How to attach pallet wood together

Pallet wood has become common furniture equipment in our homes today. Wooden pallets can be used to manufacture different furniture types such as chairs, beds, and sofas.  Some of us tend to make walls by use of pallet wood. To manufacture this furniture, you should know how to attach wood pallets. It is effortless. To attach and connect pallet woods, you first have to line up the pallets while facing down. You can also dismantle the pallets to form straight boards. In the design that you want, glue down the pallet woods together, and by use of a screwdriver, screw the pallets together.

3 Steps to attach pallet wood together

Dismantle the pallets

 Before you know how to attach pallet wood together, there are some of the equipment and tools that you must be with. These tools include a hammer, screws, screwdriver, and glue. If you want to build a sofa or a bed out of pallet wood, you should first dismantle the pallets. You don’t need to remove all the straight woods from the pallets. It depends on what you want it to use the pallet woods for. To remove the wood planks from the pallets for your project, you have to turn the pallets in an upside-down position and, by use of a hammer, ensure that you hit the straight woods against a big piece of wood to ensure they come off the pallet.

The big piece of wood assists the process by preventing the straight woods from damaging when being removed from the pallet. It is quite easy to remove the straight planks as it only takes a few hits for them to come. The tiresome work comes after you have finished removing the straight planks, and it is time to remove the nails from the planks. The nails in the planks are very long and hard to remove; hence if you are not skilled in using a crowbar, we recommend that you use the lifting bar instead. The lifting bar is easy and efficient to use in completely dismantling the pallets instead of using a crowbar, where you will spend a lot of energy.

Treat your pallets

 Even though pallets are an outdoor type of furniture, they still deserve the right treatment and proper care. This will ensure that they last for long durations without breaking. You can use items such as the decking preserver of which maintains the pallet wood in shape. You can also use the clouting stains on top of the preserver. The decking preserver is usually watery, and in case you have many pallet planks of wood to coat, it can be a tiresome project and could take you a couple of hours to complete. To avoid such struggles, we recommend using the paint sprayer instead, which will take a short amount of time to complete all the pallet woods.

Before you embark on attaching pallet wood together, you should ensure that the pallet woods are of the same size, depending on the type of furniture you want to manufacture. Other furniture, for example, a bed and a sofa. You will require different pallet measurements to successfully make a bed that will differentiate from the measurements used in making a sofa. To measure and cut the pallet wood to the required size for the furniture, you will need tools that include a handsaw and a measuring tape.

Arrange and attach the pallets

 Before arranging the pallets, decide on the location as to where the pallets will sit and lay a heavy landscaping fabric down on the decided location. It is good that you have some cracks or soil in between the slabs to prevent weeds from growing through the wooden pallets. It is highly recommended that you use heavy fabrics as they are very durable and do not tear easily. The next step is to properly secure and arrange the wood pallets in the manner that you want to attach them.  

This is a very crucial step on how to attach pallet wood together. You cannot properly attach pallet woods together without first arranging them. Depending on how you want to attach the wood pallets, place glue on the underside of the pallets onto the top side of the immediate pallet following it. The glue helps to keep the pallet wood intact to join them. By use of a screwdriver, use the screws to attach the pallets together. Drill on the top side of the pallet through to the other pallet that you want to join with. Depending on the style you want to connect the pallets with, you should be able to use a screwdriver to ease the work. After finishing attaching the wood pallets, you should be able to carry a stack of pallets as a single unit.

If you have finished attaching the pallets, and the stack looks to be slightly unaligned due to the use of pallets that are of different measurements, you do not have to remove the screws and start all over again. Just make sure that the front side of the pallets are slightly aligned, and don’t forget to flush the pallets with others.  

Frequent questions on how to attach pallet wood together

Which screw-type should you use to attach pallets?

You should use different types of screws depending on the different uses of the pallets being attached. If you are using the stack of pallets for indoor purposes, you should use the bichromate screws that are generally yellow in color. They tend to withstand humidity but should not get in contact with water. For outdoor purposes, use the stainless steel types of screws. They are manufactured in a way that they don’t rust easily hence applicable for outdoor purposes. Most people don’t go for the stainless steel option for indoor purposes because they are slightly more expensive.

Is it possible to use recycled pallets to make furniture?

Yes. It is possible to use recycled pallets as an alternative to buying new ones. This will save you a lot of money that you can use to finance other important issues. Provided the pallets are in good shape, then you are good to go.

How can one know whether the pallets are treated?

It is straightforward to distinguish between pallets that are treated and those that are not. First of all, you have to put your gloves on to prevent being contaminated. Check the pallets for a black stamp. If the initials HT are on the stamp, the pallets are heat-treated and can be used freely. Although the stamp has the initials MB, the pallets have been fumigated, and one should not touch with his bare hands to avoid contamination.

Are pallets sold for free?

Most of us tend to think that pallet woods are free. No, that is not the case. Pallets are generally used in transporting goods on the plane. When they arrive in the country, they are collected and sold to the civilians. Pallet woods are generally very cheap and affordable.

Conclusion

As of now, you are already aware of how to attach wood pallets together, and you can easily make furniture. This will assist you in saving money as you can avoid paying a lot of money for furniture that you could easily make with pallets and save half of the cost. All you have to do is buy cushions and pillows and lay observing the sun go down with a drink on your hand. Pallets, on the other hand, can also be used to make perimeter walls and dog kennels.