Make a Desk From Pallets

First you are going to want to grab at least 4-5 pallets in good shape. It helps that they are not too dirty or rough when you get to the sanding and staining stage.

I used a sawzall to remove the boards off the other pallets and used a pry bar to pull the boards off the main pallet I will be using.

As you can see there are main boards which are held in by three screws. These are pretty hard to get off and I figured I'd leave them on the help with the stability of the desk. I then put the boards removed off the other pallets into the gaps in between. You will have to play around with them as they are not all the same width.

Once you have your layout chosen, mark the boards where you will cut them.

Using a miter saw chop off the potions measured. One thing to be careful of is cutting too short because you forgot which end you will be using. if I feel there is a chance of this I usually mark my line the and arrow towards what is coming off. This helps when you have a stack of boards to cut and will speed up the cutting process.

Once you have them all cut you can start fixing them to your desk. I used screws as I figured over time it would be better. Be careful when putting your screws in as pallet wood is often pretty dry and will crack sometimes.

Now your ready to sand your surface to smooth out the rough wood. I used a belt sander which worked so much faster than a handheld because it has a bigger sanding surface and more power. You can use a hand sander but this step will take a while so be prepared.

For the legs on the desk I used some remaining under boards of some of the pallets I tore apart with the sawzall. I figured It would be stronger than using something else. So stability I used some hardwood floor boards we had left over in the garage. You can use another board from the top of a skid if you like.

once you have it all assembled you are now ready to start staining. As you can see I used some left over Minwax stain we had, I think it was "early American" color.

Make sure that you do this in the shade if your outside as the sun will speed up the drying and make it hard to stain evenly. In between coats give your wood a quick sand and let your stain dry thoroughly in between.

Stain until you achieve the color you are aiming for and you can apply a clear coat to seal everything. This is the one I used in a Gloss. Minwax Is a great product. I've used it on many of my projects without any problems.

For this step if done outside you will want to make sure there is no wind. Wind will blow debris into your beautiful clear finish and it will be aggravating when you see a bug on your finished project. It may take a bit to dry completely but once it is done you will have a desk that will last forever.

I just love the grain that pallet wood has once its finished.

If you have any questions about the various steps please contact me and I would be more than happy to help you out.