DIY Fish Cleaning Station

A good friend of mine commissioned me to design and make a fish cleaning station for his dad. I was a bit intimidated at first, but I sat down, sketched out the design, and headed to Home Depot for supplies. Not only did my friend (and his dad) love the outcome, but so did I. It's something I truly am proud to say I designed and built. 

For this project, I used the following measurements: 55” wide x 38” Tall x 36” deep
 This will be helpful if you are attempting to build this yourself. I have a list below of everything you'll need to make this for yourself using these dimensions. Keep that in mind if you are altering the size for your own piece. 

There were a couple of special elements to the station though. 

• His dad recently had a stroke and has limited use of his right hand. I created a strap system that would allow him to strap the head of the fish down while he filleted with his left hand while the clamp holds the tail down. 

•This station was going down by the coast so I decided to beef it up with treated lumber and galvanized hardware. It’s built like a tank and should last a while. If I had to guess, it weighs about 70 pounds. 

• I also added a GFI outlet so that they could run any kind of power at the station and know it is protected. All held tight to the station using Pack Bands (one of our favorite small businesses!)

•The other features I added are the cut outs along the back wall so that the fish remains can be washed out the back or off the side. We elected to have as few places as possible for the remains to collect. For this part of the project I used my Dewalt Brushless Jig Saw and Ryobi Router (both linked below).

Here's a few shots during the building process plus a couple more of the finished outcome. Keep scrolling for a list of tools used and a full list of product links to buy everything you'll need to make your own. 

What You'll Need to Make Your Own:

The amount will vary depending on the size you intend on making. We also used treated wood given the location and proximity to the salt water.

Wood: 

2 - 4x4x8

2 - 2x4x8

2 - 2x12x10

2 - 5/4 in. x 6 in. x 8 ft. 

Screws: Spax (preference but these are the best)

Metal Strip: 

Tools Used:

Atlas46 Workshop Apron //  Ryobi One+ Router // Dewalt Brushless Impact // Dewalt Brushless Jig Saw // Harbor Freight Miter Saw // Dewalt Brushless Circular Saw // 

Product Links To Buy:

clamp // velcro straps // Packbands // GFI outlet // Outlet Cover (weatherproof) // extension cord // corner brackets