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How to Build a Home Office

Build this desk for your home office out of stock cabinets and home center materials.

By Carl Hines
From The Family Handyman

About This Project

Does it seem like you’re always shuffling piles of paper trying to find that unpaid electric bill or your daughter’s soccer schedule? Do your dining table and kitchen counter tops have a permanent layer of paper? Free up your counter tops by building this home office in a guest bedroom. It fits on any 7-ft. 4-in. to 10-ft. section of wall and still leaves room for the bed.

In this story, we’ll show you how to plan and lay out the office, including how to:


...And you can install everything in one to two days!

Features

Lay Out and Order the Cabinets
First choose the location for the office and then make a scaled drawing of the wall you’re considering for the desk. Make note of the overall length of the wall, any doors or windows, and the ceiling height. Draw horizontal lines at 29 and 54 in. These represent the top of the base cabinets and the bottom of the wall cabinets.

Guide to Desk Components Cost

At this point you need to talk to a cabinet supplier and find out the dimensions of its file drawer bases and wall cabinets. Draw these in on your plan. Don’t leave a span of more than 4 ft. 6 in. between base cabinets or else the desktop will sag.

Also note the end panel that’s necessary to cover the left-hand file cabinet and cord trough. Ours is 29 in. tall (this matches the height of the cabinet) and 30 in. deep. Now order the cabinets and end panel. You’ll be ordering at least two base cabinets and two wall cabinets and one 30-in. deep end panel. If your desk is longer than 7 ft. 4 in., as ours is, you’ll add base cabinets. Base units should be 24 in. deep and wall cabinets should be 12 to 14 in. deep.

Next, order or build the desktops and shelves to the dimensions shown on our plans. For strength and to minimize sagging, make them from 1-in. thick particle board and glue plastic laminate to both faces. We chose to edge them with a wood bullnose.


How to Build a Home Office-Installation

Set the wall cabinets onto the corkboard frame. Flush the left-hand cabinet to the end of the corkboard frame. Adjust the right-hand cabinet into the corner to make the space between the cabinets conform to the length of the shelves. The corner cabinet can sit a bit away from the side wall.

Drive screws through the cabinet backs into studs. The screws should be long enough to penetrate 1-1/2 in. into the studs.

Mark the shelf cleat locations on the wall. Continue these lines onto the cabinet sides. Use a carpenter’s square to make sure these lines are also level. Drill clearance holes and screw the 1x2 shelf cleats to each stud with 2-1/2 in. screws.

Draw a layout line on the inside of the cabinet. Make sure it follows the center of the shelf. Drill clearance holes, hold the shelf in place and drive three 2-in. screws to fasten the two shelves.

Miter-cut the two 3/4-in. x 1-1/2 in. light valance pieces, and then clamp them 1-1/2 in. back from the front and side of the cabinets.

Drill clearance holes through the edge of the light valance spaced 2 ft. apart. Drive 2-in. screws, making sure to countersink the screwheads.

Lay the cap shelf on the cabinets and fasten with screws driven from inside the cabinets.

Install the Base Cabinets and Counter Top

Set the left base cabinet flush with the end of the cord trough. Adjust the feet or shim under the cabinet to level it and make it flush with the trough. Footed cabinets are ideal if your floor is carpeted. Drive two screws through the cabinet back into the trough.

Clamp the two right-side cabinets together, then drive 1-1/4 in. screws to make a tight joint. Push the cabinets into the corner and against the baseboard; fasten to the cord trough with several 1-1/2 in. screws.

Cut a square notch in the end panel to clear the baseboard. Fasten this panel with screws driven from inside the cabinet.

Buy a power strip with surge protection and mount it to the wall below the cord trough. All your equipment and lights plug into this strip.

Set the top and the trough covers in place on the base cabinets. Leave a small gap between the trough covers and the corkboard frame so the covers don’t get jammed in and become difficult to lift out. Clamp the top to the cabinets, remove the trough covers, then fasten with screws driven from inside the cabinets. Be sure the screws aren’t too long or else you’ll have a hole in your desktop. Set the cordtrough covers in place.

Cut the pieces for the swing-out desk legs. A table saw is a must to make the beveled cuts, so if necessary, have a cabinetmaker do this for you. Use carpenter’s glue and clamps to assemble the legs. Attach them to the desktop using 1-1/2 in. angle irons. Lay out the pivot hole and drill a 1/2-in. hole all the way through the top. Locate and install the T-nut. Roll the top into position and then slide the sleeve, bolt and washer through the pivot hole. Thread and tighten firmly with a wrench.

Buyer’s Guide
Cabinets Techline, (952) 927-7373. www.techlineusa.com


Miscellaneous Hardware
Rockler Woodworking, (800) 233-9359. www.rockler.com

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