Workbench Ideas

S

Shann

Joined
Sep 2, 2004
Messages
5,250
I want to put a workbench in my basement. I have actually 3 in my barn, but it is unheated and its like -20 here the last couple weeks. The basement is warm and dry and my wife has kindly had new lights and electrical outlets installed down there.

I was thinking of picking up a 72" folding workbench from HD. Its about $80, which isn't too much more than I would probably spend on materials.

But my FIL has offered to help me build one (he is the handy one, he built two of his houses and was a tool designer at GE forever). So I was thinking of building an L shaped one in the corner. Would 23-24" be deep enough? I'd basically rip a 3/4" 4X8 sheet of plywood in half for the top, maybe get two for a 1.5" if necessary. If I went that way it would be more expensive, but also twice the bench at least.

would 2X4s nailed together be good for the legs or a 4X4 post be better?

Any tips are appreciated. General usage, sharpening knives, cleaning guns, a little woodworking. Nothing too heavy duty.
 
My nicest workbench is a kitchen island I got at an estate sale. Drawers, cabinet doors, wired for power and a stainless steel top.

Even at garage sale prices out of your budget. You can get really nice smooth plywood that's meant for concrete forms.

I would look at how you work, sitting or standing and how you store tools. Then look at what you'll be getting on the top and adjust if you plan to pound on stuff or use chemicals.

Lighting that you can direct is a huge benefit. A fixed vice is a huge benefit. A stand for a laptop that keeps it out of the way but lets you view and type as you're working is a huge benefit. Somethign that keeps clean rags handy is a huge benefit.
 
Listen to him, it's all in the way you build something like that. You can use 2x4's and double them up to the point where you have a shelf and then take off again with the double. Look on YouTube. Watch a 1/2 dozen videos and You'll see one you like.
 
Someone is always redoing a kitchen. Most times the old cabinets and countertops are just tossed in the dumpster. You can usually get them very cheap, and often times free. They make wonderful workbenches, with plenty of storage underneath. When we redid our kitchen, the old stuff went right into the garage.

Some interesting notes:

Leave the old sink in place. Place a 5 gallon bucket under it, and it's a great place to wash parts, or work with messy liquids. Just make sure to dispose of them properly when done.

The cut-out for the dishwasher is a great spot to put a chair or stool for sitting to work.

Laminate kitchen countertops are quite durable to abuse. They resist most chemicals, don't stain easily, and wipe clean with little effort. The backsplash keeps small items from rolling off behind the bench. Bonus is, you can easily mount vices, presses, grinder, or anything else with some lag bolts.

Lazy Suzanne's are quite handy for all the various bottles and cans a garage acquires (WD-40, brake cleaner, spray paint, whatever). Drawer cabinets are handy for organizing oddball items. And full cabinets for big items like circular saws, battery chargers, etc.

Really, your only limited by space and your imagination. Look on Craigslist, the local want ads, or talk to friends and neighbors. If the cabinets and countertop are too big for your space, it costs you nothing extra to cut a foot or two off, and reposition the cabinetry.


As for whether or not 23-24" is big enough all depends on the type of work you do, and what you might mount to it. A grinder or bench vice mounted to it is fine, but a radial/chop saw is gonna be too big for it (had to make a separate bench for mine).
 
Thanks for the ideas. I will look into kitchen countertops\islands. Didn't see anything on craigslist this a.m. but I will keep looking. I've got plenty of room, so even if I don't need something too big, I can fit it.
 
Old solid core doors make great tops also. Laminate a piece of plywood over the top and you can flip the plywood if and when it ever starts to look real crappy and starts to bug you. ;)
 
I second the idea of old kitchen/bath cabinets, lowers are usually 24" deep, uppers are usually 12" deep. I have also used heavy pallets that have 4x4 pieces. I also like old wood office desks. check at Habitat for Humanity stores or building material recycle centers.
 
I built a workbench in the garage of my first house. I used 2x4 for legs on the front, screwed a couple of long 2x4s to the wall in the back ran 2x4 around the perimeter halfway up the legs and at the tops of the legs, then used plywood for the top and lower shelf. This was fairly easy to build. Depending on your basement construction you might not be able to bolt on a ledger at the back and would have to use 2x4 legs all the way around.

I think 3/4" plywood is enough for the top, unless you are rebuilding car engines on the workbench. (My father had a couple of all steel tables in his automotive garage for rebuilding engines.) 24" depth might be enough depending on the size of things you are working on. If you have enough room I would suggest making it 32" deep- you can crosscut a 4'x8' sheet of plywood into 3 pieces that are 32" x 48". Cut this way the plywood would be oriented so it is spanning its strong direction from front to back. (Ripping it down the center would have it spanning its weak direction front to back.) If you position the legs and 2x4 runners so the plywood hangs off the front a couple of inches then the edge won't be quite as strong but that gives an edge that you can clamp things onto to hold them in place. If you are going to bolt on a vise you might see how it fits first though. Another thing is that a lot of people aren't real neat with their workbenches and things accumulate along the back, reducing the empty working space. Starting with a 32" deep top helps with this. I would also suggest mounting a large piece of pegboard on the wall above the workbench for your tools, maybe a narrow shelf at the bottom of the pegboard for things that can't hang from the pegboard. And long electrical outlet strips mounted to the wall at the back of the workbench and/or along the lower front edge of the workbench.

In my second house I took a different approach for the workbench because I had less space- I bought a steel drawer unit from Sears that is about 6' wide with 2 rows of drawers and a particle board top. It is light duty and smaller than I need but the drawers are useful and I can still mount a vise on top of it. I have a similar sized cabinet I built from plywood that has a few drawers- I put my drill press and bench grinder on top of it. I have a large pegboard on the wall for most common hand tools, some wire shelves from Home Depot for power tools and boxes of stuff, and now a small rollaround tool chest for my automotive tools. The common tools like hammers and screwdrivers are most convenient on the pegboard because you just reach out and grab them. My automotive tools aren't used as often so the tool chest is a good compromise between organization and access. And power tools aren't used that often so I just stick them on a shelf. I have a couple of cheap folding sawhorses from Harbor Freight and a spare piece of plywood for a top. This is convenient for another work surface that I can move around, but I have to battle to keep it from becoming just another storage spot.

And be sure to put plenty of lighting above your workbenches.

You can find youtube videos for building all kinds of workbenches and tool storage. I wouldn't advise getting into this or it will suck down all your free time. And you probably want to stay away from https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/ as well.
 
Thanks for the info. I have spent a few hours wandering around in the garagejournal website. I don't need a garage mahal though!

My sister has a friend who is renovating her kitchen, so we'll see whether she comes up with anything.

I think the 3/4 inch top should be good enough because I won't really do any heavy work or if I'm honest any "real" work on it.

Do people put any moulding or edging on the front edge of the plywood or just leave it as is?
 
Kootaga13 said:
Old solid core doors make great tops also. Laminate a piece of plywood over the top and you can flip the plywood if and when it ever starts to look real crappy and starts to bug you. ;)
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I bought a solid oak door slab 35 years ago (came sanded and finished) and still use it. Added long legs so I can work standing, work light, vice, clamps, drawers underneath for storage. Covered it with large sheet of plexi and it still looks/performs great.

Personally, I hate the smell of plywood, so I couldn’t go that route.
 
They sell particle board about the size of a closet door that is about 2" thick and makes a good work bench surface.

Don't use nails. Use screws and bolts with nuts.

Some of the recycle places sell used kitchen cabinets that might be had for a "reasonable" price.

Good idea with the stainless sink (with bucket) especially in a basement.

4x4" posts work, but two 2x4" screwed together work just as well. They (2x4) also give you the easy option of setting your top surface on one 2x4 and leaving the other to extend to the top of the working surface. This is common with deck railing construction.
 
annr said:
I bought a solid oak door slab 35 years ago (came sanded and finished) and still use it. Added long legs so I can work standing, work light, vice, clamps, drawers underneath for storage. Covered it with large sheet of plexi and it still looks/performs great.

Personally, I hate the smell of plywood, so I couldn’t go that route.
Click to expand...

That's the key right there, make it tall enough so as not to break your back. Don't make it kitchen table height. Try working humped over on something for a lenght of time on the kitchen table while standing. ;)
 
Kootaga13 said:
That's the key right there, make it tall enough so as not to break your back. Don't make it kitchen table height. Try working humped over on something for a lenght of time on the kitchen table while standing. ;)
Click to expand...
Correct! My setup was all about ergonomics. The tabletop is at/above navel height— so higher than my kitchen countertops. I have a small, regular height stool if I want to sit down.

On the adjacent wall I have a 6’ Anthro cart —height adjustable on wheels— close to desk height.

In total, I have 4 different work surfaces including a smaller table for my grinder (knives), multiple light sources, and several seats.
 
annr said:
Correct! My setup was all about ergonomics. The tabletop is at/above navel height— so higher than my kitchen countertops. I have a small, regular height stool if I want to sit down.

On the adjacent wall I have a 6’ Anthro cart —height adjustable on wheels— close to desk height.

In total, I have 4 different work surfaces including a smaller table for my grinder (knives), multiple light sources, and several seats.
Click to expand...
Awesome!
 
I've had more than a few workbenches. no matter how you do it whether you use the kitchen cabinet or a solid core door, build it so you can get a full 360 degrees around what you're working on. I find it to be a pain in the ass to only have one side of my work without having to move what I'm working on to get to the other side.
 
My favorite work bench is a commercial electric table (up/down) 24" to 44". Adjusts for standing, sitting, and goes low enough to get over the work when your applying some elbow grease. They cost new around $2000. , I picked mine up at the "Habitat for Humanity " Restore for $40.00 , and they loaded it for me!!! I was so impressed with the volunteers that worked there, and their mission I decided to join them one day a week. It's hard to buy a sheet of plywood these days for $40. All the ideas I've read in this tread are good/great ideas, I only wanted to say that all the materials mentioned, doors, cabinets, countertops, lumber, tool racks etc are available 90% off store $. And don't even get me started on the tools available. Thanks for listening and letting me cheerlead for Habitat
 
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