A bench with baskets underneath makes the perfect drop zone addition for any garage or mudroom.
The drop-zone bench serves two functions to make your home operate more smoothly: it provides a seat for people entering the house, letting guests take a load off immediately upon entry. It also adds storage for all kinds of things, especially shoes and boots that might otherwise end up tossed around in the middle of a room.
Follow these instructions to build a drop-zone bench and boost your home’s storage.
Note: The width of your drop-zone bench will depend on the size and number of baskets you plan to store beneath it. Ours is about 48 inches wide and 17 inches high. We’re using 1-by-12 pine shelving that has been primed and painted.
- Notch the two legs on the backside to accommodate the baseboard and allow the bench to rest against the wall. Trim down the width of the legs by about an inch from their stock width of 11-1/4 inches.
- Attach the seat to the legs with finishing nails. Leave a 3/4-inch overhang outside each leg.
- Add 2-inch-wide braces directly under the seat, between the legs at both the front and back of the bench. Use a countersink bit to drill a pilot hole, and secure this joint with 2-inch screws to give the bench both vertical and lateral strength.
- Just above the baseboard notch on the backside of the legs, add a 1-by-2 brace between the legs with wood screws.
- When the drop-zone bench goes in place against the wall, secure it to the studs through both the upper and lower back braces.
That’s all it takes to build this drop-zone bench that will corral (and hide) shoes and boots.
Watch the video for details!
