Family Room Facelift...

Hmmm- Not a cart project but a project none the less. It's been so long since using this sight I've forgotten most of it, sooo bear with me. Moving away from the drop ceiling, old wall to wall carpet- something new to go with the new windows and door. This IS the tv room after all! It's taken three weeks so far- what can you do- so many distractions popping up in your own home. Like stopping to write blogs and post pictures. So first came the ceiling panels and framing exposing the old and insufficient insulation. So that was all removed and rafter vents, new insulation and vapour barrier installed. And of course the rough in wiring for pot lights. The drywall was put up and the carpet removed. Drywall finished and pot lights and electrical moved around (Thanks Brian). Holes in the walls patched, old trim taken down. This weekend the new flooring laid and trim going up. Was hoping to get the room primed today...I always set the bar a little too high. Really trying to get to where we can move some furniture back to the centre of the room- to free up the living room again, to actually use as a living room. So to follow- prime, paint...oh, and the "Feature Wall". Will update when there are more substantial changes. March 27- just a few touch ups to the paint and adjustments here and there. Daws helped cut up some pallet wood so I can start prepping that for the tv feature. Love the new shag carpet!

Industrial Cart to Coffee Table

So I think that it was about 3 years ago now that Shelah found this "industrial cart" on kijiji- with the intention of turning it into a coffee table. The very nice woman who delivered it to our house was selling it for her father who had too many projects on the go so was letting some go. The condition was pretty rough- dirt and oil on the unfinished boards, iron and metal surfaces rusty and grimy.

So finally it's time to get these projects caught up. With the garage finally half clean I had room to dismantle the cart and see what exactly I had to work with. It was as bad as we thought. But, nothing was broken- nothing some elbow grease and patience couldn't fix.

The boards, which appear to be oak were rough sanded with a belt sander and then followed up with a palm sander. I wanted them smooth enough to look finished and take a stain nicely, but still retain some of the marks and wear and tear that give them character. For the metal I cleaned what I could with a wire brush attachment on my angle grinder, then wire brush what was left. After washing down I treated the wheels, side angle iron, bolts, with rust converter followed by clear coat. The frame I primed with rattle can followed by black then a black hammer paint.

The boards were stained with a walnut stain- same one that I used on the Deacons bench project- it will be a good match to the new wood floor in the living room. I let the stain soak in and dry after a good wipe down- just one coat. Then four coats of polyurethane with some light sanding between coats. I finished after with- maybe not the "purist" woodworker method- using the random orbital polisher used compound, polish, then hand waxed using my supply of auto product. Hey- it didn't cost anything, it was all on hand!

All dry and back together, looks great in the living room. I knew that the one end with the handles was going to be a little low- I had been thinking about just how to address that. Lots of ideas. I don't think I'll keep the sticks.

So having made the decision to go with "vintage" wheels, I hit the RE-Store in the north end before I committed to eBay. Glad that I did, these guys were .75 cents each! It turns out that the plugs in the ends of these two handles are metal and about an inch thick. I drilled them out centre (stepping up through three size of bits) until the caster posts fit. Perfect!

So this is the coffee table complete. Total cost this week- not including product and tools that I already had around the bench was about $30 plus what we spent on the cart. Checking eBay and kijiji for similar finished products...I think this was a GREAT investment.