My garage workbench finally gave out after 12 years of abuse

It happened two weekends ago when I was trying to plane down a rough piece of oak. The whole left leg just buckled and the bench tilted sideways, sending my chisels and a half full coffee cup flying everywhere. I built that thing back in 2012 with scrap 2x4s and plywood from a job site, never thought it would actually last that long. The wood had dry rot at the bottom where it sat on the concrete floor, and I guess the moisture finally caught up to it. I spent all last Saturday tearing it apart and salvaging what I could from the old top. Now I'm planning a new one with pressure treated legs and proper footers to keep it off the concrete. Has anyone else had to rebuild their workbench after an unexpected collapse? What did you change the second time around?

2 comments

2 Comments

jesse_smith1011d ago

Sent my chisels and a half full coffee cup flying everywhere" - bro that's rough but also kinda funny in a sad way lol. RIP to your coffee and RIP to that 2012 bench, it served its time. My buddy had the same thing happen to his bench a few years back, whole thing just folded like a lawn chair mid-project. He went with pressure treated legs and some rubber mats underneath for the moisture thing and it's been solid since. The oak probably didn't help either, that stuff is heavy and unforgiving when things go wrong.

ross.kim11d ago

Wrapped the bottom of my legs in some thick rubber matting before setting them down. Keeps the moisture from wicking up through the concrete. That dry rot is a nightmare I don't want to deal with again.