Successful suburban homesteading hinges on your ability to quickly solve problems.  More often than not, those problems involve fixing or replacing something.  On a more remote homestead, this may mean big projects like fixing broken fences, solving leaky roofs and clearing large lots of lands.  In the suburbs, the day-to-day problems are typically a bit more benign.  And the tools that suburban ‘steaders use tend to be less bulky and many times run on batteries.  That being the case, not being able to replace your batteries quickly because you can’t find any can be a big problem.  Enter the solution to your problem: the Battery Storage Cabinet!

Required Material

Full disclosure, I found this project on WoodMagazine.com via The Survival Sherpa’s Facebook Page.

This project is rather simple (and cheap) to do.  Here’s all the material I used, where I bought it, and how much it cost:

• 2.5″ x 0.5″ x 8′ Pine Boards (2 x $4.37 at Home Depot)
• 1/4″ x 2′ x 4′ MDF Panel (1 x $6.27 at Home Depot)
• 1/8″ x 18″ x 36″ Clear Acrylic Sheet (1 x $19.93 at Home Depot)
• #8 FH Wood Screws, 1/2″ Long (1 pkg of 100, $8.66 at Home Depot)
• Total Material Cost: $43.60

While the total material cost was $43.60, I am able to use the left over MDF, Acrylic and wood screws for other projects.  That brings the total material cost (material consumed) down to $15.06. The only material cost I’m not showing is the nails I used to put the pieces together.  I had a large quantity on-hand so they were “free” to me on this project.

Required Tools

I, personally, am the kind of person who prefers to use the right tool for the job.  Because of that, I used a good number of different tools to get this project done.  You can follow my lead or use simple tools like a handsaw, hammer, nails and screw driver.  If, however, you’d like to speed up the process, here’s what I used:

• Table Saw
• Chop Saw
• Circular Saw
• Razor Knife
• Sandpaper
• Cordless Drill
• Drill bits (pre-drilling screw holes)
• Compressor w/nail gun

Again, you don’t need all these tools to make the Battery Storage Cabinet, but they sure do help!

Battery Storage Cabinet Assembly Instruction

As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.  To help assist you in assembly of the Battery Storage Cabinet, I have provided a PDF document below that shows how the pieces go together and the dimensions of all the individual pieces.  A bit of advice – take the time to review the document and cut the pieces as close to exact as possible.  It will help during the final fit-up and assembly.

Click To Download Build Plans!

Final Thoughts

The Battery Storage Cabinet is a great organizational tool for the homesteader.  It allows you to easily organize your batteries and quickly take inventory of where you are lacking in inventory.  On top of that, it’s a great project to do on a weekend day.  I was even able to get one of my kids involved (see below) which made this project all the more fun to do!

My little helper measuring out our next cut!

If you have any questions about this project, please feel free to leave a comment here or on Facebook!