not last long. Areas in contact with the soil will quickly rot. Parts located above the ground will take on an unsightly gray color and become covered with fungus and mold. You need to design furniture, take measurements, draw diagrams and drawings in advance. This will allow you to calculate the amount of material, purchase additional parts (handles, wheels, hinges, decor), and prepare the necessary tools.

Material for work

Processing pallets with a sander

Sanding by hand

Padding

Applying paint

Furniture made from pallets. Summer kitchen in the country.

A summer kitchen in the country is the dream of many summer residents. Using pallets, you can save on materials.

Of course, this is a double-edged sword - saving materials means more labor costs for you.

But, as often happens, a limited budget often gives rise to beautiful solutions.

Each board, lovingly polished by the hands of the owner, gives this summer kitchen a warm and cozy look.

It is convenient to gather the whole family here and often allow yourself to cook on the grill or barbecue.

Tools

Furniture made from pallets is a kind of construction set made up of several pallets fastened together. The manufacturing process is not particularly difficult. It is enough to have the simplest devices.

Tools for working with pallets:

1. A screwdriver is a power tool that allows you to quickly screw in and unscrew confirms from wood. The device can be battery or battery operated. In garden conditions, the latter option is more useful, since furniture from pallets is assembled in the open air, where it is not always possible to connect to the network. A drill-driver allows you to quickly and efficiently sand boards with special attachments.
2. Grinder is an electric circular saw for cutting wood and metal.
3. A wood hacksaw is a hand saw that replaces a grinder.
4. An electric jigsaw can be used to cut boards or make shaped decorations.
5. Screwdrivers, hammer, pliers are standard hand tools.

When working with wood, you need to wear protective equipment - glasses, gloves.

For painting you will need painting tools: brushes, a rubber spatula for filling cracks and small holes. A nail puller is indispensable when dismantling pallets. The tool allows you to remove old fasteners from boards. Pallets are nailed together with rough nails, which are much more resistant to tearing than regular nails. It will take twice as much effort to pull them out of the boards.

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Screwdriver

Bulgarian

Wood hacksaw

Electric jigsaw

Hand tool

Painting tools

nail puller

Photos of furniture made from pallets

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Manufacturing rules

The simplest structures for the garden are made from pallets. If you have the skills to work with wood, you can make furniture with your own hands from pallets no worse than designer furniture. Most often, craftsmen make bedside tables, small sofas, armchairs, and beds from pallets.

Nightstand

It’s easy to build a bedside table from pallets; it’s better to start making furniture with it. If you put a wooden structure on wheels, you get a coffee table. Necessary tools and consumables:

• nail puller;
• hammer;
• screwdriver;
• wheels;
• fasteners;
• 1–2 pallets;
• paints and varnishes.

Assembly sequence:

• clean pallets;
• sand the boards using a drill or sandpaper;
• disassemble the pallet, pulling out the fasteners with a nail puller;
• make a tabletop from tightly laid edge-to-edge boards, securing them to two transverse planks nailed on the inside;
• nail a few more boards from the inside of the tabletop to create a place to store magazines.

If you need a coffee table, you can screw on the wheels - you get a low, flat structure, inside which it is convenient to store books and magazines. By combining two such items, they form a bedside table. From the remaining boards you can make drawers.

Clean pallets and sand boards

Disassemble the pallet, pulling out the fasteners with a nail puller

Make a tabletop and side walls of the bedside table

By nailing a few more boards from the inside of the countertop, you can organize additional storage space

Armchair

To make a four-legged chair with two armrests, you will need the same tools as for the bedside table. Assembly is performed in the following sequence:

• the pallet is sawn crosswise - one part will be the back, the other - the seat;
• connect the back and seat at an angle using boards removed from the second pallet;
• legs and handrails are made from planks;
• the structure is assembled with self-tapping screws;
• furniture is treated with sandpaper, varnished or painted.

Cut the pallet into pieces

Connect the backrest and seat at an angle

Secure the armrests and sand the product

The finished chair can be coated with paint or varnish

Bed

It is very easy to make a single or double bed without legs from pallets. To do this, they are installed directly on the floor and fastened with self-tapping screws, metal corners and plates. To work you will need:

• four pallets;
• carpet flooring;
• block measuring 40 x 60 cm.

Manufacturing procedure step by step:

• a frame is assembled from timber in the form of a frame with crossbars corresponding to the size of the pallets;
• clean the pallets of dirt and treat them with sandpaper;
• assemble the structure with self-tapping screws;
• Pallets are installed inside the frame and screwed to the frame;
• the pallets are covered with carpet on top;
• a mattress is placed on the structure.

If you need a bed with a headboard, another pallet is attached to the wall.

Clean the pallets from dirt and sand them with sandpaper.

Make markings and assemble a frame from timber

Fasten the structure with self-tapping screws and cover it with carpet

Put down the mattress. Another pallet can be used as a headboard

Rack

The simplest shelving can be made by placing a pallet vertically with the wrong side out and fastening several boards transversely at the same distance from each other - they will be shelves. First you need to remove the middle support. This rack can be hung on the wall. If you attach two legs from an old table from the bottom, the structure will receive additional support and take on a vintage look.

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Pallets are an excellent raw material for making multifunctional shelves. Racks are made as follows:

• saw the pallet in half;
• in one part, the boards that serve as supports for the pallet are removed;
• nail one separated support onto the front part horizontally;
• attach the second part of the pallet to the support.

The result will be a product 120 cm long and with a shelf width of 30 cm. The rack can be left outdoors and pots of flowers can be placed on it. In the house, such shelves are filled with books and interior decor.

Cut the pallet in half

Remove boards that serve as supports

Attach the pallet parts to form a shelving unit

Preparing material for work

Before you start making furniture, do the following with pallets:

1. inspect for cracks and chips. Pallets with a blue tint are rejected: raw wood was used for their manufacture, so it will not be possible to obtain high-quality furniture;
2. disconnect fasteners, if any;
3. remove dust and dirt. This is convenient to do with a grinding machine.

The boards are sanded using the same grinder or a drill with a special attachment.

If the operation is performed manually, use a special grater - sandpaper is fixed on it with screw clamps. A very rough surface is pre-planed. It is not necessary to treat all surfaces. First of all, this is done in areas with which the user is in contact or which are in plain sight.

The prepared material is impregnated with drying oil, and the finished product is coated with a primer:

• oil if intended for indoor use;
• acrylic if the product will be placed outside.

Painting pallets
Next, the furniture is painted; in addition, the products can be varnished.

Dry cleaning is carried out wearing personal protective equipment (respirator and goggles) and with the windows open.

Decor options

Pallet furniture, even carefully constructed, will have a rustic appearance if it is not decorated. There are a lot of ways. For finishing you can use:

• coating with paint, stain;
• varnishing;
• pasting with self-adhesive film;
• finishing using decoupage technique;
• decoration with fabric, lace.

Wood can only be coated with acrylic paints; emulsion paints are not suitable.

It is recommended to choose the most expensive paint. It gives a noble and respectable look to the roughest boards. Drawings and ornaments can be applied using stencils. The striped pattern is made using masking tape.

Furniture varnish can be transparent or colored. The first will emphasize the texture of the wood and add a bright or matte shine. The second will help to tint the pallets to match the color of other interior items.

If furniture made from wooden pallets will be placed outside, the decor should not be “afraid” of moisture, wind, low temperatures, or heat. Products that will be in the house are decorated with fabric and pillows. The seats of sofas and armchairs can be upholstered with foam rubber, covered with leatherette or matting on top. Convenient removable covers. They are made from easily washable fabric to match other existing furniture in the house.

Typically, summer residents use old pallets to light a fire. But if the owners have a need for furniture, it is irrational to burn them - you can make practical things that will last for many seasons and cost almost nothing. Photos of step-by-step making of furniture from pallets with your own hands will help beginners decorate their cottage beautifully and comfortably.

Coloring

Varnishing

Pasting with self-adhesive film

Using the decoupage technique

Fabric decoration

DIY pallet table photo

Country table made of pallets. How to make a table from pallets with your own hands: photos, videos, manufacturing options.

If you need a table for your garden or an original coffee table, you can make it yourself from ordinary wooden pallets.

We will look at some of the most original ideas for making a table from pallets.

Table made of pallets for a summer residence.

To make this table you will need 3 pallets, one pallet will be the tabletop, the other two will be the table legs.

The pallet for the tabletop needs a little modification, since there are gaps between the boards on the pallet and they need to be removed. To do this, we disassemble the boards of the pallet and fasten them back with screws, only without gaps, but end-to-end, we take additional boards from another pallet.

We install the legs, take two pallets and attach them with wood glue and screws to the boards of the upper pallet. You can secure the parts to be glued using clamps.

A similar option is a desk made from pallets.

Dining table made from pallets for the cottage.

Materials you will need:

• Pallets – 5 – 6 pcs.
• Boards.
• Dye.
• Sandpaper.
• Screws.

Tools:

• Screwdriver.
• Saw.
• Sander.
• Hammer with nail puller.
• Brush.

Let's start making a table from pallets with our own hands.

We stack the pallets evenly on top of each other with the front surface facing up.

The topmost pallet will be the tabletop, but it needs to be modified; you will need several even boards, you can take them from the same pallet. We saw off the boards along the length of the pallet and screw them to the bars of the pallet. As a result, you will have a solid table surface.

We cut out several internal partitions in the pallets with a saw, so we will get additional space in the form of shelves for things.

We process cuts and irregularities with a grinding machine.

The final stage is painting the table, it is advisable to use enamel; if the table will be placed outside, then enamel must be used for outdoor work.

DIY pallet table video.

Coffee table made from pallets.

Thus, you can also make a coffee table, only 2 pallets are enough to make it.

We install the pallets on top of each other; the pallets can also be installed with their inner sides facing each other.

We process the pallets with a sanding machine and fasten them with screws.

Now the table needs to be varnished or painted. To make the table easy to move, we attach wheels to it.

Alternatively, glass can be used as a tabletop.

DIY table made from pallets photo.

Several interesting solutions for making a table from pallets.