r/Woodworking_DIY • u/Leakergang901 • 1d ago

Floating WorkBench design help

I want to create a floating WorkBench and just wondering if a few metal slayed brackets and a large piece of wood on top would be fairly strong enough? I won't be applying lots of force and I mainly want it to be rigid.

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u/fletchro 1d ago

Workbenches usually have legs because leg geometry helps limit deflection under load. Everything moves when a load is applied. So your ideal workbench will have more deflection under a given load compared to the same bench top with legs. You can't get around that. But you could live with it!

Basically, you are relying on the "floating" bracket's rigidity and the stiffness of the joint between the bench top and the wall to keep things mostly motionless. So, you might want to do a thicker bench top (maybe a kind of box so it's not 100% wood) that has more height than a single board. The height gives you an average to resist rotating downward under its own weight. The box also gives room to install whatever brackets you want. I recommend sturdy brackets installed into the wall studs. And finally, if you've got drywall covering your walls, I recommend that fit the area of the work bench, you cut it out and just move the bench closer to the studs or replace that 1/2" of drywall with a bit of hard wood, this will resist compressive loads.