Building a pedestal - DIY instructions and information about the costs

• Material and tools
• Building a pedestal: Instructions
• Alternative: pedestal made of europallets

You want to build yourself a pedestal to beautify the ambience of your living room or to create more storage space ">

If you have planned a pedestal for your living room or another room, you do not have to resort to a professional. Podiums are among the room extensions that you can easily create by yourself. All you need is suitable instructions and enough wood for the substructure of the podium. Self-built pedestals have the advantage that they are very cheap and still stable. At the same time they enhance the space visually, without wasting too much space. Building a podium is not difficult and you do not even need a helping hand to implement the project.

Material and tools

When building the podium, it depends on the right materials, so that the pedestal is safe and resilient. For this, a wooden base is the best choice because it is robust and can adapt to different temperature fluctuations. You do not need to use solid wood because the design is designed to support enough weight due to multiple longitudinal and cross braces. Best of all, you do not even need many materials to build the podium. The following list shows the materials and tools for a podium size of 250 x 125 x 30 centimeters:

• 4 x OSB or chipboard in the size 250 x 125 cm
• at least 48 angle connectors 50 x 50 x 40 mm: about 20 euros
• Countersunk screws with a thickness of 5 mm: Select the quantity according to the number of holes of the angle connectors
• additional screws with a thickness of at least 40 mm for connecting the floor surface to the base frame
• Wood drill: one size smaller than strength of the screws
• drilling machine
• As an alternative to the drilling machine, you can use self-tapping screws, which means you do not need a wood drill
• Cordless screwdriver or screwdriver
• Wood glue: 5 to 10 euros per bottle
• Hand circular saw incl. Guide rail
• pencil
• measuring tape
• optional: putty and putty

The cost of the plates depends on the strength. For the pedestal to withstand the weight of a couch or several people, at least 18 millimeters are needed. The plates are available in two strengths, which are suitable and cost different amounts:

• 18 mm: 25 euros
• 22 mm: 30 euros

These are the typical prices for a record at the hardware store and at many online retailers. For these instructions, panels are selected in the finished dimensions, as this significantly simplifies the project and keeps costs low. Of course, you can choose completely different dimensions, but you can build the entire pedestal with a small amount of chipboard. From the four plates you can saw all the important parts:

• 2 x outsides (250 x 30 cm)
• 6 x longitudinal struts (125 x 30 cm)
• 5 x cross struts (50 x 30 cm)
• 1 x floor space (250 x 125 cm)

In addition, a remainder of 250 x 60 cm remains, because you can process or use as a replacement, for example, if you accidentally damage a plate when screwing. Damaged panels should never be used, as they significantly reduce the load limit. If you do not have a saw in any form yourself, you can have the boards cut for a small fee at the hardware store or at a carpentry shop. It may even happen that no costs for the cutting service are required. You can rent a hammer drill:

• 4 hours: about 12 to 15 euros
• 24 hours: about 15 to 20 euros
• 48 hours over the weekend: about 25 euros

Costs for a circular saw are approximately in the same frame. If you use self-tapping screws, you do not need a drill and can also do without the wood drill, which costs around 1.50 euros per piece. When selecting the screws, you must first calculate how many holes there are in total. This is determined by the angle connectors. The costs at a glance:

• 2 holes (about 120 screws): 10 euros
• 4 holes (about 240 screws): 20 euros
• 8 holes (about 480 screws): 40 euros

This amount of screws and angle connectors seems to be very high, but you need six angle connectors for each of the ten compartments that make up the transverse and longitudinal struts. Only then can the pedestal stand and not collapse immediately when it is loaded. With the above items you will come at the cost of about 150 to 200 euros for the pedestal without decoration of your choice. However, the costs are low due to the use of chipboard or OSB boards. If you were to use solid wood, the costs would be quite high and often the dimensions are more difficult to process, as they are mostly not plates.

Tip: an alternative to the classic base frame is a wooden shelf whose dimensions correspond to the desired pedestal. This is reinforced with additional mounting brackets and then covered with chipboard, so that it can be painted or covered with a carpet.

Building a pedestal: Instructions

Once you have selected the materials to hand and the location that should be straight, you can start building. Follow the instructions below and nothing can go wrong:

Step 1: Cut the sheets at the beginning, if you have not had this taken over by a hardware store or carpenter. Measure the width beforehand, mark it with the pencil and separate the part over the saw. The guide rail will make your job much easier as the saw can not move. Take your time while cutting, because the more accurately the parts are cut, the easier it is to build.

Step 2: Now place the two side pieces (250 x 30 cm), each with a longitudinal strut (125 x 30 cm) at the ends, so that you have a rectangle in front of you. Now connect these parts with two angle connectors on each corner. Make sure that the longitudinal struts are connected in such a way that they lie between the side parts and do not close them. If you did it the other way, the other struts would not fit into the frame and would have to be re-cut. Secure with two angle connectors at each corner after pre-drilling the holes and filling with some wood glue. That ensures better grip.

Step 3: Now mark one of the outer sides at intervals of 50 centimeters and place at each mark a longitudinal strut (125 x 30 cm) between the two side parts. Attach each with two angle connectors to the side panels. After you have screwed all the longitudinal struts and fixed the screw with glue, you would now have five elongated "fan" in a frame in front of him.

Step 4: Then place the five cross struts (50 x 30 cm). For this draw a mark in the middle of the longitudinal struts, about 62.5 centimeters, at which the struts are set. In many cases, due to the outward pressure of the longitudinal struts, the cross struts self-sustain when placed. Nevertheless, screw connections are necessary to guarantee the stability of the pedestal. Fix the cross struts with the two visible longitudinal struts via four angle connectors each, two at each corner. The inner corners of the interfaces between the transverse and longitudinal struts, which are not visible from the outside, require only two angle connectors at each corner. These are mounted crosswise. Now you would have ten equal sized "fan" in a frame with the dimensions of 250 x 125 x 30 centimeters in front of him.

Step 5: Check if the frame is wobbling. If so, you should check that all screws are present and tighten them. If screws are missing, apply them now.

Step 6: Now, the upper edge is completely coated with wood glue and the last plate, the bottom surface, placed on the frame. Allow the wood glue to dry slightly and then screw the floor surface to the frame. Here you should not save with the screws, because the bottom surface provides further stability. Then let the glue dry completely. During the drying time, follow the manufacturer's instructions.

If the pedestal is according to the instructions, you can customize it to your liking. If you want a rug, you simply need to attach it to the wood using installation tape. Of course you can also sand down the wood so that there are no more sharp edges and the wood does not splinter, and treat it with a natural or colored varnish. If you have dowels available, you can fix the pedestal to the wall. Otherwise, it is necessary to place the pedestal on a non-slip surface. Slip-resistant agents are particularly suitable for this, as they work even on smooth floors. Even a large carpet can be enough here.

Tip: if you also want a step for your pedestal, build a block of the remaining wood first to the desired dimensions. Close the block with a top plate, screw it down and sand, paint or glue it.

Alternative: pedestal made of europallets

If you want to make things even easier, you can make a pedestal out of europallets. The advantages of this variant are the low cost and the low cost of the pallets. The only downside is the available dimensions, because Euro pallets are standardized and available only in the size 120 x 80 x 14.4 centimeters. For this reason, you can build podiums in the following proportions:

• 120 x 80 x 14.4
• 120 x 80 x 28.8
• 120 x 80 x 43.2
• 240 x 80 x 14.4
• 240 x 80 x 28.8
• 240 x 80 x 43.2
• 120 x 160 x 14.4
• 120 x 160 x 28.8
• 120 x 160 x 43.2
• 240 x 160 x 14.4
• 240 x 160 x 28.8
• 240 x 160 x 43.2

These dimensions are sufficient for interiors in most cases. Larger dimensions are not recommended, unless you have a lot of space available. Depending on the provider, the costs for a pallet range from 15 to 20 euros, which keeps the costs low. You also need chipboards or OSB boards in the length of the sides, so for a pallet this is:

• 2 x 120 cm
• 2 x 80 cm

The height is of course 14.4 centimeters at one, 28.8 centimeters at two and 43.2 centimeters at three stacked pallets. These serve the disguise. You can omit these if you like the rustic look. Now you need to connect the pallets with mounting brackets and screws and lay a suitable floor covering, for example a carpet, on the pedestal. Thanks to the weight of 20 to 30 kilograms per pallet they do not shift even under load. Do not forget to lay a floor protection in your living space so that, for example, your parquet floor is not scratched.

Tip: Of course you could use pallets in other sizes for the pedestal, but in most cases these are not standardized or as robust as the Euro pallets. Euro pallets can withstand loads of 1, 000 kilograms at one point or up to 2, 000 kilograms in even distribution, which makes the podium particularly stable.