Breakfast Counter

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As part of the makeover of the living room in their apartment, the two male University of Arizona students featured in this episode were hoping, as male college students are inclined to do, for a wet bar. Edward picked up on this idea in his plan to create a "funky" space with the feel of a nightclub. By the time that Edward got around to sharing his idea for this particular project with carpenter Ty, the name had shifted from "bar" to "breakfast counter." In fact, the finished counter is perfect for both activities, and would be a great addition to many homes. It consists of three boxes that sit on the floor and a countertop, which are separated by lengths of metal pipe. It is a thoroughly useful, yet informal piece of furniture that would be right at home in a family or recreation room or set in the corner of a large living room.

Shopping List

3/4-inch MDF
2-inch drywall screws
1.5-inch drywall screws
metal pipe for use as spacers
flanges and screws to hold metal pipe
sandpaper
primer
paint
paintbrush

Material Choices

The three boxes that serve as the base and the countertop are all made from medium-density fiberboard (MDF), which is ideal for this project because it is inexpensive, cuts easily, does a good job of holding screws, and looks great when painted. In the TV episode, Ty used metal tubing (about 2-inch diameter) to connect the countertop to the boxes. There are several products that could be used for this purpose. Rigid steel conduit, electrical metallic tubing (EMT), or standard, threaded galvanized pipe would all be good choices. PVC pipe or plastic conduit could also be used.

Material Choices (cont'd)

All of these items can be found at electrical or plumbing supply stores or in the relevant sections at a large home improvement store. Most of the tubing or piping products you find can be painted as long as you use a primer and paint suitable for the material. Wood blocks would also make good spacers. My first choice, if the budget allowed, would be to use brass rails and flanges, which you often see used in restaurants, bars, and on boats. A good restaurant supply house or boat dealer might be a good source for brass, which is beautiful, strong, rust resistant, and somewhat expensive.

As important as choosing the spacers themselves, however, is deciding how to connect the spacers to the MDF at top and bottom. Tubing or piping that is available with sturdy flanges that could be screwed to the MDF would be my preference, as they would offer the strongest connection. Keep in mind that the spacers need to support the weight of the countertop and whatever is on it, but that is just the easy job. They also need to support the weight of any individuals leaning against it, which is tougher. So look for strong spacers that can be securely attached to the MDF. Find the spacers and necessary hardware first, and then let the rest of the project design fit around your choice

Design Options

Color is perhaps the most important design option with this project. In the TV episode, the boxes were painted black, the shiny chrome spacers were left unfinished, and the top was painted silver. You should choose a color scheme that works best in your own home.

Give some thought to the best shape for the countertop. Ty made his top into a modified kidney shape, and the rounded edges certainly are a wise choice for a project of this nature. But an oval could also work.

The height of the counter can be adjusted to fit your own needs. For counters that you want to sit at using typical bar stools, 42 inches is a good height, but there is no law that says you can't go higher or lower. You can adjust the height of the boxes and the length of the spacers to move the finished height to the desired elevation. If you do plan to sit at the counter, be sure to think about space for your knees. The staggered three-box approach that Ty used here works very nicely with the shape of the countertop to provide comfortable knee room.

Plan Ahead

Draw a scale model of your plans on paper before buying any materials. With detailed plans and finalized dimensions worked on in advance, you will know exactly how much material to buy and you will be much less likely to make mistakes during construction.

Make the Boxes

Ty made the boxes with two open sides, but you will probably be happiest leaving only one side open for use as storage. In most cases, the footprint of the boxes should be 2 feet square, but the height can vary from about 2 to 3 feet, depending on the finished height you are after. For each box, cut a top, a bottom, and three sides. Fasten the boxes together using drywall screws, and sand any rough edges that remain.

Make the Countertop

The safest way to layout the countertop is to set the three boxes in their intended home on the floor, and then set a sheet of MDF on top, with plenty of overlap all around. From below, use a pencil to trace the rough outline of the countertop you want, allowing the top to overhang the boxes by no less than four inches at any single spot.

Flip the MDF over and place it on a couple of sawhorses. If necessary, fine-tune the outline and then cut the MDF with a jigsaw. Have a helper nearby to catch pieces of MDF as they fall away from the countertop. Sand the edges so that they are nicely shaped and very smooth.

Prime and Paint

Take the finished boxes and countertop to the garage or outside or wherever you like to prime and paint them. I suggest one coat of primer, followed by a light sanding, and then two coats of good quality latex paint. When the paint has dried thoroughly, take all of the pieces back to the room in which they will be assembled.

Attach the Spacers

Ty used three long and three short spacers on his counter. The long ones passed through a hole in the boxes. I suspect that he did this primarily because he thought that it would look nice, and it did. But it also made for a somewhat weak, unsupported corner, and the effect was lost when the last minute decision was made to turn the counter around so that the open sides of the boxes faced the wall, rather than out into the room. With the open sides concealed, they could be used more effectively as storage (and what wet bar does not need storage?). So you will probably be better off using spacers of all the same length. Plan to use at least six spacers, two on each box, and consider using even more for added strength.

The final assembly will depend on the type of hardware or material you are using to connect the spacers to the boxes and countertop. Begin by setting the boxes in the position, exactly as you want them spaced and aligned with the final project. In most cases, the open sides should all face the rear. Check to see that the tops are all level, then drive a few screws through the walls to connect the boxes to each other.

If you are using threaded pipe with mating flanges, first attach flanges to the boxes, with one flange near the front corner and one near the back corner. Now thread the pipe into the flanges, and then attach the top flanges to the spacers. Carefully set the countertop on the flanges. When you are satisfied with the position of the countertop, drive screws through the flanges and into the countertop. If you are using fairly short spacers, you may not have much room for operating a standard screwdriver. In this case, use a short or an offset screwdriver.

With spacers that are joined other than with threaded connections, this approach will still be the easiest way to properly locate the flanges on the countertop. Some types of metal tubing can be joined to flanges with setscrews. PVC will require appropriate primer and cement. When sliding the finished counter around in the room, I suggest pushing or pulling on the boxes and not on the countertop itself.