Support DIY and Instructables : Become a Pro Member Today!

Homemade Whiteboard

intro
step 1
step 2
step 3
step 4
step 5
step 6
step 7
step 8
 

introHomemade Whiteboard

I thought that I would finally bit the bullet and make a whiteboard. I made a bunch of them in college for my fraternity, so that we could do our engineering homework. But all of those were frameless and 4' x 8'.

In my current house, I don't have that kind of free wall space, so I need it a bit smaller.

Not being one to waste materials. Out of one 4' x 8' sheet of melamine coated hardboard I can get three 32" x 48" whiteboards. So lets get to work.
Homemade Whiteboard
 
Remove these ads by Signing Up.
To View All Steps on one page,  
Go Pro Today!  
step 1Gather tools and materials
What you'll need is the following materials: qty description price 3___1"x4"x8' standard pine board_____~$1.54 each 1___4'x8' sheet of tileboard (melamine finished hardboard)____~$9.93 24___1.25" long course pocket screws 1___bottle of wood glue picture hanging hardware tools: rubber mallet Pencil speed square Measuring tape hand saw power miter saw tab…

step 2Start the cutting
First cut up the tileboard to size, you can either use a tablesaw, handsaw, or a circular saw. I ended up using a circular saw, since cutting it on the tablesaw would be unruly for me. Plus it was raining, so I needed to do it quick. Basically cut every 32 inches on the long side of the panel, so that you'll end up with three panels that are 32"x48". Next is time to c…

step 3Grooves
This is where the table saw does the heavy lifting, in cutting the groove in the frame pieces. In setting up the table saw for this cut, it helps to have a 1/4" drill bit for setting the blade height and fence. You want the height of the blade to be just a little bit over 1/4", just to compensate for any waviness in cutting the tileboard to size. While for the fence, tr…

step 4Mark to length
This is where you're not going to like me, in that I'm not going to give you lengths for the frame pieces. Because you can do the frame two different ways, you can have the short pieces inside the long ones(which is what I did), or the long pieces inside the short pieces. Also if there is one thing that I have learned doing trim work, that is don't measure, but mark the…

step 5Pocket screws
Now with the short frame pieces only. On the fat side of the groove, drill out two pocket screw slots on each end of the piece.

step 6Glue and screw
This is when you are going to need the pipe clamps to hold this mess together. Flip the tileboard over and slide on the long side frame pieces, fat side up. Take one of the short frame and apply glue on each end, and slide it on, fat side up. Then square up the corner, and put a pipe clamp on that end. Repeat on the other end. You may need to use a rubber mallet to make…

step 7Hanging hardware
I already had some hardware from a previous project. The brackets have spikes built in, but I added three 1/2" brads into each bracket just in case. For the wire I used 25lb steel picture wire. Now we can hang up this beauty.

step 8enjoy
Now get to writing!

85 comments
1-50 of 85
Feb 17, 2010. 6:47 PMPenguinja says:
im too lazy too get bthat stuff from the hardware store and i dont haveeee moneyyyyyy, partly cuz im only 15 and get money from my parents. SO i just got the plastic cover (the one you put into your binders) and got a white piece of paper and slipped it inside. WAAA LAAA!
Jan 19, 2008. 5:59 PMplaywithfire12 says:
nice idea, but I built one that works even better. find a suitable size sheet of glass and sandwich a sheet of white paper between the glass and a sheet of plywood or such at the back to give the glass a bit of strength and to hold the paper flush to the glass. just make sure u don't glue the paper to the glass it doesn't look too good.
Oct 28, 2009. 4:01 AMheadphoned says:
Alternatively, for a distinctly modern look, simply mount glass (or plexiglass) flush to a white wall. I suspect a thicker plexiglass with no frame would look the best, but to avoid the gap between the writing and the white background being disturbing it would probably be best to stick with a thinner plexi, say 1/8". Just bung it up on a white wall and you're good to go!
May 23, 2008. 5:04 PMBill Hood says:
Most glass shops have old shop doors that they normally have to pay to dump. If you ask real nice, they will give you one. They have nice aluminum frames and a key holder built in. Of course you will have to scrape off the credit card stickers. My shop used to be located next to a glass company and they would give them to people all the time. They make interesting coffee tables with plumbing pipe legs. They make great room dividers that open up the room. They make great replacements for interior home doors, where privacy is not needed. They make great art over the sofa when you put twinkle holiday lights behind them in a random pattern. One mounted in a garage door can bring in a lot of light to a garage workshop during bad weather.
Jan 18, 2008. 12:22 AMEtitan says:
Nice job on the instructable. When I wanted dry erase capabilities at my new place I opted for static cling sheets. One idea to pass on, when I was considering the melamine board idea, I also was going to add a metal backing to let me use magnets on it as well. Now that is posh.
Jan 18, 2008. 10:09 AMbryren says:
Glue felt to the back of your magnet. I have thot about doing this - metal - but not sure what gauge it will take.
Aug 29, 2008. 12:04 PMheadphoned says:
...which gives me an idea -- put strong magnets inside your whiteboard eraser. It'd be a handy way to mount it, and if nothing else could be a fun gag -- "Let me just erase this here.... whoop, hmm... the eraser seems to stick to the board"
Oct 28, 2009. 1:39 AMredneckjaybyrd says:

Jan 18, 2008. 11:26 AMausable(author) says:
You could probably just use 22ga. sheet steel or galvanized HVAC ducting sheet metal. I just tried the HVAC sheet metal, and none of the magnets that I have are strong enough to pull through the 1/8" hardboard.
Jan 18, 2008. 1:47 AMausable(author) says:
Thanks. I actually thought of a steel backing as well, while I was making it. My only concern was finding strong enough magnets that wouldn't scratch the writing surface. I guess that could be a mod for later down the road.
May 3, 2009. 2:32 AMsjs229 says:
Don't you think it would be cheaper to buy one?
Sep 1, 2008. 4:39 PMSunny124613 says:
very good job! I like these and might have to make some
Feb 16, 2008. 9:56 PMkaboogie says:
I use dry and wet erase right on my fridge at home, stainless, but regular fridges work too. My gf makes a sharpie calendar on hers, fills in the info with dry erase. The sharpie comes off with stainless steel cleaner of soft scrub....but I put contact paper over my stainless fridge :-) Wokrs great!
Aug 27, 2008. 7:08 PMtubbychick3n says:
you can also remove sharpie from things like a fridge or whiteboard just by scribbling over it in a dry erase marker and then erasing it with a cloth or dry eraser.
May 23, 2008. 4:56 PMBill Hood says:
I rushed to the fridge with markers in hand. It works! It works! Thank you! Thank you! What a wonderful idea that I can't believe I had not thought of before!
May 28, 2008. 2:08 AMBruceHoultThomson says:
Great to see homemade whiteboards, and especially the fridge idea - marvellous. NOW, can anyone tell me how to create ink for refilling a marker pen. I already refill my computer printer cartridges with ink from 60ml or larger bottles of bought ink. That works in a marker, but is a bit greasy. I'll try diluting it with alcohol maybe in the weekend. But has anyone succeeded in creating a really good dry-erase ink from simple, very cheap off-the-shelf commodities? Thanks, Bruce Thomson
Apr 15, 2008. 5:35 PMjuanangel says:
I use Formica. But before the first use, I coated it with car wax to avoid stains and easy to erase. Only maintenance is waxing.
May 23, 2008. 4:49 PMBill Hood says:
Great idea! Today, the guy that works on my Jeep, told me that to remove the "haze" from my plastic headlight lenses of my ancient Jeep Grand Cherokee all I had to do was spray them Deet and wipe it with an old T-shirt. I wish he had told me that before I had replaced the headlight lenses.
Jan 17, 2008. 6:08 PMBill Hood says:
Dry erase ink can be "re-wet" with dry erase ink. Even when you think it won't come off without buying an expensive cleaner you should try to simply mark over the old ink with the same color of pen. It will re-wet and can be wiped aways quite easily.
May 23, 2008. 1:32 PMJrabbit05 says:
that works great! thanks
Jan 30, 2008. 6:18 PMRaNDoMLeiGH says:
Cheap vodka will work too, or isopropyl alcohol...
May 23, 2008. 4:45 PMBill Hood says:
What a waste of vodka - even cheap vodka! Plus the dry erase pen you already have in hand!
Mar 19, 2008. 5:49 PMDirtyWater99 says:
If this is the same stuff that they sometime use for shower walls, it does pose some problems. Many of the teachers at my school, due to severe budget cuts, have begun using this as an alternative to the expensive dry erase boards. They work for a while, but then tend to retain most of the stuff written on them. They get really grungy. The material you make yours out of may not pose the same problem. Either way, great instructable; very helpful.
Feb 15, 2008. 12:15 PMDeception says:
a very good material as well as tileboard is glass, it acts almost the same way but is easier to get when youve never heard of tile board
Jan 30, 2008. 6:19 PMRaNDoMLeiGH says:
This is a well-done instructable! I like the way you used the 1/4" drill bit as the guide to adjust the saw. Why haven't I thought of that??
Feb 1, 2008. 9:23 PMausable(author) says:
Well the funny part about that is I can't believe that I didn't figure that out as well. Until one day while I was watching the Woodsmith shop, and they used a 1/4" drill bit to set-up a tablesaw to make a mortise and tenon joint.
Jan 29, 2008. 1:56 AMtreelovinhippie says:
I just went down to my local hardware store and found some wood that fit closest to that of a whiteboard... masonite. Bought it, bought some markers... came back and tried out the markers on the board and the ink disappears when you write on the board... as though it is seeping into the board. Any idea how to fix this?
Jan 29, 2008. 12:16 PMausable(author) says:
Did you buy just masonite or coated masonite?
Jan 17, 2008. 1:02 PMbilbox says:
ABCstuff

You can buy rolls of whiteboard contact paper and make almost any surface into a whiteboard. 18" by 6 feet is $6.99 from ABCstuff.

Jan 25, 2008. 6:36 AMI can build it instead says:
This 'ABCstuff' could be stuck on a layer of sheet metal with a plywood backing in a frame. Then whiteboard magnets would stick. I would glue the thin gauge sheetmetal down with contact cement and fill any seams with Bondo or wax.
Jan 20, 2008. 10:54 AMtrain10 says:
I used be a trainer. We had lots of whiteboards and found that cheesecloth worked better than the erasers. We used to get big rolls of the stuff and cut off about a foot, fold it, and erase. When it got really ugly, just toss it and cut off a new piece. Worked well with dry or wet erase pens.
Jan 18, 2008. 2:29 PMDaveNJ says:
Great job. I just bought a white board from Staples and now I am going to return it and make this. It will be bigger, better and much cheaper in cost. Thanks!
Jan 19, 2008. 1:58 PMDaveNJ says:
I just made a 32" x 48" inch board today. It took about 2 hours and came out great. I ran the rails through the saw twice to open up the channel to a hair over 1/8". It made the assembly easier. It is still a good fit. I figure about $10 per board. I returned my little 24" x 36" to Staples for a $27 refund. Thanks for this simple idea. I also like the idea below about the wet markers. I will try that idea out too. Thanks tdbtdb!
Jan 19, 2008. 8:39 PMausable(author) says:
Cool, I'm glad that it worked out for you. And that you were able to save a couple of bucks to boot.
Jan 18, 2008. 6:33 PMtdbtdb says:
Everyone loves dry erase markers, but wet erase are even better and don't stink. The colors are better, price comparable. The brighter more opaque colors mean writing can be visible on top of a wider range of colors (dark panelling okay!). Not sure the environmental impact is lower, but all the solvent in dry erase makes me suspect wetter is better. Expo brightsticks are my brand, but I've seen & used others that are good too. Grocery stores used to use them to write specials on the windows, etc. Erasing actually is easier with wet than dry erase, though I guess if you tried using a dry eraser it might get full of pigment and not work well. I usually use a tissue or old paper towel. I can usually wipe it off without wetting the towel, if not, a little spit will do. I like to use the fridge, the bathroom mirror, and the interior window of my car to write on. I also recycle sheets of packing plastic to coer up stuff I otherwise wouldn't want to write on. The monitors we buy come with a nice (but floppy) sheet of clear plastic protecting the screen, that's what I've got stuck on the office file cabinets and my home fridge for scribbling. Dry erase was better than chalk, wet erase is better yet.
Jan 19, 2008. 5:49 PMp1pe says:
Hey, this is real nice. You did a great job on the instructable. I was wondering why you used the pipe clamps in addition to the screws :-)
Jan 19, 2008. 8:36 PMausable(author) says:
Your answer is all the way at the bottom of the comments section.
Jan 8, 2008. 5:49 PMredskinsjbs says:
Great idea and efficiency btw. Just a sort of side note, I use my desk as a dry erase board because it is made out of glass. It comes in handy if I have a presentation that need to be put together. Also, I took an old window from a construction site (they were remodeling and they gave me this giant floor-ceiling window for dirt cheap), and I just have it set up against my wall and I use that as another planning board. ( I am a graphic design/architecture student, so planning and drawing space is kind of a big deal). Yeah, great instructable. I think I might panel my walls with that stuff.
Jan 14, 2008. 3:27 PMGnome says:
Never mind, turns out I wasn't using glass but a "XL10 UV Protected Sheet" that's "250 times stronger than glass". The thing is, I don't care if it breaks or not, I just wanna write stuff on it!!! (P.S. Tried writing on a mirror and it looks awesome!)
Jan 18, 2008. 1:47 PMdavisbarrett says:
Gnome, Every few weeks, without warning, I write some note or affirmation for my wife all around her bathroom mirror... Once in a while I'll sneak a note somewhere else she wasn't expecting (wrote a phone number she asked me for a dozen times on the top of her windshield). Makes all kinds of points with that significant other in your life (gender is immaterial, my brother's partner loves it too and he's never appeared to be the romantic type before). So, just my two cents... Cheers, Davis
Jan 18, 2008. 3:12 AMsrilyk says:
My guess is it's the UV coating that's problematic for your erasure...
Jan 14, 2008. 3:13 PMGnome says:
I've tried a Dry-Erase marker on glass and it won't come off unless I use alcohol. Do you use a different type of marker, have another method for cleaning it, or is it just my window that doesn't work the same way yours does?
Jan 14, 2008. 5:13 PMredskinsjbs says:
There isn't anything special about the window or the the markers. Or at least I dont think that there is. I use EXPO markers and the window is double-paned exterior window glass. My desk i think has a scratch-resistant laminate on it, so that might be what helps with the ease of erasing.
Jan 18, 2008. 6:35 AMwaterppk says:
When I was doing my chemistry problems online I would always use my CRT as a whiteboard. You can write directly on the screen because it's glass (without coatings in my case, but make sure you check). DON'T TRY AN LCD! :)
Jan 18, 2008. 3:24 AMsrilyk says:
a fairly inexpensive source for glass is binswanger glass - they do large sheets of plexi as well. I know because we used to buy from them all the time in the frame shop I worked - especially when we needed HUGE sheets of glass :P
Jan 8, 2008. 9:51 AMmdmoose29 says:
Oh, how I miss Menards.
Jan 8, 2008. 10:40 AMausable(author) says:
My personally ranking of the big box home improvement places...it goes Menards, Lowes just below, and way...way down the list is Home Depot.
Jan 8, 2008. 12:49 PMmdmoose29 says:
Thats sad... Home Depot has had a bad past few years... but they are trying to get things better again. And its starting to work... trust me.. I work there. Haha
Jan 17, 2008. 11:15 PMtchansen says:
I've always preferred Home Depot over Lowes around here. I've always had great service and friendly, knowledgeable people at Home Depot and the complete opposite at Lowes. However, it might be a local anomaly - the staff at my local Home Depot hasn't changed much in the entire time I've gone there. Same with the Lowes, they still have much of the same staff they had when the store was 'Eagle' and they were crappy then too. Oh, and I love the self checkout - I can go through the self checkout faster than I can the regular assisted checkout and since no one else seems to like it I can be out in less than a minute.
Jan 8, 2008. 1:26 PMausable(author) says:
Hey, about 10 years ago I loved Home Depot, and that was the only place I went to for home improvement stuff. Then things changed at HD that I didn't like: 1) self check out (try scanning a 2x4 that doesn't have a bar code, good luck) 2) Reduced product selection 3) Lower available inventory levels. 4) Not very knowledgeable staff (When random people ask me were stuff is located in HD and I know where it is located and the staff doesn't I have a problem with that. And I'm not even wearing an orange apron.) So basically as it stands I get most of my stuff from Menards, and I get appliances and anything not at Menards at Lowe's. I've stopped by Home Depot in the summer of 2007 to get landscaping materials for a rental property that I own, and they didn't have what I needed at a price that I was willing to pay. So basically I don't even waste time going to HD anymore, unless it is a last resort. But I also have started to shop at more locally owned specialty retails for home improvement stuff. Specifically HVAC wholesalers, and greenhouses. Yes there product line is more focused, but there depth is greater in that area. Try finding a blower fan motor for a furnace at one of the big box places. It's not going to happen, nor is it economically feasible for them to do it compared to a HVAC wholesaler, which is what they specialize in.
1-50 of 85

Related