How To Make A Pallet Wood Laptop Stand

Most of us end up spending more time in front of our laptop than we’d like. Hunching over a computer for hours can cause discomfort and even injury in the long term. One simple way to reduce the negative effects of this kind of desk work is to elevate your laptop to eye level. Elevating your laptop to eye-level reduces neck strain as well as encouraging you to sit up straighter and improve your posture. This stylish and simple pallet wood laptop stand will raise your laptop to the right level, and all it requires is some time and recuperated pallet wood!

1. Get yourself a pallet

Finding your wood can be as simple as searching on a classified ads website for free pallets. Though, if you don’t find success online, there are other options. Small businesses receive deliveries on pallets and may be happy to part with them, likewise construction sites are a good place to try.

2. Break up your pallet

There are a variety of ways to break up a pallet, and your method will depend on what tools you have. This video demonstrates how to break apart a pallet using just a mallet and a small plank.

3. Cut your pieces

Using a hand saw or circular saw, cut your pallet wood to size. Don’t discard the off cuts as they’ll also be used later on in the process. For this stand you need to cut:

4 x 14″
8 x 9″

4. Sanding

Smooth out your pieces by sanding them down. If you have an orbital sander this will speed up the process, but you can also sand by hand. Start with grit 60, followed by grit 180 and finished with grit 240.

5. Gluing

Your pieces now need to be glued into 3 groups, one for the top and two for the sides/legs. The 4 long pieces will become your platform, so these need to be glued together. Each of the legs consists of 4 pieces glued together. Work one group at a time, apply the wood glue and spread it along the surface. Then clamp the pieces together and leave them to dry.

6. Cut the Slope

To get a perfectly even angle for your laptop, lay your sides flat on top of each other and clamp them together. Ensure that the two pieces are even at the top and decide if you have a preference for a front side. Once you’ve decided, make a mark five inches from the top of your front side. Draw an angled line from this mark to the top of the other side. Next, cut your pieces following the line! Once you’ve finished cutting, sand them again to match the other pieces.

7. Dry fit

Hold your pieces together and check whether they are flush. If there is any unevenness, this is the moment to make adjustments and ensure everything fits.

8. Assembly

For this step you can either glue the pieces together, following the same instructions as step 6, or use dowelling to join your pieces. Dowel joints are stronger than simply gluing, but require more precision and skill. This guide, gives detailed instructions on how to create a dowel joint.

9. Adding a Lip

This is the moment to reach for those off cuts, they will become a lip to prevent your laptop slipping off its new stand. Cut out two pieces of two centimetre wood and sand them down. Measure five centimetres in from the front of your laptop and make a mark, glue and place your pieces on this mark. Clamp them again and leave them to dry.

10. Finishing

Add a varnish of your choice according to the instructions, wait for it to try and then enjoy your now comfortable browsing!

Materials:

• Pallet
• Wood Glue
• Wood Varnish

Equipment:

• Rubber Mallet
• Circular Saw
• Orbital Sander and 60, 180, and 240 grit sandpaper pads
• Clamps
• Pencil
• Set Square
• Drill with 8mm bit
• Dowel Master or Dowel Kit (if joining with dowels)
• Paint Brush

Source: www.instructables.com