Introduction: Ten Green Coffee Table - From Reclaimed Timber and Glass Bottles
Ten Green is a shelving and table system, constructed simply from local recyclates. This range started with shelving/table modules and continued into small shelving units, big shelving units and now coffee tables.
This document will tell you how to construct a Ten Green coffee table. You can use any four bottles of similar height and any found timber, adapting the dimensions to suit the wood you are working with.
I will happily make up kits to order for UK customers.
If you have bought a kit go straight to step 2.
Design is released under a share alike/attribution CC license by Zero-waste Design.
Step 1: Get the Hardware
For one table you will need:
Four hook and eye strainers / turnbuckles as they are sometimes called. I used the smallest I could find, which are 14mm OD at the buckle and 5mm OD at the threads. Such as these from Screwfix .
Four screw eyes and four screw hooks, of a gauge to match the turnbuckles.
Depending on the height of your bottles, you may need some ess hooks too to help the strainer reach between the upper and lower hooks.
Two pieces of reclaimed wood at least 25mm thick. Here I used some small pallets provided by the customer. Ensure the timber is rot free. Trim the boards square and to the dimensions required and sand to a smooth finish. If the board is constructed out of many pieces joined together, as in the example, ensure all joints are well secured as the board will be subjected to bending and shear forces.
Drill four holes and attach the hardware as described in the layout image (also in .pdf and sketchup format). I can not emphasise enough how great Forstner bits are for this job! (pictured).
NOTE: Andrea Biffi rightly points out that for stability is better that tensioners/turnbuckles are oblique (meaning, not vertical, they are meant to sit at an angle), as you can see in the attached drawings.
UPDATE 28/01/11: I have added some proper engineering drawings in .pdf format below. Also the source file packs in Solidworks 2004 and .stl formats.
Ensure that the screw eyes and screw hooks are securely held into the timber as they may be subjected to anticlockwise twisting - you may require pliers or a similar tool to fully screw in the hardware. If the timber does not allow a secure fixing, consider gluing in the fixings using a two part resin or using bolt through fixings.
Step 2: Get the Bottles
You also need four bottles. All the same brand/height/shape preferable. Wash them thoroughly in hot soapy water. I think the clear ones look the best.
In this example I used some rather lovely bottles by Wodka Wanessa.
Step 3: Place Your First Board
Start with the top board, that is the one without holes drilled through it. Place this upside down on a clean firm surface such that the screw eyes face upwards.
Step 4: Place Your Bottles and Second Board
Place the bottles in each corner of the board. Then carefully lower on top the upper shelf, allowing the necks of the bottles to pass through the 30mm holes in the upper board. Allow the board to rest on the necks of the bottles. Then by hand adjust the bottoms of the bottles so that they sit flush with the lower shelf.
Step 5: Fit the Turnbuckles and Tighten
Adjust the bases of the bottles to ensure that they are flush with the first board. Attach a turnbuckle (and ess hook on the turnbuckle eye end if necessary), between the screw eye and screw hook. The design of these turnbuckles can vary, so you will have to experiment to see which way to fit the buckle. As you turn the centre of the turnbuckle, the ends should should gradually come together, compressing the bottles.
Repeat for each of the four bottles. Tighten the turnbuckles as much as you can by hand. This should easily be sufficient for rigidity and tools should not be required.
The turnbuckles are designed to sit at an incline in order to increase the torsional strength of the table. This resulted from testing an initial prototype, in which case the turnbuckles gradually loosened over time as the table was used as a footrest or otherwise pushed around from the side. So hopefully that should be fixed here.
Step 6: Use.
Your table is now assembled. If your bottles are screwtops, you may want to replace the lids as feet. Turn the whole assembly over so that the tops of the bottles are resting on the floor.
Enjoy, and comment or email me with some photos!
Step 7: Collaborate!
I am always up for collaborative work, hence my devotion to open sourcing in design. Here are some pictures of other tables I have made so far using this method. Check out the project page for some background.
Participated in the
Dadcando Family Fun Contest
37 Comments
7 years ago
Appreciate the inspiration!
9 years ago on Introduction
Thanks for the inspiration, loving mine!
Reply 9 years ago on Introduction
Looks really great. Actually, those large bottles make me believe this could be done with mason jars to get a lower table for my living room!
Reply 9 years ago on Introduction
Nice one! Are those wine bottles or something fatter?
Reply 9 years ago on Introduction
1.5 Liter wine bottles. Definitely had a fun time putting this together.
Reply 9 years ago on Introduction
I bet!
9 years ago on Introduction
Cool one! Think I have some spare glass bottles somewhere. Just need to find the wood :)
10 years ago on Step 7
First time build for me. Used 2 small pallets. thinking of adding a drawer to the top.It turned out great.
11 years ago on Introduction
My sister and her boyfriend moved recently and they don't have a lot of the essential living room furniture yet. Being that they are wine enthusiasts, I decided to make them a coffee table like this for Christmas. I just finished the table today - here are some pictures.
I used 4" and 6" wide boards from Menards, cut to 4' lengths to make the top and bottom and then stained them with a dark polystain (satin finish). I think it really made the boards look more vintage/reclaimed.
This is my first time making any sort of furniture, and now I want to make more!
-Danielle
Reply 10 years ago on Introduction
Hi Danielle, great coffee table! Just a note: for stability is better that tensioners/turnbuckles are oblique, as you can see in royshearer's attached drawings.
Reply 10 years ago on Introduction
very true! sorry if that isn't clear in the instructable.
10 years ago on Introduction
Beautiful project!
13 years ago on Introduction
There are some very nice looking wine and booze bottles out there that would look great for this. You could also fill the bottles with colored water, sand, sea shells, buttons, photographs, anything small enough to get in the neck of the bottle, including ships! This is a very interesting idea that could be endlessly personalized. Thank you.
Reply 11 years ago on Introduction
Actually some water with pretty coloring added could be an asset. If the bottles are well sealed and really filled with water it becomes very difficult to bend or compress the bottles if they are plastic. With a bit of clever wiring and some LEDs one could beam light up through the colored water or even go hog wild and have four lava lamps as supports.
11 years ago on Introduction
Hi,
What a brilliant project. It inspired me to make my own rustic coffee table. The wood is from an old door which I cut down.
My next step will be to add a glass top.
Reply 11 years ago on Introduction
This looks great, cheers!
11 years ago on Step 6
SUGRU!!!!! you could just SUGRU!!!!!! the feet thats why i say SUGRU!!!!!
11 years ago on Introduction
Really very nice tables. Great idea and instructable.
11 years ago on Introduction
The filling the bottles with concrete is a good idea for both looks and strength. It would be just as strong and as good looking to use the cable and screw eye bolt system as per the coffee table. If you used 2 cable loops in a square shape, one per side, you could fasten them together by unwinding the cable ends and creating loops, The trick to getting the loops to turn out nice is to get a good clean cut on the cable end. Hammering the cable over the blade of an old axe works well. Once you have your loops, loop eyed together you can then use pre-stretched rope to tension it up giving you a hour glass sort of shape to the cables on each side.
Make a small loop at one end of the rope, then around outside of one or both cable sides, then pass the other end of the rope thru the loop and pull back using the loop like a pulley. Rubbing the rope with ordinary wax will let it slide tight easily without breaking on you. With a strong cord you could likely get enough tension on the cables to pluck them for a note or too.
The beauty of using this idea is you cut the cost in half or more for the parts needed, as large turnbuckles are your most expensive part in that build. to stop the cables from cutting the rope place a small piece of strong fabric or rounded piece of scrap metal sheet etc. under the rope where it passed over the cable. These scraps can be removed later. small copper elbows would work well and might look nice too.
Cheers, Phil aka zipperboy
12 years ago on Step 6
WELL DONE!!!