How to Make a Picnic Table Out of 2 Sheets of Plywood
Picnic tables greatly enhance the outdoor eating experience. Picnic tables provide a place to set out the food and allow people the convenience of sitting down at a table to enjoy a meal. While there are picnic tables fabricated out of concrete and pressure treated lumber, a simple picnic table complete with benches can be fabricated out of two pieces of plywood. This project is one that someone with basic carpentry skills and a few tools can complete. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Two 8 by 4-foot pieces of ¾-inch plywood
- Wood screws
- Table saw
- Skilsaw
- Drill
- Tape measure
- Screw driver
- Coping saw
Instructions
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Tabletop
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1
Measure and cut two feet off the short end of one of the pieces of plywood. The big piece of plywood will serve as the tabletop. The remaining piece of plywood will be used as part of the base of the table.
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2
Measure to cut three slots in the tabletop, a slot for each end and one for the middle. The slots should be centered on the tabletop, and end slots should be approximately three inches from the edge. Additionally, the slots should be ¾ inches wide and six inches long.
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3
Cut the measured slots. Cut the slots lengthwise with the Skilsaw, and use the coping saw to finish cutting out the slots.
Seats
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4
Measure to cut two feet off of the end of the second piece of plywood. The two-foot piece will serve as part of the base.
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5
Cut the plywood with the Skilsaw, using measurements from the previous step.
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6
Measure the four-foot piece of plywood from the previous step to cut it lengthwise into two 1 by 6-foot sections, These two sections will form the bench seats of the table.
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7
Cut the the bench seats for the table with the Skilsaw.
Base
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8
Measure and cut the piece of plywood that was left after cutting the bench seats in the previous steps. Measure four feet down the length of piece of plywood and cut across the width of plywood. This cut will leave a 4 by 2-foot piece of plywood that will make the third part of the base.
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9
Measure one-foot along the two-foot side of the pieces of plywood for the base of table. Make a 12-inch deep straight cut widthwise into the plywood. Make this cut on the opposite side as well. For instructional purposes, this piece will be referred to as the bottom of the base.
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10
Measure 12 inches from the end of each side of the top of the base, which will be the four-foot piece of plywood.
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11
Make a lengthwise cut on each side of the four-foot piece of plywood based on the measurements in the previous step. This cut should intersect with the twelve-inch widthwise cut.
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12
Measure and cut ¾ inch down from the top of the base on each end and measure nine inches across the top of the base. This cut will make a tab to fit into the slots cut into the tabletop.
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13
Perform the preceding five steps on the other two sections of 2 by 4-foot pieces of plywood.
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14
Cut the remaining 2 by 2-foot piece of plywood into two-inch strips. These pieces will serve as support pieces for the base. Using a table saw. cut the ends of the pieces at 45-degre angles, so that one end of each piece will rest flush against the base, while the other end rests flat on the ground.
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15
Attach the base pieces to the bottom of the base with wood screws using the drill and screwdriver.
Assembly
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16
Insert the tabs of the base into the cutout slots of the tabletop. If cut correctly, the tabs should fit snug into the slots.
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17
Place the two bench sections on the twelve-inch cutout spots on the base.
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18
Drill holes through the bench seats into the base of the plywood.
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19
Screw the screws into the holes drilled into the bench. This step will secure the bench to the base.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Sand the inside of slots and tabs to make smoother fit. Sand and varnish benches and table top to avoid having wood splinters.
When drilling holes to screw down the bench, use the smallest drill bit possible to avoid damaging the edge of the plywood. Use long small screws for screwing down to the base, and do not over tighten.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit picnic table image by Alison Bowden from Fotolia.com
