how to make an outdoor blackboard

by Catherine Hahn 10 min read

Steps:

  1. Start by painting one side of your cement board with your chalkboard paint. I applied 2 coats. Just make sure you get...
  2. While your chalkboard paint is drying, cut your wood frame pieces to size. We cut the horizontal pieces to just over...
  3. Paint your wood frame with whatever color paint your love. Use an outdoor quality paint :)

Full Answer

How do you make an outdoor chalkboard?

Sep 04, 2021 · How to Make an Outdoor Chalkboard Activity Wall for Kids · Step 1: Fasten Plywood to Fence · Step 2: Make Sure It’s Even · Step 3: Prep for Paint · Step 4: Paint … 6. DIY Outdoor Chalkboard for Backyards and Patios – Rhythms …

How much blackboard paint do you need to cover a blackboard?

Step 1: Measure and mark 12 inches from the 3 ft. edge of each piece of backer board.(You’ll be cutting 1 foot off of each piece of 5×3 backer boards to make 4×3 pieces if you’re making an 8 foot chalkboard.)

What is a backyard chalkboard?

Mar 26, 2021 · Materials: 4ft by 8ft piece of plywood (I’d recommend exterior, pressure-treated plywood!) Three pre-primed 8-foot 1x4s (You can get cedar or pressure-treated wood if you want it to be extra weatherproof, but we... One 8-foot cedar 2×4 (Used for mounting to the fence) Primer Paintbrush & paint ...

Can you use Chalkboard paint on hardybacker board?

(Image 1) Attach the trim to the front of the chalkboard with finishing nails. (Image 2) Sink the nails slightly and fill with wood putty. Allow putty to dry and sand. Retouch paint over putty. For high moisture areas, use caulk to seal around the inside of the trim frame. Paint the outside edge of the chalkboard to match the frame.

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How do you make an outdoor blackboard?

Make and Install an Outdoor ChalkboardCut the board to the desired size. ... Add any color flat, latex, exterior paint to a mixing container. ... Use a level and chalk line to mark the wall or fence where the top of the chalkboard will go. ... Adding the Trim.

What can I use for an outdoor chalkboard?

Many of the Outdoor Chalkboard DIYs I've seen use sheathing plywood and chalkboard paint. These materials aren't weatherproof and wouldn't last a season of rain/snow. Instead of plywood, I used a Hardie board. Hardie boards are cement board siding with a smooth finish and they're very durable!Jul 31, 2018

How do I make a large outdoor blackboard?

To recap, here is how to make an outdoor chalkboard:Decide what size you want your chalkboard. ... Cut the ply wood down to size.Paint the ply wood with chalkboard paint. ... Once the chalkboard is dry, drill the chalkboard to your fence in all 4 corners using 3 inch screws.More items...•Apr 12, 2021

How do I waterproof my outdoor chalkboard?

So instead of using chalkboard paint like I did I would make my own using exterior paint and tile grout. You can find the recipe from Martha Stewart herself right here. It's simply 1 cup exterior paint mixed with 2 tablespoons tile grout. This should ensure that the front of the board stays weather proofed.Mar 25, 2013

How do you waterproof a blackboard?

1:537:46How to Build an Outdoor Chalkboard - Easy Weekend ProjectYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSo this is just pine and I need to make it a little bit more weatherproof by painting it so I'mMoreSo this is just pine and I need to make it a little bit more weatherproof by painting it so I'm knocking the edges off with some sandpaper.

How do you make an outdoor whiteboard?

1:286:16DIY Outdoor Dry Erase Board - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipAnd here's the the second one here you see it's white can definitely it's shiny cuz there's aMoreAnd here's the the second one here you see it's white can definitely it's shiny cuz there's a reflection of the window. I got half-inch staples for my hands staple gun.

How do you make an outdoor chalkboard in Australia?

Steps1Have your timber pre-cut. ... 2Attach plywood to the cement sheeting. ... 3Hammer the cement sheeting to the plywood. ... 4Paint the chalkboard with primer. ... 5Apply the chalkboard paint. ... 6Attach the frame. ... 7Attach the shelf. ... 8Hang the chalkboard.

How do you attach a blackboard to a fence?

4:057:54Outdoor Chalkboard DIY On Fence - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipAnd then attach it to your fence where the chalk board is going to go these will be your supports.MoreAnd then attach it to your fence where the chalk board is going to go these will be your supports. And where you will screw the top forward to the fence. Our chalk board ended up being really heavy.

How do you make a portable chalkboard?

1:164:49DIY Giant Chalkboard Tutorial | Lindsay Brooke - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipJust missed chalkboard paint what's really cool about it is you can pick the color and so instead ofMoreJust missed chalkboard paint what's really cool about it is you can pick the color and so instead of jet black I went for a darker grey which i think is cool and you picked up a foam roller.

How do you protect a chalkboard from the rain?

To make your chalk drawings permanent, lay your chalkboard out and carefully spray with a THIN even coat of hairspray from AT LEAST 10 inches away. Make sure you entirely cover the surface. The aerosol is important because it sprays small even droplets.Mar 1, 2016

Will chalkboard paint hold up outside?

Because of its versatility, you can paint anything from plant pots and sheds to back doors and plastic garden furniture. Chalk paint will stick easily to any surface and you shouldn't need to use a primer beforehand. Just make sure the surface is smooth, dry and clean before you start painting.

Can you hang a chalkboard outside?

We aligned the outdoor chalkboard exactly where we wanted it hung, then used black outdoor screws to attach the boards directly to the posts and supports. We just drilled into the black part of the chalkboard, so they're barely visible.Mar 26, 2021

carlyla

I have an A frame blackboard made from exterior grade plywood. The wood itself is fine but the surface is just a bit too grainy to allow the board to be written on easily or to really be wiped clean.

JohnD

you could use marine ply with a Far Eastern Hardwood veneer, this is fairly fine grained and you can sand it even smoother if you want before applyng blackboard paint. I am guessing your old board is Birch or Spruce or something and the grain is raised (possibly due to weathering)

DIYnot Local

If you need to find a tradesperson to get your job done, please try our local search below, or if you are doing it yourself you can find suppliers local to you.

How to make an outdoor chalkboard

Our outdoor chalkboard actually started its life as a giant word search back drop at an event for SXSW in 2015. After the event, the company did not want to ship my creation back to their headquarters so we took it home. It sat in our garage for months. After staring at it daily, I declared it needed to live on the fence.

To recap, here is how to make an outdoor chalkboard

Decide what size you want your chalkboard. Keep in mind that a sheet of ply wood typically is 8×4.

Do your kids love playing with chalk? Build them a large chalkboard for your backyard! This step by step tutorial shows you how to build a weatherproof outdoor chalkboard complete with a live roof

Thank you to DAP for sponsoring this large chalkboard tutorial! All opinions are entirely my own. This post also contains affiliate links, but nothing that I wouldn’t recommend wholeheartedly. Read my full disclosure here.

But, what about the weather?

But here’s the deal, we live in a region with some pretty harsh weather. I’m talking MONTHS of snow during the winter. I even came across this awesome tutorial for an outdoor chalkboard made from hardie backer (instead of plywood). That would be better….but I still don’t think it would last very long if it was sitting in snow.

Supplies for outdoor chalkboard

4′ x 8′ chalkboard – We found one at our local ReStore for $20, but it looked like of like this one before we dismantled it. You could also make one your own, here’s a good tutorial using plywood & chalkboard paint

Build frame for box around chalkboard

Using 2″ x 6″ cedar wood, build a frame that is a little bigger than your chalkboard. Join the corners of the frame by cutting 45 degree miter cuts and screw together with 2.5″ construction screws.

Add sheet of siding to the back & sides of frame

On a level surface, lay the frame down flat. Next, lay the sheet of siding on top and attach using your framing nailer & 2 3/8 inch galvanized framing nails. Also cut down and attach siding to the sides of the frame (the short sides of the rectangle). No need to worry about covering the top or bottom of the frame with siding.

Rip cedar down for trim & attach to box

For a budget friendly option to trim everything out, we ripped down cedar fence pickets. On the box portion, they are 1 inch wide and on the doors, they are 3 inches wide.

Caulk all joints, seams and exposed nail holes

To make sure the box that houses the chalkboard is waterproofed, it’s very important to use a high quality exterior sealant, like DAP’s Dynaflex Ultra. We caulked every joint, seam and all exposed nail holes on the box. Be sure to wait the right amount of time per caulk’s instructions before moving on to painting.

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