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A lightweight garden tool caddy for your garage can act as much-needed practical storage for tools of all shapes and sizes. You can even add some wheels making it easy to move for cleaning and pulling in and out on a day-to-day basis. Using a cedar wood is a good option because it will be light-weight and there is no need for treating as it's naturally rot resistant. With a simple grid plan your tools will stand up straight and be easy to find when you need them.
Materials:1" red cedar lumberFour legs 34 ¼" x 2 ¼" Four legs 34 ¼" x 3" Four cross supports 18" x 3" Four cross supports 16 5/8" x 2 ¼" Six slat tool supports 17 7/8" x 1 ½" 1" plywood 18" x 18" Four top finishing pieces mitered (45 degree on the width) 11 5/8" long x 3 ½" wide Four bottom protective skirt pieces mitered (45 degree on the thickness) 19" x 4" wide 1¼" steel square head screws Glue Hooks to hang for smaller garden tools Four 2 ½" rubber casters, if you like
Tools:Miter sawTable saw Electric hand drill square head drill bit Tape measure Speed square Pencil Glue 1 ½ inch square head screws Hand clamps
Directions:
1. Rip down lumber first. Widths are 4", 3 ½", 3", 2 ¼", & 1 ½". 2. Start by screwing the 2 ¼" legs and the 3" legs together, by screwing from 3" into 2 ¼" piece. This creates four 3" x 3" outer supports at right angles. Put your outer supports off to side 3. Next, build two supports for top and bottom of cart. The top and bottom are identical. Make a square by butting your two different sized cross supports together (18" x 3" and 16 5/8" x 2 ¼"). Once that is square, add two slats across the square on the two sides that are lower by screwing into slats and down into support. Then add a third slat across the top of the other two. 4. Attach your plywood to bottom of the bottom support, making sure you keep the corners clear of screws (in case you want to attach casters) 5. Next take the outer supports and lay two down center of your work table. 6. Lay your top support with the bottom sticking up flush to the top of the outer supports and screw the support with slats down, from the inside out. 7. On the other side you will do the same with your plywood surface pointing to the outside. This time at the bottom you will attach the supports from the outside. (The screws will be covered by a skirt that will be added later). 8. Place the two last outside supports on the table and rotate the cart so you are repeating the previous steps of screwing from the inside for the top support/slats and from the outside for the bottom part. 9. The main structure is together and square so now you can add 4 inch protective skirt. It is important to wait until this time to take your last measurements of the base and miter cut your skirt for an exact fit. 10. Measure a side, cut two ends with a miter, repeat all four sides using clamps to hold skirt up as you complete square. Add glue to miter joints and clamp four sides and air nail the miters. Screw on skirt flush to the bottom of caddy. 11. Assemble the top finishing pieces with glue and nail gun. Lay this flat and let glue dry. 12. Place finished frame on top of caddy. Inside of caddy should line up with inside of mitered frame. Hold or clamp into that position and screw two screws on each side from top down. 13. You may decide that this caddy is fine just resting on the ground. But you can screw on 4 casters to the bottom. 14. You can also add on some hooks to the outside for smaller tools to hang. Special Thanks:
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