Our next Pallets Aplenty guest is a very talented DIYer who is so amazing at reusing, repurposing, and rocking it! Today, she’s showing how she combined an old sink with a couple of pallets (remember how we love old sink projects like this and this and this?) to make a rustic pallet drink station. Give Leanne a fabulous Remodelaholic welcome — and remember to subscribe by email or RSS and follow along over on Facebook and Instagram with #palletsaplenty so you won’t miss a single one of the amazing pallet posts we have coming up!
How to Build a Repurposed Pallet Drink Station
by Leanne, the Diva of DIY
Hello Remodelaholics! My name is Leanne but I am better known as the Diva of DIY. In 2015 I became the Trendsetter of the Year with my weekend bathroom makeover. I am passionate about repurposing old or forgotten things into something new. If you are, too, I think you will really enjoy this next project! I think every backyard patio should have a repurposed pallet drink station.
I love showing readers how to create amazing things without always buying new and spending a lot of money. One of my favorite materials to use is pallet wood. What’s not to like? It’s rustic and it’s free! This past year I have been consumed with Our Lake House Fixer Upper Series. When doing the demo on the house I tried to save and reuse as many things as I could. One of those items was an old stainless steel sink. That sink was the inspiration for my Pallet Drink Station. Can you believe this fun project cost me nothing to make? You can always find a discarded sink at your local ReStore to make your own drink station!
How to Make a Drink Station with Pallet Wood
Pallet Drink Station Supplies:
2 pallets
Stainless Steel Sink
2″ screws
Reciprocating Saw with Metal Blade
Mitre Saw
Jigsaw
Angle Brackets
Sharpie
Drink Station Instructions:
Read through all the instructions and note the pictures before you start. It’s not a complicated project but some steps make more sense after you see the next few steps.
Step 1) You will need to completely disassemble the first pallet with a reciprocating saw with a metal blade. I use a metal blade because I like the look when you cut the nails off and have the nail heads left for character. If you try and pry the pallets apart you are going to have a lot of splintered and broken pallets!
Diva Tip: If you notice my pallets had been outside and it had been raining for a solid month! Learn from my mistake, bring your pallet in to dry if it’s raining. Taking apart rain soaked, wood swollen pallets is no fun!
Step 2) For the second pallet remove the top half of the boards, saving them for later. Thank goodness I found a dry pallet in the storage area of my shop for the second pallet! I’m sure my reciprocating saw was happy as well.
Step 3) Using your saw, cut the center braces out. The pallet that holds the sink will be put in this space.
This is what you should have to start building. You will have the wood from the broken down pallet, the second pallet with the top half and center braces cut out and the wood from the top half of the second pallet.
Step 4) Using a mitre saw cut the pallet 2x4s to build top for the sink. You will want to measure the width of your sink and add at least one pallet board width to it.
Just for reference: for this particular table and sink, the wooden top total is 40″x25″, and the hole for the sink (see steps below) is 32″x 21 1/2″.
The sink has a 1″ lip around the edge that holds it when it sits in the hole, So the sink measures 33″x 22 1/2″
Step 5) Screw the 2x4s to the inside of the pallet using 2″ screws. You will do this on both sides as seen in the above photo.
Step 6) Reattach the pallet boards you cut from the first pallet to the frame. This is creating the base for your sink.
Step 7) Place your sink on the new pallet frame.
Step 8) Mark the cutting lines by tracing the sink with a sharpie marker. Note that you are not marking from the outside lip of the sink, you are marking inside that so the sink can sit down flush to the pallet.
Step 9) Using a jigsaw cut along the sharpie lines.
Step 10) Place your sink in the hole and adjust accordingly if it doesn’t fit down flush to the pallet top.
Step 11) Measure and cut the the bottom legs and braces from the first pallets 2x4s.
Step 12) Attach the legs and secure the brace boards with angle brackets to the pallet.
Diva tip: If you notice in the pictures I used a pallet board to brace the top pallet while working on the drink station. Putting on the legs earlier might have made more sense.
Step 13) Re-attach the pallet boards from the second pallet to the back, behind the sink.
Step 14) Using left over pallet wood make a box to hold bottle tops and hang a bottle opener from a nail beside it.
Step 15) Add screen or sink stoppers to plug the sink holes and some personalized decorations to the pallet behind the sink.
Get creative! For July 4th I made this flag out of pallet wood and switched things up!
Now all that is left to do is to fill it up with your favorite drink! If enjoy DIY projects, especially repurposing and upcycling I would love to hear from you on any of Diva of DIY social media platforms. Also, check out your local Scripts Television Station for my weekly DIY segment on their news programs. #Letsdiytogether!
Don’t you just LOVE what Leanne was able to build from a couple of pallets and a castoff sink?! Be sure to check out her site for more awesome projects, like these scrap wood lanterns that I now need on my porch <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/2/72x72/1f609.png" alt="