How to Make Outdoor Furniture Using Salvaged Building Materials

We all love a nice, good-looking backyard! Naturally. But… only when it's clean. 

The cost of outdoor cleaning, however, can suck money from your wallet pretty quickly! You could cut costs by buying cheap items/furniture, but how long is that going to last you? Wait for the first rainy day, or bit of humidity in the air, and it’ll likely start showing signs of wear and tear.

It would be great to have stylish furniture without having to pay a small fortune for it, but how do you do it? Easy – you make it yourself from materials you’ve salvaged. Well, it's not THAT easy… but, where there’s a will, there’s a way, right? It’ll leave you with something absolutely unique and precious because no one else owns the same chair that you’re sitting on. And from experience, it might even start quite the conversation at your next get-together with friends and/or family! 

Also take into account that every time you see that object, you’ll know that it’s a product of your ideas, your skill, and your hard work – something YOU created. And, to be quite frank, that feeling is quite awesome.

If you’ve already dabbled in some DIY projects, this will probably be easy-peasy for you. If you haven’t, you have the chance to challenge yourself, learn something new, and get some furniture out of it.

How to Find and Prepare The Salvaged Materials You’re Going To Use

The first step towards having stylish, affordable outdoor furniture is to find the materials. The second is to prep those materials. 

Start with finding out and determining which materials you can repurpose (e.g., wooden planks, pallets, metal sheets, old pipes, etc.). Usually, they’re left over from construction projects. If it was me looking for a pole barn builder near me or a porch builder near me, I’d look for one on the internet, and I’d call a couple of them in order to check/compare the prices and services.

Once you have your materials, it’s time to prepare them. Clean each piece you have thoroughly and remove dirt, dust, and old paint. You want to (ideally) make the material spotless.

Then, you need to treat whatever it is you’re going to use. For your wood furniture, you need to sand a rough surface. You don’t want any rough, pointy edges, and you don’t want wood splinters. Also, check for wood rot. After all the prep work, apply a top coat to seal the wood surface (that’s going to save you some cash over the long term).

Keep in mind that if you want to add color, it’s best to first apply a primer so that the paint better adheres to the surface. By making sure you’ve done all the prep work correctly you’ll also save time by avoiding a whole lot of extra work.

How to Build Outdoor Furniture

Now, for the fun part – making the furniture! Let me show you my favorite ways of building outdoor furniture with repurposed materials.  

1. Bench Made of Wooden Pallets

Get your palettes and disassemble them into individual planks. Firstly, if the planks have splinters or they have rough edges, they must be sanded. Second, the planks should be cut according to the dimensions you’ve pre-determined for the frame, the seat, and the armrests. 

Once you’ve put the frame together by welding or with screws, make sure the construction is strong enough to handle the weight of at least two adults (approx. 400 lbs). Finally, add the slats for the seat on top. However, if you wish to make your chair more comfortable, you can add armrests and a backrest. 

After assembly, you can paint the chair to enhance its appearance or seal the wood with outdoor wood treatment (e.g., lacquer or a resin sealant) to protect against weathering effects.

2. Coffee Table Made of Pipes and Reclaimed Wood

This coffee table will add a rustic, but industrial touch to your backyard.

Cut the reclaimed wood to the size you want the tabletop to be and check that it’s clean and smooth. For the frame, you’ll use old pipes and connectors and this will be the base of your table. Carefully screw the pipes together to assemble the frame and pay attention to alignment and stability. 

When the frame is done, secure the wooden tabletop to the pipe base with screws. It should be level and firmly attached. You’ll want to protect the wood from outdoor elements, so apply a clear sealant. It will make it even more beautiful and, at the same time, protect it from damage and decay. 

3. Metal Sheet Garden Chair

A modern (and durable) garden chair will look perfect in any garden. Using metal as the material of choice invokes that modern feel that you’re looking for.

Cut the metal sheets into proper dimensions for the seat and back. They should be shaped for comfort. The rods used will hold the frame in one piece.

Sanding off sharp edges or rough areas will remove the possibility of sustaining injuries.

Finish with a coat of rustproof paint to protect the metal from corrosion, otherwise you risk the corrosion eating away at the metal and ruining your chair. Once it’s all prepared, put it all together with screws or by welding. 

Conclusion

Who said you had to pay a small fortune to have a nicely furnished backyard? If you’re willing to get creative and put some work into it, you can create truly unique furniture everyone will enjoy.

And THAT finished work is something that will be something that’s truly yours, which is a great accomplishment in itself.

Cheers!