How to build a garage slat wall

Last Updated on May 15, 2020

Do you remember when you were in high school in wood working shop? What? You didn’t take wood working? Ha ha, neither did I, but my homeroom class where we met for 10 minutes every morning was in the wood working shop. And I always loved all the tools hung neatly on the wall, every one in their own little spot. Outlined in jiffy marker. The organizer in me LOVED THIS. And I have always wanted one of these of my very own. So stick around because I’m going to show you how to build a garage slat wall, that will serve as your very own personal high school shop tool wall 😉

Peg or Slat

The first time I tried to make my dream tool wall, I used  pegboard, but I hate all those little fidgety hooks, that ALWAYS fall off the wall  Slat walls are cheap and easy to build and you can totally customize them to your needs and your space. Plus I really like the look of the wood. 

Supplies

• 2″x4″x8′ – 1

• 1″x4″x8′ – 5

• 1″x6″x8′ – 1

• Screws

• Impact Driver

• Stain

The work bench that I built is 75″ long so that’s the length. The distance between the shelf and the workbench is 24″.After a bit  of math I determined that I would need 5 slats to fill the space, allowing a bit of extra space at the top and bottom. I started by cutting 2  – 24″ long pieces of 2’x2″ dimensional lumber and  screwed them into wall studs, to have something to attach the slats onto.  I stained the slats using Minwax Ipswich Pine stain, which is the same stain I used on the workbench.  If you are staining your boards, stain them before you attach them. And don’t forget that when you are doing math, that a 1″x4″ is ACTUALLY 3/4″x 3.5″ because that makes sense!  Click here for an explanation. And keep that in mind when planning out your slat wall. For mine I needed 5×75″ 1″x4″‘s

Working your way up

Screw your first board in place, starting at the bottom, and utilizing what ever spacing you have decided on. Mine worked out that it would fit 5 boards, and leave  approx. 1.75″ at the top and bottom.

When setting the location of your second board, Use a couple of scrap pieces of 1″x4″ as spacers, as this is what you will use to hang your tools, or use as shelves.

Use 2″ wood screws to attach the 1×4’s to the 2×2’s.  Continue placing your boards, using the 1×4 spacers. Once all the slats are in place, you can begin planning where to place your tools.

I cut small pieces of 1″x4″x1″ to use as tool hangers.  And since we used our 1×4 spacers when constructing… these fit perfectly – PLANNED!!!!  and can be moved around where you need them. You can also use a 1×6 or a 1×4 as a shelf. So, it doesn’t need to be static. It can shift as needed.

Aesthetically speaking

For the layout of the tools, I tried to find a happy medium between how it looked and what was functional. I wanted to have easy access to my tools day to day. So, I chose the items that I use the most, and organized where I wanted them. I seem to use my hammers a lot, so I put those on the right hand side, since I’m right handed 🙂

Here are some of the items that made the cut:

• Rubber mallet

• Small sledge hammer

• Hammer

• Screwdrivers

• Safety glasses

• Utility knife

• Aviation snips

• Broom

• Channellock Pliers

And Here are my Top 3 Fave Tools:

• FatMax

• Picquic.

• Torpedo Level

I used both finishing nails and screws for the hanging tools. None of these are super heavy. For the screw-drivers, I chose an assortment, including my beloved Picquic. We just drilled holes into a piece of 1″x6″. Truthfully, it’s not super pretty, but it works just fine. I may upgrade this to a better version later.

Ultimately I wanted to be able to walk into the garage and just pluck the tool I want off the wall. I can’t tell you how frustrating I find it when I’m in the middle of a project and I can’t find my damn hammer!!!! Some people might find all these tools messy, but I like it. And it’s efficient. Plus honestly, now I have my own high school shop wall. Yeah baby, Living the Dream!!

I also added a drill holder to this space. 

There is more to do on the top section. And I have already added more storage on the upper area. Now, almost every time I go out to the garage to grab a tool, I say “Man I love my tool wall” no more searching through my cabinets for the things I use ALL THE TIME. I still have a few more pieces to go on this ever evolving garage project, but all in all this space is really coming along.

Now go and take a shot at building your own WorkbenchAnd if this appealed to the organizer in you, go and check out what I did to keep my garden tools organized. Here’s a sneak peak for you

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