How To Build An Entertainment Center

We are all guilty of letting our home setups get a little messy from time to time, but one area that is prone to clutter is the media area that can be found in most living rooms.

This is the area where your television lives, along with any other media equipment and electronic gear such as gaming consoles or streaming boxes.

Wires are notoriously tricky to keep organized, particularly when there are so many of them in one place.

But fear not, as there are some easy ways that you can make your own entertainment center to keep your equipment neat and tidy without having to pay out a fortune!

With this in mind, we are going to be looking at how you can you go about making your very own sliding door entertainment center, as well as what you are going to need to do so. Let's get started.

This particular choice of entertainment center features two sliding doors to keep your electronics organized, clean and free of dust.

The center will also act as a firm base for your television, with half of the center remaining open so that you can use it for display purposes.

This center should end up standing at around 19 inches high and will sit low to the ground, with pre-laminated wooden shelves acting as the major building material. Here is what you will need.

Materials

• One plywood project panel, one quarter by 24 by 48 inches
• Melamine or white-primed project panel, one quarter by 24 by 72 inches
• Two white laminated wooden shelves (finished edges), 12 by 72 inches
• Four wood or metal cabinet/sofa legs with screws, seven and a half inches long
• Two satin nickel stainless steel three-inch hole center Euro style cabinet pulls
• Two aluminum channels, three eighths by three eighths by 72 inches.
• One inch screws
• One quarter inch bugle head screws
• Ten number two screw white plastic screw covers
• Fine sandpaper
• Wood stain and sealer

Tools

• Two-inch hole saw
• Drill
• Drill Bits
• Hacksaw
• Circular Saw
• Miter Saw
• Countersink Bit
• Tape Measure
• Tack Cloth
• Pencil

First, cut the side, top and bottom boards using the circular saw. Saw the two laminated shelves to length, making sure that you cut them to 56 inches each.

Cut the leftover material to 12 inches in length, ensuring that each board has one laminated edge.

Start cutting the two aluminum channels to the same length- 56 inches- by using the hacksaw and begin running the channels along the outer edge of the 56-inch boards.

Make sure that you keep the aluminum flush with the outer edges, as this will act as the guide for your sliding doors.

Next, drill four holes into each channel for the mounting screws, making sure that they are evenly spaced.

When doing so, bore out the top of each hole carefully by using a larger drill bit or the countersink bit.

Doing so will make sure that the screw head is able to sink flush with the channel.

Using the bugle head screws, attach the channels to the shelves.

Use four of them per channel, but be careful as the aluminum is quite thin and might tear if you drill in too far.

Next up, it's time to attach the legs. Do so by attaching them 18 inches from the end of each of the 56-inch boards with the screws.

You will now want to start working on the main feature of the entertainment center: the sliding doors!

Take your plywood project panel and cut two door panels to size with it. Aim to get them measuring at 10 and a half by 16 inches each.

Once done, lightly sand the better side of the wood with your sandpaper and then remove the sanding dust with your tack cloth.

Once sanded, apply the wood stain and stealer and then leave the doors to dry.

Add the cabinet pulls by drilling two holes on each of the cabinet doors- making sure they are three inches apart- and then attaching the pulls with your screws.

Attach the side boards by setting your two 56 inch boards on edge, ensuring that they are parallel and 12 inches apart.

Next, get the 12-inch side boards into position by facing the finished edge forwards and toward the front of the cabinet.

Take one of the 12-inch boards and place it on the side before screwing it into place with six one inch screws, three in the top board and three in the bottom board.

Don't forget to drill the countersink holes and pilot holes too!

The cabinet doors should be ready to slide into the channels.

Once done, attach your second side board onto the other cabinet side and cover up your screws with your white plastic screw covers.

Grab the white project panel and lay it on the ground, white side facing up, and then use the panel as a template by placing the entertainment center on its side.

Use your pencil to mark the size of the back panel, and then cut the project panel accordingly with your circular saw.

Don't forget to remove the entertainment center first!

You will now be ready to attach the back panel, which you can do from the rear by using your half inch screws.

Make sure that the entertainment center is completely square before you do so, as the panel will lock the position into place.

Take seven screws and use three on the short side and four on the long side.

Last but not least, cut a hole in the center of the back panel for wire access.

The hole will need to be about two inches wide, hence why you will need to use the two-inch hole saw.

You might even need more than one hole if your wiring needs are particularly extensive.

Voilà! Your entertainment center should be all made up and ready to go!

Final Thoughts

There are tons of different ways that you can make your own entertainment center, with this being just one method in particular that takes around five hours and shouldn’t be too costly.

No matter how you choose to do it, an entertainment center is a great way to keep your electronics well organized and safe in your household.