Why assemble furniture from pallets?
Household craftsmen and enthusiastic summer residents will be able to list many arguments in favor of recycling pallets:
- cheap; in addition to pallets, you will also need other consumables (varnish, paint, mattresses or soft fabric seats, wheels), but even with their cost, in the end, homemade furniture will be more profitable than purchased furniture;
- naturally; pallets cannot be compared with the materials from which new furniture is made (chipboard, MDF); no harmful impregnations, glue, resins, phenol;
- environmentally friendly; pallets, being reused, will save many still growing trees;
- fashionable; Now taking care of the environment, living with a minimum of waste, surrounding yourself with objects made from natural materials is a trend;
- practical; any combination of pallets is not final; If desired, you can redo the design, change it or expand it in a matter of hours.
In addition, furniture made from pallets can become a creative task that unites all household members around it. Joint leisure will give a useful and unique result.
Where can I get pallets?
This type of container should be looked for where large volumes of goods are stored and sold. For example, in warehouses, logistics centers, construction hypermarkets. You can use advertisements on the Internet - those with significant quantities sell pallets inexpensively or give them away for free subject to pickup.
What can be made from pallets?
Furniture ideas are varied:
- storage systems for the balcony, dressing room, pantry;
- tables - in the kitchen, veranda, living room;
- bedside tables;
- garden furniture (sofas, armchairs, chairs, stools);
- beds for adults and children;
- shelves, racks, screens;
- cabinets;
- bar counters.
In addition, pallet boards are used for interior decoration, as panels or wall cladding along the entire height.
What are pallets?
Such wooden devices are called pallets and are used to construct various decorative elements on an open veranda, build multifunctional structures for storing things and garden tools, and simply furniture for a good rest. Untreated wooden structures can, in a short time, with the help of the hardworking hands of the owner, turn into beautiful and necessary furniture intended for use in a country house. Tables, chairs, stools, benches, chests of drawers and hanging sofas - everything that your heart desires can be made independently, and at low financial cost you can provide your country home with the necessary and comfortable furniture.
Where does the work begin?
Before creating furniture with your own hands, the initial pallets need to be prepared:
- in case of heavy contamination, wash and degrease; allow to dry completely;
- sand either with a special grinding machine or manually with sandpaper;
- treat with water-repellent impregnation and antifungal agents (if the furniture will be periodically or constantly placed outdoors).
How to make wall shelves from pallets
Before making from pallets, you need to take the following materials:
- disposable pallet with rounded neck, 160x120 cm;
- 8 universal screws 5 cm long;
- 6 universal screws 2 cm long (for intermediate shelves);
- 12 universal screws 1.5 cm long;
- 2 boards, 10x80 cm;
- wooden panel, 25x3x3 cm;
- wooden panel, 20x1x1 cm;
- wood oil or clear matte varnish;
- Japanese hacksaw
- sandpaper marked 80, 120 and 220;
- wood drill with a diameter of 1.2 cm;
- flat brush 2 cm wide;
- cordless screwdriver;
- wall mount.
- For a shelf on a wall made of pallets, cut the pallet so that you get pieces two crossbars wide.
- Select one of the boards, fit it to the base of the shelf and cut it to size. Attach a thick wooden panel to the posts of the future shelf, then adjust it to the width. Measure the thin strips that will be the bases of the shelf to length and cut them to size. Take measurements of the inside of the body of the future shelf, take another board and cut along the marks. Carefully sand the surface of the resulting parts so that no sharp particles remain on it.
- Coat all wooden parts with wood oil or special varnish. To make the surface even smoother, sand the wood several times and coat with an additional coat of varnish or wood oil of your choice. We advise you to approach the choice of varnish responsibly.
- Turn the future shelf over onto its lid. Screw the thin strips in the middle, then screw them at a distance of 1 cm from the lid.
- Secure the glass holder with brackets. Make horizontal marks with a pencil to mark the holes you need for the glasses. Mark the middle of the diameter of the glass stem with a 1 cm wide line and repeat the marking for all marked holes.
- Drill holes for the glasses, leaving a gap of 1 cm from the middle to the edge. Carefully sand the finished recesses so that there are no sharp particles left on them.
- Connect the pallet stand first with the shelf supports, and then with the bar - a holder for glasses. Screw all four supports to the plank with two screws using brass angles. Take 2 screws for each of the four supports.
- Turn the shelf over, insert the base support, and insert the inner bottom shelves. Fix the shelves and screw them to the outer edge - with one screw each. When finished, attach the shelves to the back wall with screws.
How to make a garden sofa
How many pallets are needed for a sofa? It depends on how long it will be. To accommodate 4 people, the sofa needs to be made from 8 pallets (for the first work experience it is better to take 10, in case something goes wrong).
Outdoor furniture must be impregnated with special solutions to extend its service life and protect it from fungus and mold.
The first four pallets are placed next to each other in two layers and secured together. The backrest is made of two more pieces, fixed at an angle to the seats. Armrests are nailed to the sides.
The structure can be upholstered with foam rubber and fabric already assembled, or sewn with removable soft covers and pillows.
Selection and preparation of pallets
The weight of a standard pallet is approximately 15 kg. The exact weight figure depends on the dimensions of the product. Today they are found in 2 types:
- 1200x1000x120 mm;
- 1200x800x120 mm.
An important characteristic of pallets as a raw material for furniture manufacturing is the strength of the wood. According to the standard, one pallet is designed to transport cargo weighing up to a ton.
Expert opinion
Gusev Roman Tarasovich
Interior design of residential and public premises. 10 years of experience in the design field.
What is most interesting is that most pallets do not have even minimal deformation after such a load. They are used to make shelving.
Most people do not fully understand why they choose Euro pallets to create furniture structures. The answer is very simple. Euro pallets undergo special phytosanitary treatment. In Russia, such stringent requirements are not imposed on pallets. Accordingly, they are less reliable and not as durable.
Phytosanitary treatment itself is divided into 3 types.
- Drying. Pallet boards are placed in a chamber where the temperature exceeds 60 degrees. The constant movement of air dries the wood, due to which it does not rot or crack under heavy load.
- Heat treatment. In this case, assembled pallets are sent under thermal influence. The high temperature dries the tree and destroys the pests living in it. But, unfortunately, it is impossible to evenly treat the wood base with this type of impact. This is why the quality of pallets often suffers.
- Use of fumigators. The wood surface is treated with methyl bromide, which destroys harmful microorganisms. However, after treatment with this substance, toxins remain inside the wood crevices. That is why such pallets cannot be used for transporting food and children's goods. They are also not recommended for making home furniture.
Well, now you need to figure out how to prepare the pallets for the upcoming assembly of the rack structure.
- First you need to clean the wood surface of the Euro pallet from dirt and dust. Remove rough areas of wood with a sander.
- At the end of rough processing, you need to bring the surface of the wood to a smooth state. To do this, you should use fine-grain sandpaper.
- If you intend to install the rack outdoors or in a room with low temperatures, the wood base must be treated with special moisture-repellent impregnations.
Shelves and storage systems
The scope of application of shelves and racks made from pallets is wide. On the balcony of an ordinary city apartment, wooden shelves will be useful for indoor flowers, seedlings and greenery. A closed storage system will help you set up your “interest corner” and put your tools, books, and collections in order.
At the dacha, shelves and racks will help keep dishes and household chemicals in order. In the gazebo, a rack will help organize a picnic or leisure time.
How to decorate?
A finished rack of pallets, the same shoe rack, can be decorated in a variety of ways:
- Varnish . This option will highlight the unique texture of the wood. When choosing a varnish, preference can be given to both a transparent composition and a colored one. Here everything depends on the unified style of the room and on the master’s own desires. A light-transmitting varnish will add a nice shine to the product and emphasize its naturalness. With the help of color composition you can achieve interesting and unique solutions;
- Paint . The paint color is chosen based on a single style decision and the desires of the owners. For children's rooms, rich and bright colors are used. It is quite fashionable to paint the rack in 2 different shades. Drawings on pieces of furniture are also in fashion. To apply patterns and ornaments, use ready-made stencils if you are not able to draw.
It is recommended to paint real wood only with water-based paints based on polyacrylate; water-based compositions are not suitable.
Finally, it is necessary to highlight that pallets make unusual racks for premises for various purposes . This piece of furniture is ideal for a child’s room, dining room or kitchen, or living room. Also, these furniture designs often decorate small office spaces where young and creative people work.
As you can see from the publication, making a rack of any size, design and type of structure from pallets with your own hands is not so difficult. The main thing is to show your own creative approach to making furniture, choose the right consumable tools and materials and stock up on a small amount of free time.
Pallet beds
This bed cannot be called a respectable royal bed, but it has its advantages:
- a sleeping place can be organized in the shortest possible time anywhere in the apartment;
- you can save significantly on a finished frame bed by investing in a high-quality orthopedic mattress;
- any variations with lighting, the effect of a floating bed, mysterious flickering lights or practical niches for bed linen - it’s easy to realize all individual wishes.
