Winemaking bench ideas?

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NorCal

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I made this bench quick and dirty a little over a year ago. It's served its purpose well, but I'm ready to upgrade. The work surface will be wood, as I like being able to knock a bottle, glass or beaker over and not have it break. The overall look and feel will be rustic, like the wine box and it will have a metal frame. I really like having the storage area under the work surface for carboy and bucket storage. Any other ideas?

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If you are going for a rustic look, this may not work for you but I got some vinyl flooring from a local big box store and covered the tops of my benches. It is really easy to clean and disinfect with k-meta and not very expensive.

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Unless you want the stains (they are a badge of honor, after all), use an epoxy on the top. Mix, pour and you've got a great surface that can simply be wiped down. May not be the most rustic look, but it works great.

Edit: Well, maybe you can still get a rustic look. Just a little gloss to go with it.

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My brother in law works at a sign company. He brought over some material they use to cover work tables with. It is white, cleans up with just a spritz of water and paper towel. Easily replaced when it has to be. Going on for years old lions like new. Wish I could give you a name of it. But it isn't very rustic looking.
 
I can't get past your lights, those are still the coolest thing ever.
 
Thanks for the replies. I'll look into the epoxy sealer. I do want to be able to wipe the wine up off the surface. I'm thinking of getting a frame from a metal work table from Craigslist ($20) and modifying as necessary for the height, width, length. I'd need to add some supports for a bottom shelf as well. I have the metal working tools, but not the wood working ones beyond a saw, sander and drill.
I've found a couple people that sell wood from old barns that I may go look at. Some are pricy, but I'm thinking I can get the wood I need for around $100. Tightly joining and finishing the surface is where I'm getting a bit stuck. I'd like to also incorporate the logo on the surface in a rustic kind of way. Sounds like a fun winter project while I'm staring at the barrels.
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Rocky, that is a great idea with the vinyl flooring! I have a melamine covered particle board top on my work table but it is getting chipped and looking pretty sad. I will have to look into the vinyl. Certainly cheaper than replacing the top. Thanks for the idea.
 
Thanks for the replies. I'll look into the epoxy sealer. I do want to be able to wipe the wine up off the surface. I'm thinking of getting a frame from a metal work table from Craigslist ($20) and modifying as necessary for the height, width, length. I'd need to add some supports for a bottom shelf as well. I have the metal working tools, but not the wood working ones beyond a saw, sander and drill.
I've found a couple people that sell wood from old barns that I may go look at. Some are pricy, but I'm thinking I can get the wood I need for around $100. Tightly joining and finishing the surface is where I'm getting a bit stuck. I'd like to also incorporate the logo on the surface in a rustic kind of way. Sounds like a fun winter project while I'm staring at the barrels.

One of a couple epoxy projects I helped a friend with did something similar. He was an avid beer drinker/brewer and had a ton of those cardboard-y coasters you see at bars/restaurants with beer logos. We put a bunch of them on a black painted bar top, then put the epoxy right over the top. It came really cool looking.
 
Norcal, I'm a big fan of the plumbing pipe look for rustic bases. Tons of ways to be creative and you can configure to anyway you need. A friend of mine also just built a work tabletop from redwood 2x4's glued and screwed together like giant butcher block. Looking forward to seeing what you create
Mike

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One word... Formica! you will find that fewer things get knocked over because they slide so easily, and clean up is a breeze...

Actually, I cheated. My father did some demo of an office building that was being converted into a doctors office. He salvaged some solid core doors that were coated in Formica. He gave them to me for free and they were the perfect size and color for counter tops!!! They look great and nobody ever realizes that they were doors!
 
I think all you need is to stain it to match your Wine Box...add some wheels on one end to make it easy to move around...maybe some barn board on two sides only so if you rolled against the wall the storage area would be hidden...I like your logo...maybe paint the top and put the logo on the top and then polyurethane over it all.

But I am big into simple and function...it has been working well, why argue with success!
 
I think all you need is to stain it to match your Wine Box...add some wheels on one end to make it easy to move around...maybe some barn board on two sides only so if you rolled against the wall the storage area would be hidden...I like your logo...maybe paint the top and put the logo on the top and then polyurethane over it all.

But I am big into simple and function...it has been working well, why argue with success!

The current one is not too square and stable due to some twisted boards and simply being screwed together. I have to drive to a customer today and it will take me by the guy with the bench frame. I was thinking of painting the logo on the top then aging it before sealing it. We shall see.
 
I made this bench quick and dirty a little over a year ago. It's served its purpose well, but I'm ready to upgrade. The work surface will be wood, as I like being able to knock a bottle, glass or beaker over and not have it break. The overall look and feel will be rustic, like the wine box and it will have a metal frame. I really like having the storage area under the work surface for carboy and bucket storage. Any other ideas?

e92b747104b340d0f97e087ca711472b.jpg


I dig the "wine box". I have a similar setup with a 5000BTU AC and an STC-1000 controller that I used to use for my beer before I bought a glycol chiller. Now, I'm using mine for wine and storing malted barley for beer. The only problem is it is 4x4x4 and when I take a carboy out...well, you know what happens to the sediment. I'm an absolute neophyte wine maker sponging up everything I can and it did not take me long at all to realize I need a higher surface to age my wine before bottling.
 
I was going to buy an industrial workbench frame that was on Craigslist for $20 and modify it, but it sold hours before I could get there. I've been keeping my eye open for another, but no luck. I've decided to build my own from scratch and hope to pick up the 40 feet of 1 1/2 or 2 inch tube today...price will be closer to $60-$70....oh well.
 
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