DIY Dual Desk

Measure the space where you intend to place your dual desk, using a measuring tape. You will be building one long desk and dividing it into two workstations, so use the entire length of the space as the length for your desk. Measure out from the wall to determine the depth of your desk and up from the floor for the height.

Cut a sheet of 1-inch plywood or hardwood for the desktop, using a circular saw. Use the total length and depth dimensions you just measured in the last step to cut your desktop.

Use the circular saw to cut two pieces of 2-by-4-inch hardwood to the length of the desktop, minus 4 inches. Cut four shorter pieces of 2-by-4-inch hardwood to the depth of the desktop, minus 8 inches. You will use these boards to construct the support frame for your desk.

Arrange the two longer boards and two of the shorter boards in a rectangular shape. Stand all the boards upright on their longest narrow edges and sandwich the two shorter boards between the ends of the longer boards. Drive 3-inch wood screws through the longer boards into the shorter boards to secure the frame.

Mark the center of both of the longer boards of the frame in pencil, then make additional marks exactly 4 inches from the first mark on either side. Slide the two remaining pieces of 2-by-4-inch hardwood between the two longer boards where you made the marks.

Secure the two boards you just installed by driving 3-inch wood screws through the longer boards into the shorter boards. Your desk frame should now be divided into three sections: two equal-sized workspaces separated by a small rectangular space.

Lay the 2-by-4-inch hardwood frame you just completed flat on top of the piece of plywood or hardwood you cut for the desktop. Center the frame so the outside edges of the frame sit about 2 inches inside the edges of the desktop on all four sides.

Attach the hardwood frame to the desktop by driving 3-inch wood screws at a downward angle through the frame into the desktop. Position your screws every 4 to 6 inches around the perimeter of the hardwood frame. Alternate installing the screws on the inside and outside of the frame.

Cut eight pieces of 3-by-3-inch hardwood to the height of the desk, minus 1 inch to accommodate the thickness of the desktop. Stand one of these pieces of hardwood upright in each of the four corners of the rectangular frame to serve as the legs of your desk. Position the legs so they are flush with the inside of the frame on two sides.

Stand the remaining four hardwood legs upright in the four corners of the small, middle section of the frame. One side of each leg should be flush with one of the longer boards and one side should be flush against one of the shorter, interior boards on the frame.

Attach all eight desk legs by driving 3-inch wood screws through the outside of the 2-by-4-inch hardwood frame into the legs. Drive additional screws at an angle through the legs into the inside of the frame and into the underside of the desktop.

Flip the desk over to stand it upright on the legs you just installed. Paint or stain your dual desk to match the decor scheme in your room. Once the paint or stain dries completely, apply one or more coats of clear varnish or polyurethane to protect the work surface from minor damage and water marks.