Hey everyone!
I’m coming to you with a simple project that can be done in a day. If you have scrap wood around and not quite sure what to do with it, try building something with it. No matter how small or big the item. I enjoy using free or leftover materials to make something instead of trashing it.
Many years ago, when I needed a designated area to compost, we used free wood pallets to make our bin. It has surprisingly held up very well over the years and the best part is that it cost us $0 to build.
In our garage, we had many scrap wood pieces that were collected over the years. Mostly due to damages caused by hurricane Irma. We had to rebuild fences and repair interior walls. So I decided to use some of the materials to build an outdoor planter box.
If anyone knows me, I like to garden. Our backyard is quite small so I wanted to custom make this planter to fit our space. We had scrap pressure treated 2×4’s around, so I incorporated them into the build. But I had to get additional materials like fence pickets and 2×2’s for this build to make it a bit lightweight. The fence picket was about a $1 each and the pressure treated 2×2 was about $3. I bought 14 picket fence and 1 2×2 totaling $17 plus tax.
One thing to keep note of is to build outdoor items with the appropriate screws/nails. I started building the box with indoor nails and had to correct my mistake halfway through the build. Just make sure you get nails suited for the outdoors.
Though I had all the measurements, my local hardware store would not cut pressure treated wood for me, so I used my trusted jigsaw and cut the wood to size. Since the 2×2 was eight feet long, I cut it into four even cuts of 2 feet. Then I used a hammer to nail to piece the fence picket to the 2×2. I then nailed the 2×4’s on the bottom of both pieces. Here I show you the outside and inside view.
The pickets were about 6 feet in length so I cut each picket to 4 feet and used the remaining 2 feet of picket to attach the bottom and side areas of the planter box. The 2×4 and 2×2’s were used to help attach the pieces.
As you can see the edges are not perfect but that’s ok with me. I wasn’t looking for a perfect build since this item will be placed outdoors. I built this planter box for the sheer fun of working with my hands and trying to reuse items I had lying around. The box is quite long so I secured another 2×2 scrap wood in the center from my previous worm bin project for added stability.
I proceeded to stain the outside of the box for extra protection from the elements. But this is completely optional. I then added soil from my compost bin, plants, and dried leaves as mulch.
This project was completed in 2 afternoons and I was able to build it while my husband was at work and the kids were in school. It’s such an easy project build for less than $20. If you already have scrap wood pieces, this project can be done for less or even free.
I hope this inspires you to look at items that you are not using in your house and re-purpose them as you see fit. See you on the next one!