Easy DIY Steel Pipes Toilet Paper Holder

Hi everyone,

being a huge fan of the instructables website i decided to make the leap of faith and to upload my first instructable. As you will see it is a pretty easy and straigth foward instructable. I hope you'll like it and i am open to all the constructive critique you may have for me.

Also, keep in mind that i am a french speaking person so i might bend the english grammar a little.

I wasn't impress by the toilet paper holders on the market and couldn't find anything that fits the needs of my newly renovated bathroom. I didn't want anything shiny or chrome or fake antique... so i had to do it myself. Here are the easy steps to make your own.

Step 1: Find or Buy the Parts You Need

It is pretty easy and cheap to find steel plumbing parts in any tool store. In my region however the only thing i could find was galvanized steel parts wich looked cheap (the silver ones). I wanted the raw metal look. So i had to find a plumbing distributor who could sell me the parts i wanted. If you have one in your region go there first they will be able to get you parts you can't find elsewhere. I went for the 1" pipes because it fitted perfecly with de diameter of the toilet paper. The toilet paper will roll freely without wobbling that could occur with smaller diameter of pipes.

To complete this toilet paper holder you will need :

1- T union

1- wall fixture

2- 6" long nipples

2- corner unions (90 degrees)

2- 1 1/2 " long nipples

1- 3" long nipple

2- caps

Step 2: ​Cleaning/Degreasing

The raw steel parts will be full of grease and steel powder residu. It is important to clean and degrease all parts before assembling them because you will have to varnish them to prevent rusting. Varnish can't hold on grease or steel powder. The best way i could found (and it worked wonderfully well) was to use a can of break cleaner the you will find in a Canadian Tire or any car parts store in your area. Spray your steel parts and brush them with metal brush or a old brush used to clean dishes to remove any dirt or grease. Rince it well with water and dry them with a cloth.

Step 3: Varnish

Since the bathroom is a humid environnement i strongly suggest you put some varnish on your steel part. I did put two coats on mine and i think i will need to recoat it since i saw some rust in the corners where humidity tend to stay. Use some hangers to make hooks for your parts and plundge them in varnish. After hang them in a bucket where they will finish to drip and dry over nigth. Just sand or remove with a knife the frozen drip of varnish. Repeat the process two more times. I used Veratane varnish satin finish. I did not want any gloss on it.

Step 4: Assemble and Hang on Wall

The only thing you have left to do is to assemble the parts and to hang it on the wall with some wood screws. Make sure the head of your screws are big enough to maintain the load and not go trough the holes wich are somehow pretty big. Put some toilet paper on each bars and screw the caps in place. To change rolls you simply need to unscrew the caps and put another one.

Now make yourself an enormous amount of coffee and and wait an hour to be able to enjoy your new creation!!

hope you like my first instructable!

enjoy and keep the DIY community alive!