A load of rubbish ~ DIY help.
 

For a long time now I have been getting more and more interested in DIY projects, However have hardly any experience in joinery ect.

I really like funky things and being creative.

So i've decided to make a new kitchen rubbish bin. the old one is a plastic supermarket one that i'm tired of fixing.

My mum has a really cool one made from hardwood that is about 1.3m tall and the lid is pine, it basically looks like a solid stool in the kitchen.

I'd like to make it as cheaply as possible and perhaps from recycled materials if possible.

I'd like to make it colourful and funky (but not too technical - i'm a newby to DIY) and be a sort of centrepiece in the otherwise slightly boring kitchen.

looking to make i about 1 - 1.3m tall and about 50cm wide.

A touch free top would be great but probably not possible with a DIY - so a nice lid would be ok and i can get some fancy steel handles from bunnings.

I would like 2 compartments - 1 for recycleables and one for everyday trash.

I cannot find anything online, but did see this which is cool but nothing like what i want to make. http://www.oddee.com/item_96782.aspx

If anyone has any suggestions i would LOVE to hear them,

:)

Not really helpful, but try making a cardboard prototype first. This gives you an idea of the challenges you will actually face when you build the real thing, as in, do you want it perfectly square? and if not, how are you going to make sure all the bits to fit together? What will hold the sides together? Will it look too big in your kitchen? etc etc.

This method saved me from what would probably have been a total disaster of an attempt to make a guitar case. I have a *little* woodworking experience and training, but damn, those things are complicated. That is when I noticed that a good guitar has a slightly curved back, and stuff like that.

If you come up with a drawn design, post it here, cause there are some mighty handy people here. I am not one of them.

If you want to work with recycled materials, start by finding out what's available locally and for free/cheap. Something akin to craigslist or freecycle listings, or maybe you have a reusable builders supply in the neighborhood. Approach those in terms of "what can make a container?" and go from there.

You could be as simple as two sonotubes of the right diameter, or as complex as weaving some plastic strips together. Fortunately, the criteria of "will hold a trashbag" is broad enough to leave a lot of options.

How are you going to empty the trash and not the recyclables... and vise versa?

liners?

Good plan sunsparkz.

I think it would be relatively straightforward to make the lid foot pedal operated. Zengum is right about making a model.

Seal the wood well, so it won't pick up odors.

If you are thinking of making it out of wood, it sounds like just a box. There are all sorts of ways to make a wooden box, and I'm sure there are tons of plans out there too. I'd make it out of a thin plywood so it won't be that heavy. Reinforce the corners with solid wood. The joinery there depends on the tools and skills you have, but screws holding the plywood to the solid wood in the corners is probably the easiest. But you may be going for a different look than plywood panels, so do what you like.

The pedal would be just like a see-saw with the back of the see-saw pushing up on a metal rod that lifts the lid. So you would want to have a couple solid wood runners on the sides underneath the thing to lift it up and give some clearance for the pedal. The pedal fulcrum could also attach to those same side runners.

I'd suggest finding some plastic bins and using them as liners and just build the wood structure around them.

Ohhh, I want a R2D2 bin from that link!!!

My idea would be....to make it from old fence palings, I'd make them so they would hold 2 long skinny buckets (look like this 00), that were sort of suspended from the top bracket.

I'd get two round brackets per bin, one for the top, one for the bottom, attach the palings around the brackets (lengthwise).

For the lids, I'd go to a cabinet makers and get the offcuts from where they cut the sink holes in counter tops (you could get some cool colours and patterns) and ask them really nicely (batt eyelashes etc) to cut them to the size you want.