Hide Your Ugly Trash Bins With This Quick and Easy Build

Tools and Materials

• Hand Sander
• Table Saw
• 2” x 4” Pressure-treated Wood
• 5 1/2” Fence Boards
• Hand drill
• Decking Screws
• Tape Measure
• Square
• Gate Lock
• Four Gate Hinges
• Barrel Catch
• Pencil

To begin the build of the trash bin cover I gathered all of my needed wood and supplies. I measured my bins and cut all of the necessary pieces I would need on the table saw. Out of the 2” x 4” pressure-treated wood, I needed four pieces cut for each of the two sides, three pieces for the horizontal braces and four pieces for each of the two doors that would go on the front of the structure. I also needed twelve smaller pieces that would serve as braces for the frame with each of their ends being cut at a 45-degree angle.

Once all of my wood was cut, I used my hand sander to give them a quick sand to make sure there were no rough edges. 

For the sides of the structure, I built two pieces that were a little larger than the depth of my trash cans and a little higher than their height. I placed the pieces together with the vertical ones sitting on top of the horizontal ones in order to eliminate any water pooling around their bases and potentially rotting them.

To hold the four pieces of wood together that made up each of the sides, I countersunk some decking screws and added some metal brackets. Although I added the brackets initially, I found that they didn’t really contribute well to holding it together so ended up just adding more decking screws at an angle. 

With the sides together, I added three long horizontal pieces between the sides to create the frame for the structure. The horizontal pieces were the length of the two 98 gallon bins sitting side-by-side plus a little extra for wiggle room. The three longer pieces were added between the two sides at the top and bottom of the back of the frame and the top of the front of the frame. 

To make sure the structure was strong and sturdy I added extra pieces at a diagonal to some of the corners. I cut them each with a 45-degree angle on each end and added one to each of the back corners. Two were added facing the front of the structure and two were added along the back.  

For easy access to the trash bins, my new structure needed a couple of doors. Again I wanted to make sure they were as sturdy as possible so I used four pieces of pressure-treated 2” x 4” and built the doors the same way I had built the sides. I then added the same smaller pieces that had been cut with 45-degree angles to act as braces for each corner. It was really important that the structure sits flat and even so I checked to make sure all of the corners were at a 90-degree angle before adding the braces. 

Once I had the two doors built and perfectly square, I attached them to the frame using two gate hinges per door. The gate hinges allowed the doors to be easily swung open and closed smoothly. 

I wanted the new trash bin hutch to not only cover the bins but to look good as well since we would be seeing it all the time from our deck. To cover the new structure, I used 5 1/2” fencing boards cut down to the correct height. I also cut the top two corners off each piece to give them a little more of a polished look.

Once they were all cut, I began screwing them to the outside of the frame. To make them look uniform, I used two little pieces of wood to space them when I was screwing them in place. I continued doing this until both sides and the doors were covered with the fence boards. 

To finish off my new built, I added a barrel catch to the inside of one of the doors and then a gate lock to the outside to hold the doors in place. 

I should add that I also chose to attach my new trash bin cover to the side of our building, but you don’t necessarily have to do that. Not wanting the structure to move each time I pulled the bins in and out this seemed like the safest and best solution. 

I hope that you enjoyed this new build and I would highly recommend undergoing this afternoon project if you too have to look at ugly trash bins in your yard. It is always amazing to me that a simple pile of wood can be turned into something so helpful.