Bottle Wall

Joanne Miller
by Joanne Miller
We needed some privacy on the veranda of our man cave. A bottle wall seemed like a good idea. We spent around $200 and used 125 recycled bottles, a great feature wall has been added.
The finished bottle wall providing shade and privacy.
We needed some privacy and shade on the side of our man cave.
Materials required included a 3/4" inch diamond tipped drill bit and rubber washers... and lots of empty wine bottles.
Remove the metal collar from the neck of the bottle using tin snips. The each wine bottle was placed in a bucket of sand and the bottom was drilled out. Bottles with a dimple in the bottom were easier to drill. The dimple was filled with water before drilling to stop the drill bit from overheating. Best to wear safety glasses when drilling the bottles.
Immediately after drilling the holes the bottles need to be rinsed in water to make sure the glass powder residue does not stick inside the bottle.
The most time consuming part of the job was removing the labels. We found soaking the bottles in hot soapy water with a dash of eucalyptus oil for about 15 minutes and then using a paint scraper was the most effective way to get the labels off.
We used some light weight metal tubing for the bottom and top bars to hold the bottles in. These bars were attached to the side and front pole of the veranda with metal plates. We used shower curtain fittings which were drilled to the top and bottom rail.
Powder coated curtain rods were cut to size (alternatively reo bar can be use). The top fitting was then unscrewed. The rod was placed in the bottom fitting. Bottles were threaded onto the rod and a rubber washer was placed between each bottle. when the rod was full the top fitting was placed over the top of the rod and re-screwed onto the bar. An alternative pattern was used and a variety of bottle colours. This is up to individual taste and availability of bottles.
A side view of the wall.
A close up of the wall.
Joanne Miller
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
Go
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
3 of 33 questions
  • Barbara Barbara on May 31, 2020

    Did you calculate the height of the bottles to fit your space? With bottles of varying heights, how did you “fill” each rod?

  • R R on Aug 20, 2020

    Been saving bottles for years for this project, my question, how do you keep moisture from forming in the bottles thus eventually leading to mold?

  • Harry Haggen Harry Haggen on Apr 27, 2022

    What exactly is the problem if the glass powder residue is stick inside the bottle?

Comments
Join the conversation
3 of 262 comments
  • Wiley Wiley on Jan 30, 2021

    I saw a fence that had glass balls as space fillers. Does anyone know where I can get them?

    • Donna Donna on Jan 16, 2022

      I wondered if they use the plastic ornament balls from the dollar tree.

  • Blu48614335 Blu48614335 on Sep 08, 2021

    I love this. Now if I can only find the perfect spot to do it!

Next