DIY Grill Tools Organizer

Upgrade your outdoor grill station with a beautiful and functional DIY grill tools organizer and storage cabinet.  This cabinet is simple to make and is an easy weekend project.

My grill tools storage cabinet features double doors with magnetic catches and holds 4 grill tools.  I sized it at 15.5” wide and 19.5“ tall on the interior to fit our BBQ tools.  You can easily adjust the size to fit your tools. If you don’t have any tools? We like these Weber Tools. They seem to last longer than the others we’ve had and have a nice hefty feel to them.

Read on to learn the materials and steps to build this handy BBQ tools holder.

Materials Needed

Pine boards of 1” X 4” cut to the following lengths:

(2) 21” for the sides

(2) 14” for the top and bottom

(4) 19.5” for the doors

1/8” Luan plywood for the back, approximately 21” x 15.5” (cut to fit)

(6) dowel pegs for joining the door halves.

(2) door handles

(4) door hinges

(2) magnetic catches

(4) cup hooks

Screws for assembly

(1) quart of exterior paint in your choice of color

Tools Used

Miter Saw

Power drill/driver

Sander

Clamps

Doweling Jig

Instructions for Grill Tools Organizer

Step 1 – Cut Your Wood

Collection of wood pieces for grill tools organizer

Cut the boards for the top, sides, and doors on a miter saw according to the list above.  I waited to cut the plywood backboard until the cabinet was assembled to ensure an even fit.

You can use a miter box if you do not have access to a miter saw.  It’s important to get square cuts, however.

Step 2 – Sand Everything

Sanding boards for grill tools organizer

Sand the boards with 220 grit sandpaper.  I used a random orbital sander, but you can do it by hand with a sanding block or sponge.

Step 3 – Assemble the Doors

Wood in clamps for doors of grill tools organizer

Assemble the double doors as follows.  Lay 2 door boards side by side and even at the top and bottom.  Using a pencil, lightly mark a horizontal line across the joint of the boards to mark the dowel positions. Make 3  marks evenly spaced on the length of the boards.

Drill 3 holes along one long side of each of the door boards at the marks, to a depth of half the dowel length.  I used a doweling jig to ensure that the holes were centered on the edge of each board.  Put a drop of woodworking glue into the holes of one board and insert the dowel pegs.

Do the same for the other board and lay down a thin line of glue along the edge.  Push the boards together and apply the clamps.  Wipe off any glue that squeezes out.  Let dry a few hours and gently sand away the pencil marks.

Repeat to create the other door.

Step 4 – Assemble The Box

Screwing sides of grill tools organizer together

Assemble the cabinet by screwing the side boards to the top and bottom boards.  Note that the top and bottom boards fit inside the side boards.  Two 1.5” wood screws per joint will work fine.

Step 5 – Add the Back

Cut the back board to fit the dimension of the assembled cabinet.  I cut mine 1/8th of an inch shorter on each side.  Affix the backboard to the cabinet using small finishing nails.

Step 6 – Paint

Painting the grill tools organizer

Paint the inside and outside of the cabinet and doors in the color of your choice.  I chose bright red to match some other furniture on our deck.  I also chose to apply a single coat of paint to allow the grain of the wood to show through and give it a more rustic, weathered look.  Let the paint dry the recommended time.

Step 7 – Decorate

Vinyl graphic being applied to grill tools organizer

My wife created a cool graphic for the doors using her Cricut machine.  That made me happy, as I am not very good at painting a design free-hand.

The point is, you can decorate the front of your cabinet any way you like.

Step 8 – Add Hooks

Hand inseerting cup hooks into grill tools organizer

Insert the cup hooks on the underside of the top board.  Center the cup hooks on the width of the board and space them out to hold your desired tools.

Attach the magnetic latches along the inside of the bottom board.  Space them about 1.5” left and right from the center of the board and set them back ¾ of an inch back from the edge of the board.

Step 9 – Mount the Doors

Drill attaching hinges to wooden doors for grill tools organizer

Attach the door handles to each door.  Attach the hinges to the doors and the edge of the cabinet.  Adjust as necessary so that the doors open freely.

Step 10 – Mount Your New Organizer

Mount your new grill tools organizer near your grill so that your tools will always be where you need them.

Grill tools organizer mounted next to grill
Grill tools and spices inside of grill tools organizer

Now is a good time to celebrate your new creation with a cookout!

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to seal the wood before using outside? 

The best way to seal your wood is to use two coats of exterior grade paint.  If you decide to stain your cabinet, then several coats of polyurethane sealer should do the trick.

How do I mount the box? 

I mounted the box directly to the uprights on my deck railing.  I drilled 4 deck screws through the back panel of the box into the deck railing.  Alternatively, you could attach strap hangers to the upright sides on the back of the box. 

How many tools will it hold? 

Ours holds 4 hanging grill tools.  You could install more hooks to hang additional grill accessories if grill tools are small or you can adjust the dimensions of the box to hold more tools.  Lay your tools out on a table and measure how wide they all are side to side.  Now you can calculate how many tools you can fit into your cabinet.

Looking for some other DIY projects to do to organizer your home? Check out these posts:

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33 Comments

  1. This is brilliant! Grill tools are so bulky, it’s hard to know where to store them. . . but good ones are too expensive just to leave lying around. What a great solution you’ve developed.

    Thanks so much for joining the Grace at Home party at Imparting Grace. I’m featuring you this week!

    1. Thanks for the feature. Glad you liked the post. Before we built the cabinet, our tools were never where we could find them when we needed them.

  2. Wow! This is such a great idea! I have been trying to figure out a creative way to organize or grill tools inside the house. I never thought of building something to store them outside! So creative! Love it!

  3. This is such a creative and useful craft! Just shared this post with my friend who I think would need it. Thanks for sharing!

  4. This is so cute & useful! Thanks for sharing on Happiness is Homemade! Traffic Jam Weekend is also open now. We’d love to have you share there as well at LifeasaLEOWife.com.

  5. That’s a really great idea! We don’t have a covered porch, so we keep ours inside. This would solve the problem!

  6. Hi Janet, how fun looking and keeping organized. You’ve been PINKED! Thank you for sharing on the Classy Flamingos Blog Hop.

  7. This is a great project. My husband and I were recently talking about this. We needed something to keep our grill tools organized and neat. I am happy to feature your project at Love Your Creativity on Sunday.

  8. How cool is that! I love how this grill toolbox is so easy to make. We have a Weber kettle grill and this toolbox would be perfect to hold all the tools. I love the sign on the front of the toolbox too – very creative! Thanks for the great tutorial, I’m definitely pinning this!

  9. What a great idea for storing grilling tools and it’s creative looking, too! A perfect gift for Dad. I discovered your blog through Sum of their Stories.