If you are planning to build a bench at your dacha and want to go beyond the ordinary and create something truly unique, then you are in in the right place. We have collected for you a selection of the most original and unusual designs benches and benches that you can make with your own hands. Moreover, we will show you how the benches in the photo are made.
The most common benches are wooden. And this is not surprising! The tree is the most available material to build a bench. The variety of designs here is truly enormous! We will give you some examples.
To create such benches, you can use the remains of trimmed garden trees. Both trunks and thick branches will be used. 
Even short scraps of wooden beams can become a unique garden bench in the right hands.
Easy to make from quality material, even if it’s not much. But scrap materials, such as, also make good garden benches, as in this photo.
It looks like a bench can be made from any wooden structure. These are made from wooden cable spools.
It’s hard to imagine that you have unnecessary wooden barrels in good condition on your farm. If yes, then here is the garden bench option for you.
A funny garden bench made from one log.
If you do not buy a ready-made bench, but make a bench with your own hands, then you have a chance to give it a unique look with very little effort.
Your bench doesn't have to be entirely wooden. Here is a popular simple bench design made from building blocks and lumber.
Probably, most of us would simply throw out the old unnecessary boat, but there are also people among us with the ability to see beauty literally in trash. The boat bench in the photo is simply wonderful. It may not be very comfortable to sit in, but you can sit cross-legged. But even looking at such a bench is pleasant.
A bench for the bravest.
Often beautiful benches do not have a complex design. In this matter, what is more important is individuality and your personal attitude towards the garden.
We offer you four basic bench designs, on the basis of which you can create your own amazing and unique benches, which have not yet been seen in any photos.
Small wooden bench: photos and instructions.
This simple bench in the photo is made from just a few boards. These used to be often made in villages for everyday use. It is stable, and most importantly, it is easy to carry from place to place. Such a bench will serve in the house, in the kitchen, and in the yard. At the same time, it does not require large expenditures of materials, and it is very easy to manufacture. The most difficult thing is to make neat cuts in the boards at an angle to create legs.
It may seem that the sides in front and behind are clean decorative element, however, this is not true! They are what give this bench its rigidity and stability.
Therefore, in one form or another, they are present in the design of each such bench.
Sometimes, however, only one such stiffener is left. Then it goes down the middle under the seat.
Large wooden bench with your own hands
If you need a large bench and don't plan on moving it from place to place often, then this option is for you. This spacious bench is equally suitable for use both indoors and outdoors. It is made of thick timber, so it can easily support three or four adult riders.
It’s also not at all difficult to build. First you need to make these legs.
Then the legs are fastened with longitudinal beams (two at the top and one at the bottom), and a strong, massive frame is obtained.
Using this device, you can drill holes and hide fasteners on the internal surfaces of the bench parts so that the screw heads do not spoil the appearance of the product. But if you don’t have one, you can still make such a bench by attaching the parts in the usual way.
All that remains is to assemble the top and attach it to the frame.
Wooden bench without a single nail
Here is an example of a very beautiful and original bench, in which there is not a single nail or screw.
It is very simple to do, although it requires some special equipment. First, all elements are cut.
And then, using clamps and templates, the parts are glued together in a checkerboard pattern.
You will need a lot of clamps, including several large ones, so this project is only suitable for those who have an impressive set of carpentry tools.
Among small architectural forms, benches and benches are the most common. Can be made from any materials or combinations thereof: wood, metal, stone, concrete, plastic, glass.
They are everywhere: streets and city squares, parks and squares, sports and educational institutions, public institutions and residential premises. Practically required element landscape design, plot of a private house or cottage.
The easiest material to process and affordable is wood. Do-it-yourself wooden benches provide an opportunity to save money, demonstrate your craftsmanship at home and be a creator.
Wooden benches: economy option
Make wooden benches using existing “blanks”. It is enough to process it a little and assemble a strong and functional structure - with a seat, back and legs.
Moreover, such “modules” are inexpensive, sometimes purchased for “pennies.” We are talking about pallets, or pallets.
But not everyone is suitable for the device garden furniture. You should not use products made from non-grade or non-grade edged boards. In the first case, large knots may fall out, in the second, the “aesthetic” qualities suffer.
There are cases where the board fastening step is clearly not suitable for a bench.
The pallet is a wonderful donor for a bench
A pallet, as in the photo, would be better. With a corner chamfer removed along the contour.
The width of the pallet is large for bench seating. It needs to be trimmed, the remainder can be used to construct the backrest.
If the width of the backrest is not enough, then the bench will have to be made from two pallets.
The seats and backrest are part of the structure. Need legs. Let's make pallets from the board itself.
- the bench may not be stable
Rigidity is ensured by the seat, and the mounting area of the legs is quite small. Usually a lower ligament is added so that they do not “spread apart”. A simpler option is to use another pallet (or rather part of it) as a base.
Pallet benches
or two. Do-it-yourself benches and benches made of wood in detail and clearly.
Fixing the backrest, as can be seen from the examples, can be done using a pair of slats, a board, a rope or rope. The assembled bench, its surface is cleaned, sanded, varnished or painted.
You can not cut the pallets to width and make a garden sofa.
There are examples of using pallet boards to make benches and other products from the class of small architectural forms. Flowerpots are also taken in the photo.
It is not necessary to waste time disassembling pallets, but it is better to buy standard lumber.
Simple bench shapes: board and timber
There are designs and execution options - from the simplest to wood-carved specimens worthy of being called real works of applied art.
The easiest option for making is a wooden bench without a back.
The drawing shows a do-it-yourself wooden bench, made entirely of boards with a thickness of 75 mm.
Bench made of boards and timber
Each element consists of two parts.
The seat with beveled ends is assembled from two boards. If the bench stands on open area or outside a heated room, it is better to provide a gap. It will allow water to drain and compensate for wood swelling.
The leg consists of two glued elements. To ensure reliability of the end connection, a pin (dowel) is inserted. Two short support beams and seat fastenings are attached to the leg. The legs and beams are connected with grooves, fixed with glue and self-tapping screws. Once assembled, the leg and beam are attached to the seat board with two pairs of screws and dowels, and holes are pre-drilled for them.
Benches: assembly order
1. Cut out the workpiece;
2. Process the ends and clean the surfaces for gluing;
3. Glue the legs together;
4. Beams are attached to them;
5. Assembling the shop;
6. Sanded and coated with varnish (or paint).
Images and drawings of a bench made of 30 mm boards with a support beam.
Bench made of 30 mm boards with a support beam
There are already shaped elements in the form of legs with radius cutouts. You can make the work easier and make them rectangular. The drawing is not a dogma - it can be taken as a basis and changed in the direction of simplification or in the direction of complication. They do the same with sizes - make the bench wider, shorter, etc.
What is the difference between this option and the previous one?
One long support beam is used instead of four short ones; it also serves as a stiffening rib for the base - the legs and the entire structure are more stable. The connection between the legs and the beam goes through a tongue and groove, and the tenon is much easier to cut out. That is, this form is a little easier to manufacture, more stable and gives more possibilities for experimentation.
Below are several options for a similar design, but in a different design.
For example, in the minimalist style - there are not even protruding edges. Splicing according to the tongue-and-groove principle is used to connect the legs and the seat.
In this model, they simplified the task as much as possible - they even abandoned cutting out grooves and tenons. In this case, it is better to make the connection between the legs and the beam using confirmats rather than self-tapping screws (they have a larger contact area). For strength, they usually add a pair of dowels on each side, set with glue. The hidden fastening of the seat is done with a dowel, the open fastening with a self-tapping screw.
If the bench is not very long, then the beam can be placed at the bottom. In this design, it serves solely as a stiffener.
In the photo below you can see an unusual case of using a dowel - it attaches the beam to the legs not with a hidden installation, but with an open one.
In this bench, a block was used to “help” the board.
Legs with crossbars and two oblique supports for sitting are made from it. All fastenings are made on confirmations, and the bars of the legs are connected to each other using grooves.
Here also a block is used for the base. Due to the large thickness of the seat board, it does not require additional support. The lower beam serves as a stiffener.
Making a small bench with a back is not much more difficult. The principle of installation and fastening is similar to simple benches: grooves, tenons, dowels, glue, screws and confirmations.
You can take a design with “solid” board legs as a basis. Move them a little from the center to the edge so that the ends of the seat and legs are in the same plane. Attach vertical beams to the legs and screw the backrest to them.
Bench with carved back
For a model whose base is made of a block, making the back is even easier. Two pairs of legs: front - for supporting the seat, rear (high) - for attaching the supporting beam, seat and back.
These were lightweight and “mobile” designs of benches and benches made of wood, which could be used with equal success in an open area, under a canopy or indoors. There are more massive forms aimed at “stationary” placement.
Benches: large format
Making a wooden bench with your own hands for a summer residence involves using any form of material. Including those that are used in the construction of wooden houses.
For example, timber. For reference: timber is classified as such if the aspect ratio is no more than 1:2, and the smaller side has a size of 100 mm or more. Reducing the size transfers such lumber to the “block” category.
It is not easy to assemble a bench like the one in this photo with your own hands, but it is possible.
Assembling the legs is not difficult at all. The only difference from a board and a block is that more powerful fasteners will be required. For example, such self-tapping bolts for wood.
You will have to widen the hole under their head (but confirmations also require this) and place a washer.
Installation and installation of the seat is much more difficult.
To “bundle” the beams together, three metal pins are needed, with a length almost the width of the seat, and two - the width of the bench, taking into account the legs. It’s difficult to find these on sale - you’ll have to make them from round reinforcement (stainless steel). The gap between the beams can be maintained using wooden plates from boards strung on studs. The thickness of the plates should be the same as the three supporting vertical beams that support the seat in the center of the bench.
And this specimen is made of even more powerful timber (150×100). Its assembly is much simpler. Two seat beams are attached from below through short cross beams, which are then mounted to the T-shaped legs.
Bench made of timber
Another easy-to-follow example using a large-format board. Load-bearing capacity The materials are such that the use of reinforcing beams is not required - the seat is attached to the ends of the short legs. The author of the project knows well that the most rigid geometric figure is a triangle. Therefore, both the configuration of the lower part of the supports and their connection with each other with bolts has the shape of an equilateral triangle.
If possible, order two non-standard wooden beams, then making such a bench with your own hands will not be difficult: you will need to “add” four short timbers (100×100) for the legs and two timbers (100×50) for the back.
Timber bench
But if this is not possible, then instead of a non-standard beam you can use a couple of standard ones.
Such garden bench He already uses logs from wood with his own hands.
The most difficult thing in this option is to use an ax (or adze) to make a longitudinal groove and tenon for connecting the logs. For reliable fixation, you will need a couple more dowels on each side (this is the same dowel, but only thicker and longer). The seat and back can be made of boards (as in the photo) or timber. Do-it-yourself benches and benches made of wood - ideas and solutions.
And this version of the bench is already more complicated.
But not really. The main difficulty is making the back, or rather the notch on it. All fastenings of parts of the structure to each other are carried out using dowels.
In principle, such wooden fasteners are quite strong - log houses with a couple of floors (including wooden churches) were previously built without a single nail.
And a very simple option: two logs with a groove and half a log sawn lengthwise.
Bench simplicity perfection
Wooden bench
In conclusion, here are a couple of examples of how you can make a bench from wood, not purchased wood, but found in a nearby planting or forest. Benches and benches made of wood with your own hands from auxiliary materials.
In this example, only the seat is made of boards, everything else is made of natural material, which had to be selected according to thickness and adjusted to size.
To make the seat of such a bench, you need a professional tool, so you will have to either order longitudinal sawing of the log, or (which is easier) take an unedged board as a blank.
Information to note : , .
A bench in a garden or country house serves not only as a place to relax, but also as an element decorating the exterior. Therefore, the process of making a garden bench must be approached with special responsibility. We will learn further about how to make a bench with your own hands.
DIY benches photos and varieties
Exists large number materials from which you can build a bench in the garden. The first of these is plastic; this material allows you to purchase a ready-made bench. Making a plastic product yourself is problematic. However, let’s still get acquainted with the advantages of this material.
First of all, let's note the ease plastic products. Thanks to this quality, the bench can be easily moved from one place to another. In addition, plastic products are affordable, they are easy to care for, do not require additional painting, etc. Among the disadvantages of a plastic bench, we note: the tendency to mechanical damage, unstable to ultraviolet radiation, cheap and unpresentable appearance.
By using plastic pipes and a tool for soldering them, you can make your own bench for the garden. Liquid nails, which reliably connect plastic pipes together, will help replace the soldering iron.
The most popular, affordable material for creating a garden bench is wood. Wooden products They are distinguished by their practicality in operation; they easily fit into any exterior, especially a garden, where there are so many trees. However, the choice of wood must be approached with special responsibility; you should select types of wood that can withstand adverse conditions well. weather conditions. In addition, drying the wood should be optimal for working with it.
The next material for creating a bench in the garden is stone. Stone products are natural and stylish; they are perfect for any exterior. Stone compositions are stylish, unusual and noble. However, the stone is suitable for making bench legs; sitting on the stone for a long time can lead to health problems.
Therefore, a stone bench is either covered with additional covers and pillows, or is made not only from stone, but from a combination of several materials. Please note that a stone bench is stationary and does not move from place to place, unlike a plastic or wooden one.
If there are metal compositions or forgings in the garden or area, we recommend choosing a steel version of the bench. This bench will perfectly decorate the garden and become good place for relaxation. The appearance of the structure is particularly attractive, especially when using additional steel elements. It is possible to combine metal with other materials, such as wood, stone.
When choosing a material to create a bench, you should first of all proceed from its combination with other objects located on the site. A garden bench should be original, attractive and practical.
Decide on the type of bench, whether it will be portable or stationary. In addition, there are folding versions of benches that are installed on the site in the spring and autumn and removed for the winter.
The most popular are benches made of wood. Wood is easy to process, which is why benches are made from it various forms and sizes. In order for a wooden bench to serve you for as long as possible, you need to properly care for it and choose certain types of wood that are resistant to unfavorable conditions operation.
The initial stage of creating a bench with your own hands
Before you start creating a bench in the garden, you should decide on the location of its installation. The size of the bench, its shape and appearance will depend on this. We recommend installing the bench in a place surrounded by plants so that it is always in the shade on a hot summer day. The view from the bench should be attractive and natural.
If there is a fountain, waterfall or other source of water in the garden, place the bench in such a way that you can watch them from it. It is possible to install a bench next to a flower bed or flower bed. This way, you will have the opportunity to enjoy previously planted plants. A bench surrounded by flowers or bushes is cozy; it’s comfortable and pleasant to sit on such a bench.
In any case, the bench should be located with shady place, thus, you will be protected not only from the heat, but also from strong wind. It is possible to create a cap over the bench to protect it from precipitation, in which case you will be able to get a whole gazebo for relaxation. In any case, the bench should be located in such a place as to provide its owners with proper rest.
DIY wooden bench drawings
Before creating drawings for a garden bench, you need to determine the requirements that apply to it. A bench in the garden should be, first of all, comfortable. Having a backrest makes you feel more comfortable, especially if you are going to spend a lot of time sitting in the garden.
The second requirement is safety; all connections between the individual parts of the bench must be strong. The bench must withstand heavy loads from several people. That's why, special attention you need to pay attention to fittings and fasteners; they must be made of high-quality steel. If the bench is made of metal, then the welds must also be of high quality and well protected.
Since the furniture will be located in the garden, the material from which it is made must withstand moisture, solar radiation and temperature changes.
We invite you to familiarize yourself with the method of constructing a simple wooden bench back with your hands. The length of the seat with backrest will be about 145-150 cm. This bench seats three people. The back angle is about 22 degrees. The width of the seating area is about 40 cm.
When working on a garden seat you will need:
- wooden blanks, the dimensions of which are predetermined by drawings;
- blanks for making legs and holders;
- panties that reinforce the structure of the bench;
- self-tapping screws and various fasteners;
- an electric jigsaw, which is used to cut wood;
- grinding machine for processing material;
- screwdriver;
- brushes;
- antiseptic primer, paints and varnishes.
If possible, buy ready-made boards according to the size of the blanks. Otherwise, use an electric jigsaw to cut them.
After cutting the wood, it is carefully processed. Previously manufactured parts can be ground. To process end sections, use electric plane. It can also be used to round corners.
Next, the long legs holding the frame part of the back are processed. To do this, markings are first applied to them, and then they are processed in compliance with the slope. Initially, it should be noted that the seat height is 40 cm. This part of the board does not require additional processing. Next, on the next part, the part is cut at an angle of 18 degrees. Please note that the cuts on each leg must be the same. Otherwise, the bench will turn out asymmetrical.
Initially, in the design of the bench you need to assemble the support legs. The interval between them is 28 cm. Make sure that this interval is maintained between the two pairs of legs. Use a beam to connect the legs together. We recommend using the double strapping option, which will significantly improve the strength of the bench.
After assembling the two sides of the bench, they are connected using boards. For fixing boards to support legs use self-tapping screws. Please note that the interval between the boards is 20 mm, it must be equal in all areas of the bench. These gaps significantly increase the service life of the bench, as air circulates through them and moisture is removed.
Further actions are aimed at strengthening design features benches. In order to increase the level of stability of the bench, additional reinforcement is necessary. To do this, perform bottom harness using timber.
Next, you install the backrest on the wooden bench with your own hands. To make it you will need two boards. The first is fixed with an interval of 20 cm between it and the seat, and the second with an interval of 18 cm from the first.
At this point, making a bench with a backrest with your own hands is completed. The next step is to process the wood. various compositions that will protect it from moisture and insects. In order to improve the attractiveness of the appearance of the bench, it is coated with varnish or paint. Special impregnations protect wood from the effects of fungus or mold. To achieve an ideal surface shine, wood can be polished.
Do-it-yourself bench for a summer house made of metal
In the process of working on a garden bench with your own hands, you will need:
- profile pipe, the diameter of which depends on the size and strength of the bench;
- boards that will serve as a seat;
- welding machine for connecting pipes to each other;
- Bulgarians;
- grinding machine;
- anti-corrosion composition;
- paints for working with wooden surfaces;
- fasteners;
- hammer and bolts.
To further decorate the benches, use forged elements that are installed on it using a welding machine.
Before starting work, prepare your own drawings for the bench. Decide on the cross-section of the pipes used in the work. The best option will use a pipe measuring 3x3 cm. In the process of working on a middle bench without a back, you will need about eleven meters of pipe. To cut parts, use a grinder or a hacksaw.
While working, do not forget about the safety rules. To create the long parts of the seat, use two blanks measuring 230 cm. For the long parts of the rectangular structure, blanks of 60 cm will be used; six of them will be required. In addition, it is necessary to prepare six parts measuring 45 cm.
Wooden boards will become the basis for making eight bars. The connection of the bars to the metal frame is made with bolts and nuts. Please note that the fasteners must have a round and flattened cap, which in the future will not catch the clothes of people sitting on the bench.
To assemble a simple steel bench with your own hands, follow the recommendations below:
1. The long parts of the workpieces are located in a horizontal position, and the short parts - in a vertical position.
2. In the process of welding parts together, make sure that the angles at which they are connected to each other are straight.
3. It is possible to adjust the bench length. If the length of the bench increases, then the number of supporting components increases.
4. After welding the pipes, it is necessary to clean all connections and also arrange holes for fixing the fasteners.
5. The frame part of the bench must be coated with an anti-corrosion solution.
6. Before fixation wooden parts, you need to cover them with paint and varnish material or stains.
7. At the final stage of assembling the bench, the boards are fixed to the surface.
Wooden boards on the bench can be replaced with steel parts in the form of profile pipes. In order to improve the aesthetic appeal of the bench, the steel ends of the slats are equipped with a metal frame that hides the cuts. Duralumin pipes are not welded together. Bolts are used to connect them.
To make a bench with a back, you will need to use more material. In this case, the convenience and comfort of using such a bench will be higher.
In any case, when making a garden bench with your own hands, you should be guided primarily by the number of people who will relax on it and the materials that are available. Only in this case will it be possible to get a high-quality and optimal place for relaxation and free time.
The bench as a household item competes with the stool in antiquity. Because if a stump or boulder is already a stool, then a fallen tree is a bench or, if a branch extends from it, on which you can lean your back - a bench. In two latest types it has successfully survived to this day, which we will return to later.
A bench, with or without a back, “on paper” is not a piece of furniture, not a building, not a gardening tool and is not classified in any way. Therefore, it exists in many different types, and no restrictions are imposed on its design and design. The requirements of ergonomics, strength and reliability must be observed in it, but no one has the right to make claims for themselves.
Most often, this type of seating is outdoor: courtyard, garden, country, park. It could be a simple bench made of boards on a pair of logs, a classic village bench for gatherings, or no less classic garden sofa and park bench, the top row in Fig.
A wooden bench is an exquisite object and in many ways determines the face of landscape design, therefore it is the object of close attention of specialists in the relevant field. In the 2nd row from the top in Fig. individual results of their research. But the prices are my respect, sometimes more expensive than a good furniture set. There is a unique material, design, and wages for the craftsmen who embody all this in the product. And most importantly, there is a complete absence of restrictions on markups, because these are luxury goods.
Exclusive samples of benches/benches are not so technologically complex that you cannot make them yourself. However, in this article we will look at how to make a bench with your own hands, content with ordinary carpentry techniques and not even the most complex of them. You will get something like those on the 3-4 rows of Fig. And the acquired skills will be quite enough to later create a unique thing, if only there was material. You may have to learn only the simplest methods of wicker weaving on your own.
What about at home?
The bench, in fact, has never been completely pushed out onto the street. There were, are and will be benches in utility and utility rooms. Now they are gradually returning to living rooms: The increasingly popular studio apartment is essentially the same hut where everyone lived together in one large room. And the shop has proven over the centuries its ability to create a cheerful and benevolent life in housing not for biryuks. And we will further highlight a section about some types of indoor benches.
What to make it from?
The seat and back of the bench are almost always wooden. The metal gets cold, rusts, which is why it requires annual painting, and gradually wears out. Plastic is cheap, requires minimal care at first, but is uncomfortable and does not last long in the open air and/or with heavy use by random people. We are talking here about the arrangement of private property, so most of all we are interested in a bench made of wood, as a harmless material that is most pleasant to the eye and touch.
Note: The wooden parts of the benches are impregnated with biocides before assembly. The most affordable one in this case is used motor oil. The entire product is varnished (primed, painted) after a week of drying after impregnation. It is preferable to take acrylic varnish water based, it somewhat protects the wood from darkening under the influence of ultraviolet radiation.
However, the supports/legs or the power frame of the bench may not be made of wood. For example, profile metal It resists shocks and impacts better and in contact with the ground is more durable than wood, especially concreted ones. Therefore for the benches public use- street, courtyard - this design is preferable, especially since a simple country bench on a steel base will cost less, at least due to the smaller volume of blanks to be delivered to the assembly site.
Bench and stone
A very good garden bench is made on a stone base. For example, at pos. 1 pic. The flagstone only adds naturalness to the wood and the masonry joints do not detract from it at all. The creators of the one in pos. 2, they simply poured the rubble into wire baskets, which also served as supports for the tray-table. Shop with flower girls at pos. 3 nothing prevents you from relying on mini-rock gardens instead. If you also build a pergola over such a bench, you will get a very cozy alcove, pos. 4.
Note: There are also benches with a stone seat, but a suitable slab will be expensive; it requires quite a bit of stone valuable species, very tough, resistant to fracture and chipping.
To rest to your heart's content
At the dacha you want to have a good rest, especially after agricultural work. Therefore, it is highly desirable that the garden bench meets the requirements of industrial ergonomics:
- Seat height 400-500 mm.
- Seat width 500-550 mm.
- Back height 350-500 mm.
- Backrest tilt 74-78 degrees.
- The profile of the seat (back and seat) is smooth, without a dip under the buttocks.
- In the area of the neck and knees, smooth bends of the profile are made back and down, respectively, so that you can throw back your head and tuck your legs without feeling the sharp edge.
Note: The dimensions of the bench are selected within the recommended limits individually according to height and physique.
Drawings of a garden sofa suitable for such conditions are shown in Fig. Its design is quite labor- and material-intensive, but technologically not complex: it does not contain parts whose configuration would require the use of patterns or templates. Its significant drawback is the large waste of expensive timber, 1.3 m from a 6-meter piece, but not enough from a 3-meter piece. Garden bench-sofa on the trail. rice. It’s simpler and doesn’t require a thick beam, but 4 parts need to be cut out along the grid. Which, however, is not scary if you have a jigsaw.
And the children too
It is known how much children love to play on benches, whether it is a noisy group of people rubbing elbows, or a whole doll world of the little mistress. As well as the fact that at the same time they fidget with enthusiasm, crawl, and, not feeling lateral support, flop around. There's nothing wrong with that, it's just a child's matter. But there will be less roaring and pouting faces if the children's bench is equipped with low railings. However, she does not need a backrest, so that several shelaputs can approach both from the front and behind or sit astride the seat with their legs dangling.
A suitable hybrid of a bench, bench and sofa in this case is shown in Fig. It is better to place this structure near the children's playhouse. However, see what is most convenient for you, this bench is suitable in size for adults, and it is much easier to make than the previous one.
The whole world
A table with benches at the dacha just begs to be next to each other. On an already landscaped plot with overgrown trees, there will be a cozy family seating area: a table with benches. Diagram with dimensions of one of the combined designs country table with benches in one block is shown in Fig. Its design is characterized by ease of assembly and disassembly and almost complete absence metal fasteners.
There are only 4 permanent and several technologically complex connections in this product: T-shaped bench-beams in cross-section are assembled on dowels or dowels, depending on what you have hand router on wood or not. But for the winter, the entire complex can be easily disassembled, put into a compact bag and put away in the pantry. Material: weather- and pest-resistant wood: pitch pine, larch, oak. On the base panel you will need 24-30 mm plywood, waterproof or twice impregnated with a water-polymer emulsion.
Note: It is advisable to attach it to the lower edges of the base panels using glue and screws wooden blocks square section. This will additionally protect the plywood from delamination. Gluing the connection is necessary, otherwise, due to capillary locking, the service life of the panels will only decrease.
Combi for two
Fans of a philosophical and romantic tete-a-tete in the lap of nature may like a pair of garden chair-bench with a back and a table. For a volume of favorite poems, of course. The diagram of its device is shown in Fig. on the right, and drawings and assembly diagram in Fig. below. The material everywhere is 30mm board. This product is designed for fairly experienced craftsmen, because... patterns are given only for shaped parts (the grid pitch is 10 mm), and other dimensions will have to be restored using the base grid (see appendix); forming a radius of recesses for the backrests in the rear support of 1300 mm.
Metal based
A 40x40x2.5 corrugated pipe with welded ends, thrown directly onto the ground in the Moscow region, rusts right through from below after more than 15 years. And after that, the remaining box can hold the bench no less. There is no need to talk about strength: even Hollywood superheroes cannot cut steel with their hands. True, in the USSR they once made a rather stupid movie in which the late Lev Durov pierced a metal tank with his finger. Tin, for drinking water.
So, everything is OK with the strength and durability of metal benches. Garden benches from a profile pipe can be quite attractive, see fig. But please note: a pleasant appearance is achieved by using parts bent along a radius. To achieve the same aesthetic effect with straight pipes, you will need at least twice as much work and material, as shown below on the right.
To smoothly bend the workpieces, you need a fairly expensive and complex pipe bender for profile pipes. Alternative option– hot bending of a pipe filled with sand. But, firstly, at current prices, you need a forge with a forge: in order to bend the sides of the bench with a propane torch in the tutorials, bottom left in the figure, you need to almost completely burn a 20-liter gas cylinder. Secondly, hot bending is a delicate matter. If you manage to ruin no more than 3 blanks before the part comes out without wrinkles and with the ends in the same plane, you are a born blacksmith.
The next circumstance is that the strength of a bench made of metal profiles is significantly excessive. Therefore, if you make one, the main thing is your own taste and invention. And we give a couple of drawings of benches made of corrugated pipe 40x40x2.5 for purely utilitarian purposes. On the left in Fig. - a large hardware store, and on the right is Scott's shop. Why it is and what to do with it is well known to fans of bodybuilding and fitness.
Is it just a pipe?
The corrugated pipes are drawn from ordinary structural steel, and nowhere does anyone say that any other metal will not work on the bench. For such cases in Fig. several examples of metal benches. Pos. 1 – a shop for secluded and little-visited places. There is no point in stealing it: the “gain” is tiny compared to the fuss of robbery and dismantling, and reclaimed wood is not yet accepted anywhere. Material – steel strip 4-6 mm thick. Its legs won’t be able to withstand wild fun, so this bench is mainly for the cemetery.
Pos. 2 – bench/lounger-wicker for sunny and air baths. There is no pressure anywhere, the body breathes from all sides. The base is made from an old Soviet folding bed, so even a child can rearrange it much more conveniently. Support frame Instead of the now expensive aluminum, it can be assembled from propylene water pipes.
A functionally and aesthetically complete garden bench, pos. 3 is collected on the basis of worn-out parts of agricultural machinery and vehicles. The latter, however, is not necessary: instead of leaf springs, the same steel strip or corner will be used.
About transforming benches
Transformable furniture saves a lot of usable space. In a city apartment, this advantage can be decisive. Unfortunately, it is the only one: transformable furniture is more complex, more expensive, serves less functionally than conventional furniture and requires additional user operations when converting to another use case.
“Transfurniture” probably came to the garden/dacha only under the influence of fashion. A transforming garden bench is most often either a paired bench or a lounger that can be folded out from a table with benches, see fig. However, it is still more pleasant to bask in the sun on something soft, like the wicker described above. And if the transformer is a double bench, then it’s a garden bench, not a park bench. It is not customary to sit with your back to each other between relatives, friends and acquaintances.
There is one more circumstance: there is many times more dust and climatic influences outside than at home. therefore, if, say, a transforming apartment table, with careful use, will last 7-10 years, then a garden table will last 3-5 years, especially with wooden hinges.
In general, transformable garden furniture is not for everyone. If you want to practice mechanics and kinematics, it’s your choice. But in reality it will be easier and more useful to think through the layout of the site so that everything you need fits there separately.
Benches indoors
A bench as a piece of furniture is absolutely necessary in a bathhouse: they use it to change clothes, take a bath, relax after steaming, drink tea with linden blossom, dried raspberries or blueberries. Very useful, by the way. But grabbing something cold after something cold or eating something strong is a perversion that is fatal to your health.
But for the bench, the bathhouse is not a pleasure, but hard labor: every now and then there is dampness, the temperature can jump from –30 to +60 in 2-3 hours. Therefore, firstly, wood for a bath bench is required to be resistant to rotting, but without resins, tannins, salicylates, aromatic compounds and other natural chemicals. And it should only be treated with biocides made from purified mineral oils or silicone-based. Steamed skin is sensitive to substances that normal conditions harmless for her, and when sweat is reabsorbed, unwanted “additives” penetrate the body.
Secondly, in a small bathhouse, where the beds won’t fit, they steam on a bench. What kind of steam is this if there is a squishing under your stomach? Therefore, the bench in the steam room is made in the form of a lounger with gaps or a grid of small slats, see fig. But even in this case, wood is required to be porous, easily absorb moisture and just as easily release it into the air.
Thirdly, there should be no metal parts, which may be accidentally touched. The thermal conductivity of metal is high, which means it gives off heat easily. A piece of wood heated to +80 can be touched without fear, but a piece of iron at +60 (which is normal for a bathhouse) will cause a burn.
The best bath benches are made from Asian poplar tugraq. An almost complete replacement is aspen or black alder. Linden and birch are much worse; they rot easily. Silver poplar, sycamore, horse chestnut or, in the southern regions, ailanthus. All these types of wood in a bathhouse will not become slippery only if the bench dries well, for which purpose there should be no gaps in the structure that can retain moisture for a long time. And it is desirable to have the entire product easily disassembled for maintenance and, if necessary, replacement of unusable parts.
Branded shops do not meet the latter conditions and are expensive, because... made from special types of tropical wood. A homemade bench in a bathhouse no worse than a “company” can be made, at least according to the drawing in Fig. With the thickness of the seat/lounger boards being 50 mm, its length can be increased to 2 m to allow you to steam while lying at your full height. Then the width is needed from 60 cm; it is obtained by adding a board and a pair of its heels with legs. The red arrows show the oak pads of the legs; they greatly increase their resistance to rotting.
Not only for the bath
In addition to the bathhouse, benches, as mentioned at the beginning, are also returning to living quarters. And not only in studio apartments: in country house or in the kitchen a bench will save a lot of space. Don’t be surprised, a bench under the wall, equivalent to a pair of chairs there, saves about 0.5 square meters. m area. And this is a small stove or corner fireplace, plus you can sleep on the bench. Of course, the appearance of a home bench should be more elegant, and it is assembled “in a furniture style”, from wood on dowels or from laminated chipboard on confirmations. A technologically simple version of a home bench for two riders is shown in Fig. It will also suit urban cuisine, if there is no room for a soft corner.
Note: in Fig. on the right are options for making the well-known household mini-bench from available scraps. Height – at the knees; seat dimensions - according to your own fifth point.
Anything from
Antique
Here we will talk about benches made from scrap materials. Since the log bench is perhaps its oldest variety, we are looking for logs of suitable thickness, from 200 mm. Because independent logging is prohibited by law (although it is practiced in some places) and does not benefit nature; we pay attention primarily to dry fallen trees (easier to process) or unusable trees cut down in the garden. Crooked, knotty - so much the better; visible roughness only gives the log bench more rustic charm, see fig.
Next you need to turn the log into a bench. Here you can find instructions like: “Accurately (carefully) saw the log lengthwise.” Without a sawmill with a centering and feeding mechanism? Advisers of this kind have a clearly vague understanding of wood processing. In fact, it is possible to make a bench from a log at home in 2 ways.
The first produces a large waste of material, so it is only suitable if there is an excess of it, but it is accessible to any amateur, and you can work with a regular cross-cut saw, even a hand-held one. For those who don't know: wood is cut along the grain with special rip saws. So, first we make cuts on the log to the required depth more often, pos. 1 in Fig., and break out the pieces with a crowbar (this is by no means just a thief’s tool), a nail puller or a pry bar. They just jump out of dry dead wood, but on damp wood you will have to sweat over the first ones, and remove the others with a chainsaw, it will cut along, pos. 2.
Next, we first remove the remaining chips with an ax and chisel, pos. 3, and then rough out the surfaces with a planer. The product is cleaned using a grinder, pos. 4, or just use sandpaper by hand. In this way, a solid log bench is obtained. It's up to you to debark the sides or leave them as they are, and biocidal treatment, staining and varnishing are the same as for any wood outdoors. Slightly rotten dead wood (with dark spots) will first have to be treated with a wood restorer (brightener).
For the second method, you only need a chainsaw, because... she saws both along and across. It requires a steady eye, a steady hand and a strong grip, but the result is a full-fledged bench with a backrest, as in fig. higher, with virtually no waste. Process in this case it is elementary, and the bench is completely ready for sitting 2-3 hours after starting the saw, see video:
Video: log bench without nails
Rough, but fast and easy
Summer residents and developers, as a rule, do not immediately think about benches. And they soon realize that it’s in vain: you can’t rest or eat properly on bricks, a box or a random log. If by this time the first pallet from under the brick has been released, then it will fit just right on the bench, which can be built within an hour.
Benches from pallets can also be made in two ways. According to the first, a standard 110x80 cm pallet is cut into 2 unequal parts, on the left in the figure, which will go to the seat and back. Simple and fast, but the side braces and legs, right there, require additional lumber, or you need to remove the board from the seat with the backrest, and an uncomfortable gap forms under what they are sitting on.
The second method requires additional work to disassemble the pallet, see below, but it allows you not to touch the boards prepared for construction and the bench is more convenient, because its back turns out to be inclined. The first cut is made across the top side of the pallet, where there are more boards, pos. 1 in Fig. The next one is across the bottom side (red line in position 2), but on the opposite side of the middle bosses from the top (shown by the red arrow).
Next, the part with 2 rows of bosses is disassembled, as shown in pos. 3. The bosses of the upper shield are inserted into the openings of the rest, pos. 4, for which they will have to be pulled apart with a crowbar or a pry bar (double-sided arrows in the same place), and fastened with nails or self-tapping screws, as shown in pos. 5. Residues visible in pos. 4, will go on legs, pos. 6.
How to disassemble pallets
The pallets are assembled on nails with their heads recessed, and the nails sit in them very firmly, especially those that have rusted in pallets that have been in use for a long time. If you disassemble them as usual, then one or several boards will definitely crack. Therefore, the board to be removed is first carefully lifted a little; It’s more convenient to do this with an axe, because it provides a large support area. Then the same board is put in place and the nails are pulled out by the exposed heads using a nail puller or pliers.
Simple and economical
Construction pallets are made from high-quality wood, which can subsequently find a variety of uses; at least for building a shed or building a shelving unit. If you are going to disassemble the pallet, then it is advisable to use less wood from it on the bench. A simple bench that will require barely half the boards of the pallet, and all the bars will remain for best use, shown in Fig. right. Its backrest is somewhat flatter than ergonomics require, due to the smaller width of the seat; This makes this bench quite comfortable.
A little about technology
Bolted joints are often used in garden furniture. If it is one-piece and not hinged, it is better to hide the heads of the bolts with washers and the nuts with them. The first is for the sake of aesthetics, and the second so as not to get scratched.
To conceal the connection of wooden parts with bolts, in addition to a spiral drill for wood, you will also need a feather drill, on the left in Fig. Use a pen to select holes for the head and nut. After assembly, the remainder of the threaded body of the bolt is cut off with a grinder and the connection is tightened again, because when pruned it weakens. Then the holes are filled with wood putty; You can thickly mix the sawdust with Express glue (liquid nails) or PVA for wood. Not office grade PVA for paper!
As for the hinge joints, steel clips must be inserted into the bolt holes in both parts being connected; their diameter must be taken into account when drilling. Without clips, the bolt will quickly break the wood and the hinge will wobble haphazardly.
Bolt clips can be rolled from sheet metal or galvanized steel. In this case, 2-3 drops are added to them twice a year, at the beginning and end of the season. motor oil. If it does rust and seize, brake fluid will help out, the same 2-3 drops. The rust disintegrates from it and the hinge “releases” almost instantly. After the “brake” it is dripped with oil again.
The manufacture of garden furniture also requires tongue-and-groove joints, on dowels and dowels (through round wooden bosses). In this case, firstly, the wooden fasteners are made from the same wood as the parts being connected. For outdoor use, some strength must be sacrificed in order to ensure that the temperature coefficients of expansion, moisture capacity, swelling and drying of the wood of the entire assembly are the same. Otherwise, the connection will quickly become loose.
Secondly, it is very, very desirable to connect “furniture open sky» do with wedging, see fig. right. Wedges are cut from hard, durable wood: oak, walnut, boxwood, dogwood. Their thickness is 2-2.5 mm, but not narrower, because... the achievable accuracy of the wood-to-wood connection is plus or minus 1 mm.
An important condition: the wedges must be oriented across the fibers of the attached part, otherwise it may split during landing and subsequently the connection will fall apart. If perpendicular (crosswise) parts are connected, then the wedges in the dowel (dowel) should be oriented at 90 degrees relative to each other. Otherwise, the production of country and garden furniture does not contain anything that would not be subject to ordinary working ingenuity.
Appendix: how to take grid dimensions
Let's look again at the drawing of a paired “romantic-philosophical” bench. How to calculate missing dimensions? First of all, we visually determine the type of oblique projection; in this case it is isometry, so both oblique axes are equal.
Then we take a longer part, for which the linear size is indicated; in this case, it is a drawer with a length of 1350. According to the drawing, using the Pythagorean theorem, we determine its length in fractions of the grid pitch. Relating it to the known linear size, we get the scale factor. If the projection is arbitrary, then you will need to calculate 2 scales based on 2 parts, for each of the oblique axes.
Next, rather painstaking work begins: we determine the missing dimensions from the drawing in fractions of the grid pitch and multiply by the scale. For each pair of parts to be joined, we check the fit, taking into account that the accuracy for wood is 1 mm. If, for example, the tenon turns out to be thicker than the groove associated with it, it’s clear that it won’t fit, you need to look for where the error crept in. If it is already more than 2 mm, this is also not good, it will wobble and the error will begin to accumulate in the calculations. And if the tenon fits into the groove with a gap of 0-2 mm, everything is tip-top, calculated perfectly.
Garden benches are the most popular small architectural forms. They can be made in any size and design, but in addition to their direct purpose, benches also perform a decorative function. You can make a garden bench for yourself using our drawings and photographs.
How to make a bench from waste materials
The easiest way is to make a bench out of wood. This traditional material for garden furniture, affordable and easy to process. But even in this case, you can save money by choosing as the main material the one that literally lies under your feet.
The first option is trees, poles and stumps from your own site or a nearby forest plantation, in which sanitary felling is carried out.
Having carefully cut off a couple of medium-sized stumps, they can be placed on the base of the bench. Use poles to make a bottom crossbar for structural rigidity. And for sitting, loosen part of the trunk on the circular. If there is no equipment for longitudinal sawing, then you can take an unedged board 75 mm thick.
In this example, the bench is already more comfortable - in addition to the seat, it also has a backrest. The model is a little more complicated, since you will have to find a higher part of the trunk and process it in two steps - first make a profile cut with a “ledge”, and then split the workpiece into two halves.
And to assemble the next bench, you will need:
- two short logs of the same diameter for the base;
- two medium-thick poles for back support;
- one long log, sawn into two halves (for the seat and back).
In short logs, you need to choose a groove so that the long log fits into it. Then the seat is secured in the grooves, and each pole is fixed at two points - to the base and to the seat. For fastening, it is better to choose powerful self-tapping wood bolts.
Another budget material for a country bench is pallets ( wooden pallets). But not just any pallet is suitable for making garden furniture. Ideally, you need a good edged board, a so-called Euro pallet, which can be identified by the EUR marking.
In principle, standard width The euro pallet is somewhat large for the seat - 80 cm. You can shorten it to 67 cm by cutting it along the contour of the central bar. But you don’t have to do this. Here are some examples simple designs With different options bases and seats:
1. A bench made of four pallets, uncut to width. Three serve as the base, and the fourth serves as the back. You will have to remove some of the support bars from the pallet for the backrest, and ensure the rigidity of the bench using wooden slats.
2. In this case, four pallets are also used, but already trimmed. Three ropes woven with a braid are used to secure the backrest, and wallpaper nails are used for decoration.
3. This bench is made from just two pallets. One is whole, and the second is cut and, as it were, bent at an angle - it serves as both a seat and a backrest. The design is good for its mobility - there are small wheels as legs.
Perhaps the only inconvenience of using Euro pallets as a source material is standard sizes 80x120 cm. They to some extent limit the possibilities for creativity. The use of ordinary lumber (boards, beams and beams) allows you to make a garden bench to suit every taste.
Board and block
It’s worth saying right away that any bench drawing can be adjusted for specific conditions. The only limitation is that the thickness of the board and the cross-section of the beam are sufficient to provide load-bearing properties.
Below is a drawing of a bench, which is made of only three “paired” elements:
- seat and back;
- a short support (back leg) made of a trapezoid-shaped board;
- long support (front leg).
1- front leg; 2 - rear leg; 3 - seat; 4 - back; 5 - front view; 6 - side view
The result is a stable structure with a triangle at the base and two transverse stiffeners.
This is what this bench looks like in real life.
This drawing shows the bench in a more complex design. To make it, you need a 40x140 mm board (supports, back and seat), a 40x70 mm block (short bundles of supports) and a 20 mm board (long bundle between the sidewalls).
And this is the same design, but using a board and a block 75 mm thick. Small differences in the base and attachment of the ligaments are not fundamental.
In principle, there is only one condition - the boards in the seat are fastened with a small gap, sufficient to compensate for the expansion of the wood under high humidity.
Large forms
Wooden benches in a “large format” look original.
For example, this “fat” one unedged board across the entire width of the log. Covered with transparent varnish, it conveys the natural beauty of wood with all its color transitions.
From rounded logs you can build not only a cottage or a bathhouse, but also a garden bench like this.
And from timber you can assemble original chair, capable of serving not only under a canopy, but also in the open air - removable pillows can be easily brought into the house in bad weather.
Stone and wood
Stone, like wood, also fits organically into the landscape suburban area. Of course, a smooth slab is practically never found in nature, but you can use sawn stone.
The next option is easier to implement - the bench is made of small blocks of wild stone. And since such a surface is not only cold, but also uneven, you can’t do without pillows.
Pillows add comfort, but you have to constantly bring them in and out. That is why wood is used for seats on garden benches, regardless of the base material. This is how this original bench uses a gabion (a mesh cage filled with stone, crushed stone or pebbles) at the base.
Concrete is no less popular for making the base of a bench. But it’s difficult to make a form with a complex contour for pouring at once, but small formwork is simple. And even a “cold seam” when poured in two steps will not affect the strength of the structure (such as in this photo).
Another option artificial stone– hollow construction concrete blocks. It is enough to fasten them together with good masonry glue, and lay a beam in the cavity, and the bench is ready.
Metal and wood
The simplest benches in design metal frame use a square profile.
You can weld two sidewalls in the shape of the letter “H” from a profile pipe, and a solid wooden seat will also serve as a “stiffener.”
The following example also uses solid wood as a stiffening element, but the supports are made in the form of a square with a cross member for attaching the seat.
And this is the simplest self-supporting structure made of a square profile, the strength and rigidity of the welded base is sufficient for the seat to be made from a wooden block.
The following photo shows a factory-made bench.
But if you have a pipe bender in your home workshop (and it’s easy to make one with your own hands), then bend two types of arches and a “wave” from round pipe Just. Then the metal blanks must be welded, plastic plugs must be placed on the legs (sold for any profile and pipe size) and the bars must be secured to the “wave”.