How to Build a Corner Storage Bench Seat

Plywood is easy to work with and is great for benches.

A corner storage bench provides a great use of corner space, whether you use it as a spot to sit and put on your winter boots or something to stuff with toys in a child's room. Corner storage benches also have lasting value as permanent fixtures in your home. About one standard 4-by-8-foot sheet of plywood should suffice. The project will take only a few hours out of your day.

Things You'll Need

• Safety Glasses
• Piece 3/4-inch plywood, 2 feet square
• 2 pieces 3/4-inch plywood, 20 by 24 inches
• Piece 3/4-inch plywood, 20 by 34 inches
• Circular saw
• 2 boards, 2-by-2-inch pine, 20 inches long
• Drill/screw gun
• 1/8-inch drill bit
• Table saw with fence and push stick
• Two hinges with screws
• 24 wood screws, 1 1/2-inch length

Instructions

1. Cut the 2-by-2-foot plywood sheet diagonally, corner to corner. The resulting two triangles will be the top and bottom of the bench.

2. Make a 45-degree rip-cut on the 20-inch 2-by-2 with the table saw, fence and push stick, yielding two 20-inch triangular boards.

3. On the two 24-by-20-inch plywood sheets, bevel the 20-inch sides by cutting them at a 45-degree angle with the table saw. Do not alter the original measurements. Make sure only the corners are taken off.

4. Match the beveled 20-inch side of one 24-inch sheet to the 20-inch side of the 34-inch sheet. The edge that was just cut should be lying on the 34-inch sheet, forming a flush 45-degree angle. Screw the 24-inch plywood sheet to the 34-inch sheet with the triangular 20-inch board on the inside corner of the bench. Repeat this process on the other side with the second 24-by-20-inch sheet. Use six screws for each 20-inch corner of the bench.

5. Screw the 2-by-2-inch pine board inside the 90-degree corner formed by the two 24-inch sheets of plywood.

6. Screw a triangular piece of plywood to the bottom of the frame, one screw through each corner.

7. Use a circular saw to make a diagonal cut measuring 7 inches from the 90-degree corner on both sides. This line should be parallel with the hypotenuse of the triangle.

8. Screw the 90-degree corner of the 7-inch plywood triangle to the 90-degree corner of the frame. Pre-drill a hole through each 45-degree corner on the 7-inch plywood into the plywood on the frame, and then screw them together.

9. Screw the hinges to the hypotenuse of the 7-inch plywood. Screw the other ends of the hinges to the plywood it was taken from.

Tips & Warnings

• Wear safety glasses when using power tools.

References

• Luxury Housing Trends: Corner Storage Bench Makes Use of Dead Space

Resources

• DIY Network: How to Make a Corner Storage Bench