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Mud Room: Bench Construction and Finishing Touches

From "Weekend Remodeling"
episode WKR-302

A mud room is a great way to store and organize your families every day coats, as well as specialty items for sports and hobbies.

Seating for the removal of shoes and boots can come in handy. Reveiz will build a simple bench that will be positioned on the wall opposite the stalls. He'll then provide the finishing touches to the mud room: a door, paint and trim.

On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being most difficult, this project rates a 3.

Materials:

2 x 4, 2 x 2 and 1 x stock
Clothing rods
Beadboard paneling
Various trim pieces
Bench lumber
Pre-hung door
Drywall and drywall tape
Drywall mud (joint compound)
Sandpaper
Screws
Vinyl floor tiles
Caulk
Paint and painting supplies
Chalk Board
Coat Pegs
Baseboard heater
Trowel
Pry bar
Tape measure
Chalk line
Reciprocating saw
Hammer
Utility knife
Circular saw
Miter saw
Drill
Framing square
Framing nailer
Trim nailer

Figure A

Figure B

Building the Bench

Before constructing the bench, Reveiz sands the outer wall surface, then applies a second coat of mud to dry while he works on the bench.
For the bench, Reveiz decides a 5' length would give plenty of seating without taking up too much room. He first cuts a 1 x 12 to exactly 5' long, then uses a regular compass to draw a 2" radius on each corner (figure A). The corners are cut on the radius line (with a jig saw) to round the corners.
After the legs are measured and cut, a v-notch is cut in the center of each leg to provide additional stability and decoration. The bench center support is cut from a 1 x 6.
The legs and center support are attached to the bench top with glue (figure B), then nailed with a trim nailer.

Figure C

Figure D

Figure E

Figure F

Finishing Touches

The final sanding is done before the door is hung. At this point, a soft sanding block will provide the light sanding needed to feather the edges of the joint compound and get the surface prepped for painting.
To hang the door, first check that the rough opening is plumb. In this example, 3/4" shims are needed at both sides to plumb the frame. The shims are nailed into place, and the door side is dry-fit into the opening to test for level. In this d
demonstration, the garage floor has a slight slope which requires a shim under one side of the door to compensate.
Once everything is plumb and level, the casing is face nailed. Inside the mud room, the jamb is permanently nailed on the hinge side.
Reveiz moves on to the casing side of the split jamb. It fits right into the rabbeted slot on the door side. After achieving a snug fit, Reveiz nails it in place.
The interior walls are measured for trim. The trim and baseboard pieces are cut (figure C) to the appropriate lengths on the miter saw, then nailed into place.
To give the outer wall -- which doesn't extend to the full height of the garage -- a finished look, a 1 x 6 is nailed to the top of the wall (figure D) The two end pieces are installed first, then the center piece, followed by the dividers. All the pieces are nailed into position with the brad nailer.
The outer walls are measured from baseboard trim (figure E), which is cut on the miter saw and nailed into place.
The door hardware is installed before moving on to the painting. Because beadboard paneling was installed on the interior, only the exterior walls need painting. A roller is used to provide good coverage (figure F). Don't forget to mask off the trim to keep it clean!
As finishing touches to the room, Reveiz decides to install coat pegs and a baseboard heater to dry those wet shoes and clothes.

And that's it! In only one weekend (depending on the size of your space and materials used), you can construct a mud room that will keep everything in one location as you leave and enter your home.

ALSO IN THIS EPISODE:
	Mud Room: Building the Frame
	Mud Room: Beadboard Paneling and Vinyl Floor Tiles
	Mud Room: Shelves and Clothing Rods
	Mud Room: Bench Construction and Finishing Touches