Introduction: Wall Mounted Wooden Workbench: a Beginner's Project With Pictures

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Of all the things you could have been doing in life, here you are, trying to figure out how to make a wall mounted wooden workbench. And while I am sure you have already scowered the internet and watched about 7hrs worth of youtube tutorials, I am here to give you the summary of my attempt at this project. The good part of this is that just like you, I am a complete beginner just starting to scramble some projects together using whatever scraps I can find in my yard and tools in my garage. And I do enjoy the challenge of creating functional projects with minimal resources. Anyways, my primary inspiration for this is a YouTube video by Mike Kushnir (https://youtu.be/koPHIcjIA2k) which I modified to fit my needs.

My Project Objective: to create a well-supported structure that could hold my weight (208lb.... i know i need some excersice ;) ), use as a working surface, and provide ample storage space underneath for a cabinet and other large tools. While the project is relatively straightforward, the most difficult cut is the 2x6 support piece angled cut. But fear not! i will walk you through it like a 5 year old so that with some patience and the right tools, you should be able to complete this project with just enough difficulty. Let's get started!

I had previously constructed a similar bench and now I am adding a narrower extension to it which I will use to demonstrate the process.

Supplies

Supplies:

  • 2x4 lumber
  • 2x6 lumber
  • 4 inch / 2 inch construction screws
  • Smooth Plywood or OSB

Tools:

  • Impact Driver / Drill
  • Jig saw or circular saw
  • Oscillating tool
  • Stud Finder
  • Square tool
  • Measuring tape
  • Level tool
  • Stud finder
  • Optional: Kreg pocket hole jig

Step 1: Design and Planning

  1. Unleash your creative mind and figure out the dimensions you need for your bench and how it will be laid out. Keep in mind the amount of storage space you want underneath (i,e, what do you want to put under there? More benches? a cabin? etc..) . The dimentions I needed for the extension were 20 inch width x 70 inch Lenght x 39 in Height. Having a good initial draft plan is important, but in all honestly, once you have a rought plan just wing it and get to work, dont waste time overthinking. Interms of design modifications, here are things you can think about: consider adding a designated slot for a miter saw or other tools, adding shelves underneath to increase storage space, and drawers. I personally chose the most basic option!

Step 2: Finding Studs and Building on Level

Finding the studs: 1) Go look in the mirror lol 2) Use a stud finder or measure from a place where you know for certain there is a stud, example if there is a previous shelve or you can see the area on the edge of a drywall where the nails are inserted, those are usually a good hint for where you can find it. Anyways, once you find one, you can find the rest easily since they are usually spaced center to center every 16in or 24in, mine were 16inch and i figured it out using a really old stud finder (which sparingly works) and by simply trying to drive a 4 inch screw in the suspected location of a stud and checking if in fact there is one.

Marking Level: Use a level to mark the wall with horizontal lines for the upper and bottom supports and vertical lines for the studs so that you can easily find them.

Tips: donot simply measure a set distance from the ground to the upper support since your garage floor might be tilted. Consequently, depending on the slope of your garage floor, you may end up with significantly less hieght on one side of the bench compared to the other, so adjust the bench height accordingly. Remember that you will have about 1/2 in of plywood resting on your upper support so mark that using the level as well. I adjusted my bench height so that i can easily slide a cabinet underneath. As for the distance between the upper and bottom support, I used the eye ball method to estimate 20 in between the two. The more official way of doing it involves calculating that distance using the width of the bench and a 45 degree angle for the support, good old Trigonometery. More about that in Step 4.

Step 3: Making the Frame

Yes, the 2x4s I got look narly.... but they work!

  1. Use the circular saw or jig saw to cut two pieces of 2x4 to fit the lenght you need for the bench and attach them to the studs using 4 in construction screws. The top piece should be notched (using a jig saw or ossilating tool) at the places where you want to attach your 2x4s that will hold the structure as you see in the picture. Tip: dont overlap the stud location and the support location.
  2. Slide another 2x4 into the notch of the upper piece and cut it to the width you want. Then measure and cut a second supporting 2x4 underneath it, and screw them together.
  3. Make sure it's leveled to the ground!! this is important! do this before screwing the upper piece to 2 other 2x4s. Predrilling would be a good idea as well.

Step 4: The Hard Part: Making the 2x6 Supports

The reason this part is hard is because you need to make sure the 2x6s are cut at a perfect angle to fit snuggly onto the support and bottom 2x4s. The joint to the bottom 2x4 is called a birds mouth joint. If you want the official way of doing it check out this video (https://youtu.be/FRu1jTp4wgA). Here is the reason i didnot do it 1) Sounds like too much work for me lol 2) My garage wall is tilted due to an uneven drywall which missed up my cut slightly as you see in the photo. But i did it using the methood in the original video i linked before, i also forgot to take my own pics... :), I added notes onto the pictures so follow along:

  1. Hold the 2x4 supports at level and mark the 2x6 onto the 2x4 support
  2. Hold a square on top of the bottom support and mark a line
  3. Make a 90 degree line on the 2x6 or use a scrap 2x4 to make the "F" shape
  4. Make the Cut
  5. Place it again on the bottom support and bring the 2x4 supports to level
  6. Mark the 2x6 angle and Make the cut
  7. Remove the bottom support from the wall and Screw the 2x6 into it from the back, i forgot to do this on my project. This also why you should not overlap the stud and the support
  8. Attach the whole structure to the wall again and screw it to the top piece from above as you see in the pic, again I forgot to do this ;)

And thats it, the best way to do it properly is to be good at woodworking..... that was a bad joke i know, my apologies but anyways, you are almost done!

Step 5: Final Additions

  1. Add a long double 2x4 between the supports to hold the structure together. I added slots in the 2x4 supports to hold the two long pieces.
  2. Screw a plywood or OSB surface to the frame complete the workbench. You can also fit some scraps together! Try to find a good smooth board to use unless you want to end up will alot of splinters in your hands ;) I will be replacing mine later on.
  3. The bench was strong enough for me now so i didnt add another support but i can always go back and add it, i just needed more open space underneath, make your own judjment.
  4. You could print a design and spraypaint it your final product to customize it, I will be adding some french cleats on the wall for extra strorage later on.

Step 6: Conclusion

Remember, this project is all about making the most of what you have and having fun along the way (and maybe a little bit of cursing too). So don't worry if your workbench isn't perfect, there's a certain thrill in making things work with minimal resources. I did skip a whole lot of stuff! like wood gluing, preping the wood and making it square etc... the bench still holds jjust find. So go ahead and give it a try, and let me know how it turns out!!