Barn meets Bar and Becomes the Ultimate Man Cave Backyard Pub

Posted By Ibropalic on Jul 27, 2015 | 0 comments

How to turn a Barn into a Backyard Pub

It’s a common occurrence to buy a new property and have something useless on it. In the case of this Redditor it was an old dilapidated barn in his backyard, which was taking up all the space without offering something good in return.

So what did the Reddit user American_Standard decide to do?

Well, he picked up his tool belt, dusted off his thinking cap and set to work building one of the coolest backyard bars we have ever seen! So round up your friends and pass around the memo- the next party is at this dude’s house.

This little shed was nothing more but a wooden shell, with basically no interiors. The entire shed is only around 20 inches by 12 inches, giving him very little to work with. But “American Standard” would not be deterred! First, he started by posting on one of the more popular subreddits on Reddit, namely r/DIY. With the help of some of the more technical redditors he managed to figure out the best way to get electricity running to the shed outside. By finagling a bit with some electrical bits he installed a breaker that used to be a pool pump into the building.

After getting some man cave light on the situation (no pun intended) he started installing all the necessary steps, including some strong drywall, several electrical outlets and light switches throughout the entire shed. At this stage, a lot was starting to come together very quickly, and the old shed was just a distant memory!

Since the structure wasn’t as big as a proper bar would have been, American_Standard decided to install a drop down ladder in the ceiling when he was installing the drywall. This would allow him to make use of the extra space in the ceiling for storage and such, especially considering that no bar is a drinks! The drop down ladder was also constructed of good quality wood, ensuring it was just as strong as the rest of the structure.

When all the drywall was inserted and installed correctly, American­_Standard went on to cover the ceiling and the walls with two layers of paint. He stuck to a clean white for the ceiling, and an almost avocado green for the walls.

This is actually a brilliant idea, as green colours in more neutral tones actually increase levels of relaxation in the brain (the more you know!).

After leaving the paint to dry for a day or two until it was completely set, he decided to better the floor too since it looked very bland and cheap. By using some 20 inch by 12 inch vinyl sheeting with a light wood plank pattern he completely transformed the entire look of the room. According to American_Standard, the vinyl sheeting and glue only cost him around $220, which he said was a good price for how well the flooring came out.

Finally, with all the shell work done, he could focus on his true intent for the room- the man cave bar. He obviously started out by building the frame first, using a light wood that he found to be very durable. When he was confident that everything was level, he finished up on the frame before moving to the next step.

He used the same type of wood to fill in the panels, making sure the support was there for the frame. The project looked almost complete, but American_Standard had way more in store for this bar than the internet expected.

His next step was to stain the wood until it was a dark brown, almost black color. Not only did this suit the room better, it also made it look more like a professional bar. The staining was actually essential for the final look of the bar, which might surprise you! When it had dried, the real fun began…

The user American_Standard busted out about $30’s worth of pennies, which came out to about 3000 coins. Unfortunately, this was only enough to get him just over half the way, so he had to get about 2500 more to ensure his vision would be perfect. Altogether, he had $55 worth of pennies, and what he did with it next will blow your mind.

To make sure that all the gunk and build up was cleaned off the pennies. American_Standard used salt and white vinegar to make a solution that he used to soak the pennies in. The acidity of the mixture eats off and dissolves all of the dirt, leaving you with a pile of shiny pennies you can bite your teeth on. But he wasn’t even done yet!

By exposing the pennies to oxygen directly after soaking them, they dry to become this beautiful oxidized green and blue. American_Standard used a specific amount of pennies for this, as it wasn’t necessary to have them all colored. When they were all dry, it was time for arts and crafts.

It took him and three of his friends a case of beer and several hours to glue the pennies to the top of the bar, creating this beautiful mosaic of colors. Together they planned the design and spent some quality time together while gluing thousands of coins to the counter top. Those are some true friends! To ensure that the design wouldn’t be disturbed or damaged, they covered the entire bar with a clear resin which dried like a piece of glass- completely flat and glossy.

The end of the project was finally getting into his sight, so American_Standard inserted the thing that all bars need: a kegerator and some taps. Finally, the bar was basically ready for a party! While the project isn’t completely done yet, the bar looks amazing compared to where it started as a tiny dusty shed. The last steps, according to American_Standard, is just to finish the bar stools and insert some art and game pieces so the place is booming with fun.

This guy officially has one of the coolest backyards ever. Imagine the parties he could have- with the bar doors swung open in summer, music thrumming out and a couple of cold ones poured straight from the tap.

We think every guy would die for a man cave as cool as this, or to at least be friends with the DIY guy that has this kind of mad skills! Need some tips to make your own outdoor bar?

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