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Concrete top cedar table
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SaltySam
Posts: 887
Alright, gang. This is a long time coming. I finally got around to building the table I've wanted. I've pinged many of you for advice, sifted through the Egghead table section, looked through Google images, Pinterest, etc. I've gone through countless designs in my head. Some simple, some insanely intricate. I thought about a granite remnant, possibly a solid wood top, maybe planks. I've dabbled with SketchUp, and had about ten different designs. I wanted function and form. This is what I finally came up with.
I wanted a center-mounted Egg, with some type of table surface on either side of the Egg. I wanted a spot for food prep, and a separate place to set the adjustable rig if I needed to stir the coals. I wanted a durable surface that could withstand hot items. I wanted easy cleanup as well. I knew I wanted to use cedar, because it stained easily and was weather resistant. Being in Nebraska, we get extreme everything, so it had to be ready for snow, rain, sun, heat and cold.
I went with a 5-foot concrete top, using melamine to build the mold. I got the idea from a fellow Nebraska alum named Pete Sveen. He has a website called diypete.com that has instructionals for all kinds of projects. (unpaid testimonial!) I used high-strength concrete, and made it 2 inches thick. In hindsight, 1.5" would have been plenty. Even with the 22" cutout for the Egg, that thing is a PIG. I assume it weighs somewhere between 155-175lbs. A half inch less would have saved me probably 40-50 lbs. It took three guys to lift it on to the table. At least I know it's stable. If it blows over in a storm, I'm pretty sure my house will have blown away as well, so I'll have other things to be worried about.
I also wanted to put something heat resistant under the egg. It's been sitting on the feet, over wood planks. With only an inch air gap, I know that the wood underneath the egg had to have been stressed, and could fail any day. My solution to this was to build another 1" thick mold for concrete out of melamine, so it would fit flush with the planks. I extended it out to the edge of the table, because I know that the occasional ember will float out and land on the surface. My old table has several burn marks from embers, and it scared me enough to change this design.
The above picture is immediately after taking the concrete out of the melamine mold. I didn't do a very good job of vibrating the mold after pouring the concrete. There were a lot of bug holes, but overall the surface was still very smooth. I filled everything with a Portland cement slurry, let it dry for a few hours, and then sanded with 220-grit paper. I finished the concrete with about 4 coats of high gloss concrete sealer. This picture is post Portland cement, but pre-sealant. The top of the table really came out nice and smooth. 
For the table, I used a Minwax stain color called Provincial. I wanted the redness of the cedar to shine through, but I really liked the darker color. The Provincial color fit the bill. Of course, the one pic I have is in the dark, but the color is pretty well represented, I think. You can't see the shine on the concrete, but it's there.
I did make two significant errors during the build. First, I didn't take into account the extra inch of thickness the tabletop provided. The old table is 15" from table top to the bottom of the Egg. The new table was 16". I double checked the hinge on the old table, and when the lid is fully opened, the hinge comes within about 1/2" of the top. Easy fix...I just unscrewed the bottom "shelf" before the Egg was installed, and moved everything up an inch. I now have sufficient hinge clearance, and an unfinished stripe of wood on the leg. Not a big deal.
The other problem is slightly more worrisome. The underside of the tabletop isn't completely level. I'll chalk that up to rookie concrete pouring mistakes. There is an ever-so-slight wobble to the table. I'll likely shim under the table top, and make sure there is enough of a contact with the table to adhere the top to it. It may not be 100% level, but it's negligible. I hope it works out.
All in all, I am pretty happy with my build. I'm not on the level of woodworkers that some of the guys are on here, but this is by far the biggest project I've ever tackled. I think it will be far more durable than the crap table I used to have. And, all in all, I have about $200 into this guy. $85 for the cedar, $20 for the concrete, $20 for the sealant, $10 for the Blue-Kote Kreg Jig screws, $8 for the stain, $15 for the Spar Urethane and $35 for the melamine sheet. Not too shabby, considering my wife dropped $250 for the pine P.O.S. my Egg came with.
I still need to seal the underside of the table with urethane, and I need to put concrete sealant on the inside edge of the cutout. Once that's done, the Egg will go in, and I'll be smoking some ribs for my neighbors for helping me lift the table top.
@nolaegghead Thanks for the advice you gave me nearly three years ago. I didn't forget it.
@johnkitchens Thanks for the insert idea.
@DoubleEgger WOOOOOOO! Just because
I wanted a center-mounted Egg, with some type of table surface on either side of the Egg. I wanted a spot for food prep, and a separate place to set the adjustable rig if I needed to stir the coals. I wanted a durable surface that could withstand hot items. I wanted easy cleanup as well. I knew I wanted to use cedar, because it stained easily and was weather resistant. Being in Nebraska, we get extreme everything, so it had to be ready for snow, rain, sun, heat and cold.
I went with a 5-foot concrete top, using melamine to build the mold. I got the idea from a fellow Nebraska alum named Pete Sveen. He has a website called diypete.com that has instructionals for all kinds of projects. (unpaid testimonial!) I used high-strength concrete, and made it 2 inches thick. In hindsight, 1.5" would have been plenty. Even with the 22" cutout for the Egg, that thing is a PIG. I assume it weighs somewhere between 155-175lbs. A half inch less would have saved me probably 40-50 lbs. It took three guys to lift it on to the table. At least I know it's stable. If it blows over in a storm, I'm pretty sure my house will have blown away as well, so I'll have other things to be worried about.
I also wanted to put something heat resistant under the egg. It's been sitting on the feet, over wood planks. With only an inch air gap, I know that the wood underneath the egg had to have been stressed, and could fail any day. My solution to this was to build another 1" thick mold for concrete out of melamine, so it would fit flush with the planks. I extended it out to the edge of the table, because I know that the occasional ember will float out and land on the surface. My old table has several burn marks from embers, and it scared me enough to change this design.
The above picture is immediately after taking the concrete out of the melamine mold. I didn't do a very good job of vibrating the mold after pouring the concrete. There were a lot of bug holes, but overall the surface was still very smooth. I filled everything with a Portland cement slurry, let it dry for a few hours, and then sanded with 220-grit paper. I finished the concrete with about 4 coats of high gloss concrete sealer. This picture is post Portland cement, but pre-sealant. The top of the table really came out nice and smooth. For the table, I used a Minwax stain color called Provincial. I wanted the redness of the cedar to shine through, but I really liked the darker color. The Provincial color fit the bill. Of course, the one pic I have is in the dark, but the color is pretty well represented, I think. You can't see the shine on the concrete, but it's there. I did make two significant errors during the build. First, I didn't take into account the extra inch of thickness the tabletop provided. The old table is 15" from table top to the bottom of the Egg. The new table was 16". I double checked the hinge on the old table, and when the lid is fully opened, the hinge comes within about 1/2" of the top. Easy fix...I just unscrewed the bottom "shelf" before the Egg was installed, and moved everything up an inch. I now have sufficient hinge clearance, and an unfinished stripe of wood on the leg. Not a big deal.
The other problem is slightly more worrisome. The underside of the tabletop isn't completely level. I'll chalk that up to rookie concrete pouring mistakes. There is an ever-so-slight wobble to the table. I'll likely shim under the table top, and make sure there is enough of a contact with the table to adhere the top to it. It may not be 100% level, but it's negligible. I hope it works out.
All in all, I am pretty happy with my build. I'm not on the level of woodworkers that some of the guys are on here, but this is by far the biggest project I've ever tackled. I think it will be far more durable than the crap table I used to have. And, all in all, I have about $200 into this guy. $85 for the cedar, $20 for the concrete, $20 for the sealant, $10 for the Blue-Kote Kreg Jig screws, $8 for the stain, $15 for the Spar Urethane and $35 for the melamine sheet. Not too shabby, considering my wife dropped $250 for the pine P.O.S. my Egg came with.
I still need to seal the underside of the table with urethane, and I need to put concrete sealant on the inside edge of the cutout. Once that's done, the Egg will go in, and I'll be smoking some ribs for my neighbors for helping me lift the table top.
@nolaegghead Thanks for the advice you gave me nearly three years ago. I didn't forget it.
@johnkitchens Thanks for the insert idea.
@DoubleEgger WOOOOOOO! Just because
LBGE since June 2012
Omaha, NE
Comments
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Dayumn it turned out great man!LBGE 2013 & MM 2014Die Hard HUSKER & BRONCO FANFlying Low & Slow in "Da Burg" FL
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Nice, love the concrete top.
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How about using construction adhesive as a shim. Like liquid nails
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Very cool. I've always wanted to learn how to do concrete tops.2-XLs ,MM,blackstone,Ooni koda 16,R&V works 8.5 gallon fryer,express smoker and 40" smoking cajun
scott
Greenville Tx -
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@texaswig it's alarmingly simple. You can either build the mold and then flip the table top out, or pour in place and hard trowel the top. That website diypete.com has about 8-10 different concrete projects showcasing both methods. I'm glad I took a chance and tried it. It won't be my last concrete project
LBGE since June 2012
Omaha, NE
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Amazing! I like it
____________________Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity and are able to turn both to their advantage. •Niccolo Machiavelli
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