How To Build A Firewood Box

All the firewood used this year has really done a number on our floors. In one corner of the living room we would pile up the wood to be burned for the evening so we didn't have to skip out in the freezing temperatures to get another few logs. It worked really well for us. Not so much for the floors....













The living room corner which holds our small wood pile had a completely differently colored floor. The pitch and wood sap left quite a film to collect dirt and debris. After being attacked with the wood floor cleaner the floor quickly came clean again, but brutalizing the house wasn't quite what we had in mind when we wanted to simplify. So out Jules went to build a firewood box.

Materials
3 inch wood screws
2 inch wood screws
Power Drill
2 - 2x4x10's or a pile of 2 x4 scrap
1 sheet of plywood
4 felt non scratch bottoms (like you put on table legs)


All you are really doing is building two identical squares out of 2x4 and connecting them. Measure the floor space you are wanting the box to fit into. Now subtract 1 inch from the length and width. Make two identical squares out of 2x4's. Secure the squares with 3 inch wood screws

To connect the square, measure the height you wish for the box to be. Now subtract 8 inches. Cut 4 identical 2 x 4 pieces. Place each board on a corner between the two squares and attach with 3 inch wood screws. Now you have a box.

Use your original measurements (no subtracting) to cut the plywood pieces. You should have:

1 piece the size of the floor space for the box to fit in (Length x Width)
2 pieces the size of the height and one side of the floor (Length x Height)
2 pieces the size of the height and the other side of the floor (Width x Height)

The reason you subtracted an inch from the original measured squares is to allow for plywood sides on the box. Take each plywood piece and mount it to the box with the 2 inch wood screws. Be careful not to hit the screws you have already used.


Once the sides are all in place, you need to sand down the all edges and the plywood. Due to being inside and having heavy use, we didn't much want splinters.

Once the box has been sanded, flip it up on the side so that the bottom is exposed. Screw in the felted scuff stoppers to each corner before painting.

Now you can paint or stain your box any color you want. We went with the same color as our walls so that the large box tends to blend right in and not seem so intrusive. Be sure that you also paint the inside at least to cover the top 2x4's since you will see that part when you look at the box across the room. Jules opted to paint the inside of the whole thing.













As you can see, The Barracuda is now required to help with household projects as much as he possibly can without Jules or I wanting to strangle him. In example, he did not get to paint because the patio would never have been the same. This direct working with tools, building, and planting have become essential parts of his homeschooling and math curriculum.