Tv Unit / Media Display From Old Scaffold Planks

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i wanted a rustic looking TV/media display unit, to go with the wooden furniture in the house.

Heres a list of what i used (not all essential but if youve got them to hand use them)

Design idea
Worktop/Workspace
Wood (i opted for reclaimed scaffold planks, but you can use whatever you want)
Saw (circular, jigsaw, chop, or handsaw if you dont have anything else)
Sandpaper (and a power sander if you're not a fan of tennis elbow)
Tape measure
Wood stain
Sponge/Brush (to apply stain)
Cordless screwdriver OR Hammer
Screws OR Nails

Step 1: Design

As you can see in the picture i have a rather large cut-out section of the wall in my living room, so i decided i would try to fill it as much as i could.

the sketch was just rough to give me an idea what i wanted.

Step 2: Acquire Wood

I decided on using scaffold planks for this project, for a few reasons.
1, they had weathered in the wood yard so they would look old/rustic.
2, they are more than strong enough to support any of the decor i plan on putting on the unit
3, they were dirt cheap.

Total cost of the wood for this project was £27

If you are planning on painting it then you may prefer to use MDF or anything you can get hold of.

Step 3: Cutting

What you need:
Worktop
Saw (which ever you have available to you)
Tape measure

I used a circular saw as my sliding mitre saw only cuts a maximum of 200mm and scaffold planks are 225mm.
I also used two collapsable saw horses as my worktop.

Measure twice, Cut once.
I measured everything twice to be sure i was happy with the cuts. (and still got one wrong)

once i cut a piece, i labelled the back end of it (where you cant see) so i knew which part was which.

Repeat until you have all the pieces cut to size (may be worth a quick check to see if it goes together and all the cuts are right at this point so you can re-cut it before you sand it)

Step 4: Sanding

What you need:
Worktop
Sandpaper
Power sander (optional but worthwhile)

i didnt want to sand the wood back too much as i didnt want to lose the weathered look or the dints.
so i lightly sanded with my power sander using 80 grit sandpaper.
Then a really light pressured sanding with 120 grit sandpaper.
Then by hand, a really light scrub of any areas that felt a touch rough.
(the third picture shows a bit more how i wanted it to be)

Step 5: Test Assembly

What you need:
Cordless screwdriver (or hammer)
Screws (or nails)
Tape measure
Pencil
(a pocket full of change for your swear box if you're like me)

I laid everything down on the floor in the layout i wanted, and used 2 screws at each joint to hold it together so i could stand it up and offer it into the gap.

Now, id love to say it fit perfectly, lets go for tea and medals... But it didnt, id overcut one of the lengths, and made the frame have a slight warp on one side. so i pulled it apart, cut and sanded the piece, put it back together.

At this stage it was getting late in the day so i wanted to sit down and eat, but first i put the few decorations on it to get a rough idea what it will look like.

all in all so far i was relatively happy with the look of it.

The next day i pulled it away from the wall and added extra screws into all of the joints to make sure it was sturdy enough.

Step 6: Stain

What you need:
Wood stain
Sponge or brush (or whatever you prefer to apply wood stain with)

Remember to shake the tin well before using it (as it tends to separate a bit when sat in a shed for years like mine)

i used an old plastic food container and poured around 100ml at a time in (because im tight and dont like wasting any)

Using the sponge i lightly applied some stain evenly on each piece of wood (wiping any particularly wet bits straight away with a second sponge)

once i finished i left it to dry, and stuck my decor back on, im just trying to find something huge to put above the TV.




Thank you for taking the time to read my instructable. If 1 person gets inspired to make something for their house after reading this, il be happy :)