DIY glowing table. DIY glow in the dark table. Manufacturing process: step-by-step instructions

A tabletop that glows in the dark is not only original, but also practical. Especially if the table with it is installed in the garden, in a gazebo or near a window. The light effect created by the luminescent coating can last up to 12 hours.

In this article we will not fully describe the process of making the table itself, but will focus only on how to make the tabletop luminescent (luminous). The process of making a luminous coating is extremely simple, but there are some points in this matter that should be taken into account in advance.

Materials and tools

In terms of materials, you will need the tabletop itself (in our case, we used cypress boards, which had inherent flaws in the form of resin chambers), as well as a transparent epoxy resin and organic fluorescent powder. So that you don’t have to look for it in stores, we’ll give you a link to a very high-quality option with free shipping. This powder can remain glowing for 7 to 12 hours and will last faithfully for 7-10 years.

We will also need masking tape and disposable cups. In addition, the surface will need to be varnished at the final stage.

Tools: semicircular chisel, sander (or sandpaper), knife and a pair of brushes.

Preparation

In our case, the preparation process consisted of cleaning the natural resin chambers of the cypress tree from the remains of dried resin. For this we used a regular screwdriver and blower. But if you use a ready-made tabletop, you will have to cut the chambers yourself using a semicircular chisel. We would recommend cutting depth from one to one and a half centimeters. In this case, the resulting hollows will contain more luminescent composition, and, consequently, the glow will be brighter and longer.

Cypress has fairly deep chambers, which in some places form through holes in the 25 mm boards we took.

Of course, the surface must be sanded, and then acrylic plates must be secured to the ends so that the applied luminescent composition does not leak out. The edges of the tabletop can also be covered with masking tape.

To prepare a luminescent composition, you need to mix the components of the epoxy resin in a disposable container. It is most convenient to use 200 grams paper cups, but you can also take half-liter ones. We poured half a glass of resin and separately half a glass of hardener. Powder was added to each of them and stirred.

After combining the two resin components in one glass, you have approximately 5-7 minutes to fill the hollows made and processed on the countertop with the resulting composition. For our tabletop measuring 100 by 50 cm with deep hollows (which you can see above in the photo) it took two liters of epoxy resin and 100 grams of fluorescent powder. It’s better not to skimp on it and add more to make the glow brighter.

Now everything is ready to apply the luminescent composition.

Application of the composition

The resulting composition should be carefully poured into the slits and hollows made with a chisel. It's important to note that the epoxy will soak into the wood, so you'll need to add at least a second coat.

The whole process took us about an hour. After which we waited about 12 more hours, allowing the epoxy to harden properly.

Further work consisted of trimming the edges of the tabletop to get rid of unevenness and resin deposits, as well as sanding. In order to achieve a dotted effect, we had to use a sander to remove a fairly large layer of the surface where the epoxy had gotten outside the grooves.

The final stage is processing the edges and coating the surface with two layers of varnish.

From the presented master class, you will learn how to make a luminous table yourself, which furniture stores costs a lot of money, and thanks to this information you can do it in just a few minutes mere pennies. Today, it is becoming increasingly fashionable to make furniture with your own hands, as well as various interior delights, that is, people are looking for uniqueness in the things that surround them, some need it for self-realization and gaining self-confidence, while others just love doing this business .

And so, to make a luminous table, you will need old boards eaten by bark beetles. It is the old and rotten ones, eaten by worms and other bugs, that are needed in order to fill these cavities with a special luminous solution. Now let's take a closer look at everything and figure out what the author needed.

Materials

1. board (old and eaten by bark beetle)
2. epoxy resin
3. metal legs
4. metal plate 2 pcs
5. wood glue
6. nuts
7. bolts

Tools

1. jigsaw
2. drill
3. brush
4. clamp
5. ruler
6. screwdriver
7. container for mixing components

The process of creating a glowing table.

And since it was already said above, the author took old and rotten boards eaten by pests, it is clear that he did not buy them at construction market😉 The master went through the boards thoroughly with a planer and coarse sandpaper. Then the author selected and sawed the boards he needed to size so that they were the same size.
The resulting boards should then be combined into a single tabletop; the craftsman performs this action as follows: he coats the side parts of the boards with wood glue, and then tightens them with clamps and leaves them to dry.
Then, after the countertop has dried and is ready, it should be blown compressed air, namely all the cracks and wormholes, so that no dust or possible pests remain in them.
Afterwards, you should go over the surface with sandpaper; you need to do everything extremely carefully, because the board is very delicate. And so the surface of the tabletop is prepared and it’s time to prepare the luminous solution and fill the cavities of the table with it.

Preparation of the solution: for this you will need epoxy resin, hardener and phosphor powder, it will glow. Everyone chooses the proportions of the mixture themselves; you can check the glow in the following way: give a bright flash to the mixture and turn off the light to see how the solution glows. Next, the author fills the cavities, having previously placed wax paper under the tabletop, because the passages can be through.
After completing this operation, the master left the tabletop to dry. And then I processed the edge of the table manual router.
Due to the fact that the board is rather weak in terms of density and integrity, the author screws these nuts onto the back of the tabletop.
Misses glue metal plate and sticks it.
And in this way he screws the legs to the table. Well, the table itself is ready.
Such a table will fit into any even the most sophisticated and expensive interior, and the cost of this table itself is absolutely cheap, but in stores such tables cost about $1000, can you imagine 😉 So take it this material note, and in order not to lose touch with us and our website, join our group

How to do wooden table? So unusual designer table Anyone can make it from wood at home! To do this, you need cypress boards, glow powder (luminophore), wood resin, some tools and the desire to make a beautiful wooden table with your own hands.

Glowing table

Mike Warren is the originator of this idea. unusual table, which we found at dollarstorecrafts.com. He mixed luminous powder with tree resin and filled them with the voids that cypress wood is rich in. The result is a beautiful wooden table with patterns that glow in the dark. However, first they need to “charge” in the light.

Simple shape of an unusual luminous table

If you are the lucky owner necessary tools and skills, follow Mike Warren's guidance. His video instructions are at the end!

The process of making an original wooden table

Thoroughly sand the surface of the design table

Leave cracks untouched

Fill the cracks with glow powder mixed with resin

The original “thing”, a luminous table by the author of the development, is positioned as outdoor furniture. This makes a lot of sense, since evening gatherings at a glowing table are really great. However, it seems to us that the development deserves more. After all, this is uniqueness as it is - the table cannot be repeated: the idea - yes, to make a double - no. The pattern of glowing pockets will be different each time: the tables may be similar, but not identical.

The author of the development is Mike Warren, one of the enthusiasts of the Instructables community - a fun, close-knit team that changes the world with its ideas. They do it with pleasure. They share it with people. They are the first among those who sew, plan, solder, craft, fry and do anything else.

Mike Warren created a glowing table and gave it to people. Anyone can make this table with their own hands (or force your dearest spouse). The author of the bright idea kindly provided a whole master class.

How to make a glowing table with your own hands

The most important aspect in creating a glowing table with your own hands is the material. Mike used "pecky cypress" - a cypress tree that has been infected with fungus from the inside. The fungus multiplies in the body of the wood. This causes its segments to rot. Damaged pockets must be removed (this is easy, the wood is softened), the resulting cavities must be filled with a fluorescent composition consisting of resin and phosphor.

Rough wood is supplied to shops and markets. To assemble the table, you will first need to process the boards with a jointer. This must be taken into account when choosing. All edges must be processed: the joints will be tight and even.

And here we are closely confronted with the Russian mentality: the photo shows good equipment, and for Americans this is normal - such equipment is in the house (basement, garage, barn: they have everything there). Our average man not only doesn’t have a manual grinder, but he also doesn’t have a charger for the battery of his favorite car, let alone carpentry stuff? So this stage will have to be ordered: in any woodworking workshop these boards will be brought to the desired condition quickly and inexpensively. It is most likely better to do the next step right there, since after processing the edges you need to adjust all the boards to the same length.

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Rotten wood in the affected areas is carefully removed with a small handy tool (a screwdriver, for example), and then the freed cavities are blown out with compressed air. This stage of work is dirty and dusty, so you need to use protective equipment(glasses, respirator).

The process itself

Result (before and after photos)

Now the boards need to be assembled into a table. Docking on a lath (grooves are knocked out in both boards, a lath is inserted into them with glue, and the boards are connected). Mike used “cookies” (glued-in slats are rectangular, triangular, and these are cookies). Next, you need to clamp the joints with anything that can be clamped (the ideal is shown in the photo), and leave for a day to dry (the glue should dry completely). If we don’t want the table to fall apart later, we don’t touch it for 24 hours (despite the hellish impatience of the creator).

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After the glue has dried, the surface needs to be sanded (disc in the photo, Mike writes that the fraction is 80; apparently, this is a P 80 disc, emery is electrocorundum; not sure). Then clean thoroughly: impeccable cleanliness is required - not a speck of dust.

We need a super clean surface to pour the resin on.

Mike Warren

Before pouring the resin, it is necessary to secure the surface: some cavities may be through; so that the resin does not pass through and does not spread, reverse side the table tops need to be covered with masking tape and secured at the ends with acrylic strips; press the strips.

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Next is the mystery of the glow itself. You will need resin for pouring (just say: give resin for pouring), easy to mix (proportions 1:1). Mike advises using this so as not to make a mistake with the proportions of catalyst and resin. There will be no advice on the phosphor: just choose which one you like. There are a lot of powders, they different colors, and your table may not glow blue at all. Mike used 100 g of powder per 2 liters of resin, but this ratio is optional - you can take more powder, and the table will glow brighter.

The resin for pouring does not come ready-made: it must be mixed with a catalyst. The resin and catalyst must be poured into different containers. Pour the powder into the resin and mix thoroughly. Then pour in the catalyst and stir vigorously for 2 minutes. This must be done quickly, since irreversible damage will begin in 5–7 minutes. chemical reaction. A homogeneous composition must be obtained before this moment. We must not forget about safety: do not work with resin without gloves.

It is better to mix the resin in small portions, since its viscosity is insufficient and the powder may settle, resulting in an uneven glow. Ready mixture cavities need to be filled. They can behave differently: in some the resin will be absorbed, but in others it will not - this is normal; you will just need to add resin to where it has been absorbed. Mike spent an hour filling the pockets in the wood. Waxed paper cups can be used as a container for resin (easy to make a spout, convenient to pour).

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After the resin has dried (the next day), you need to remove the acrylic strips and masking tape. Acrylic comes off easily, but with adhesive tape you will have to tinker a little.

The back side of the tabletop also needs to be sanded. Grinding of both sides must be carried out in several stages, changing the abrasive at each step to a finer one (Mike used discs: P 120, P 180, P 220, P 320, P 400). After the surfaces, the ends need to be processed.

After sanding, the tabletop should be varnished (Mike used glossy polyurethane; applied with a foam brush) and allowed to dry completely.

After the layer has dried, it must be sprinkled with water and sanded with fine sandpaper, and then thoroughly cleaned, dried and reapplied with a layer of varnish. And so several times to achieve maximum gloss. Each layer of varnish must be dried completely.

At this point they finish with the tabletop and then work on the fittings - screwing on the legs. And here everyone goes their own way: someone can make the same simple ones to use a table on the site, and someone can screw in something fantastic and turn this table into the center of the room in the house.

Furniture models that emit a glow always attract us with their unusual appearance. A luminous table assembled with your own hands can become a decoration in the living room, kitchen or summer cottage. In this instruction we will explain how to make a glowing table from wood with fluorescent inclusions in the tabletop.

To “make” the table glow, we need to acquire the appropriate tools and materials.

Tool

We purchase or rent the following power tool.

1. An electric drill used to make holes for cotter pins. Using abrasive wheels, we create decorative indentations in the body of the wood with a drill.
2. A grinder that is used to bring the surface of the tabletop to a perfectly smooth state.
3. Hammer.
4. A set of clamps that will be needed to tie together boards.
5. Planer required for pre-treatment wood
6. A jigsaw needed for cutting the ends of a table top.
7. A gas burner, which we will use to burn cavities in the wood.
8. Related tools (screwdrivers, chisels, saw, tape measure, construction knife And so on).

Materials

To make a luminous wooden table with your own hands, we select the materials necessary for this:

• 4 cypress or pine boards dimensions 1500 x 150 x 40 mm. We will need this wood to make a tabletop that will emit a glow;
• metal legs;
• epoxy resin in two plastic bottles of 118 ml each;

• plastic cups – 6 pcs.;
• fluorescent powder to create a light background – 100 g;
• scotch;
• plywood or plastic sheet - 600 x 1500 mm.

Step-by-step instructions for assembling a glowing table

1. We connect the boards with cotter pins and glue them together. We tighten the shield with clamps until the glue completely hardens.
2. We process the side edges of the tabletop with a plane and grind them.

1. We cut the ends of the table with a jigsaw to one level. Then we polish them.
2. Cypress wood has resin chambers in its structure. We clean them semicircular chisel without disturbing the natural form.
3. We blow out the cavities with a vacuum cleaner and dry them with a hairdryer.
4. Preparing the epoxy filler. Mix the resin and hardener in disposable plastic cups. We also add a phosphor there (we use 10 g of powder per 100 g of resin).

1. To avoid resin leakage, cover the table with tape around the perimeter and place pieces of plywood or plastic underneath.
2. Fill all cavities and cracks in the tabletop with a fluorescent mixture. We leave wood material at rest for a day. During this time, the solution will completely harden.
3. We process the entire surface with a grinder until a perfectly smooth plane is obtained.

1. We cover the tabletop with 3 layers of furniture varnish.
2. We form a support frame from a board 50 mm wide or more.
3. We attach the tabletop to the frame and install the legs. As a result, we get an original luminous table made from wood with our own hands.

Features of assembling a countertop made of pine boards

If you have difficulty purchasing a cypress board, we replace it with pine lumber. In order to create recesses on the surface of the pine tabletop, we use a gas burner.

We burn out clearings on the boards with a torch. the desired shape. The configuration of the cavities depends on the imagination of the master. We create cuts on the surface of the wood in the form of stars and various geometric shapes. The burnt wood surface effectively emphasizes the relief of the wood structure, which gives the tabletop additional attractiveness.

Table in complete darkness and low light it will look like an enchanting installation.

Video for step-by-step table assembly

Labor and materials costs

Let's calculate how much a luminous table made of cypress boards measuring 600 x 1400 mm will cost. We will take average prices for materials from these online stores.

1. 4 cypress boards 1500 x 150 x 40 mm will cost 1000 rubles.
2. Epoxy resin Gold Glass, 1.35 kg – 2200 rub.
3. Phosphor powder, 200 g – 800 rub.
4. Metal legs – 600 rub.
5. Fastening accessories – 200 rub.

Total costs will be 4800 rubles. (as of the date of publication of the article).

As practice has shown, we spent no more than 16 hours making this table.

You can also assemble an LED table with your own hands. The invention of microbulbs gives great opportunities For design design furniture. Unlike a fluorescent tabletop, this type of furniture requires a transparent table surface. How to make an LED table is a topic for a separate article. In it we will tell you what materials you need to purchase, what equipment is best to use, and how to make table lighting with LED strip.