DIY Outdoor TV Cabinet: A Beautiful Way to Hide and Protect Your TV
When we renovated our pool deck, one of the things I really wanted was a way to protect the television from the weather while still having it easily accessible when we were using the area.
Our solution was to build a simple outdoor TV cabinet with decorative doors that could be closed when the television wasn’t in use.
We originally built the cabinet specifically for our pool deck, where it worked beautifully for several years. Since making a few more changes to our outdoor spaces, we’ve now moved the cabinet to our outdoor bar area, where it has found a new home and is just as useful.
I love when something we’ve made for one part of our home can be repurposed somewhere else rather than starting again!
Here’s how we made it.
Constructing the Outdoor TV Cabinet
The first step was to measure our television and decide how much additional space we wanted around it.
We used pine boards to build a simple rectangular frame that would form the top, bottom and sides of the cabinet.
Our cabinet is actually deeper than would normally be required for a television because our TV is mounted on an extendable arm. This allows us to pull the television away from the wall and adjust its position when we’re watching it.
Because the television and mounting arm were already securely attached to the wall, there was no need to add a back to the cabinet.
The pine pieces were glued together as well as screwed to give the frame plenty of strength.
Making the Outdoor TV Cabinet Doors
For the doors, we started with one large piece of MDF.
Rather than measuring and cutting two separate doors, we measured the opening and cut the MDF as though we were making one large door.
Once we were happy with the fit, we divided the piece into two.
Doing it this way helped us achieve a much neater fit, with the two doors meeting nicely in the centre without a large gap between them.
Adding the Decorative Cross Design
We didn’t want the cabinet to look like a plain box on the wall, so we decided to add a simple cross pattern to the front of the doors.
Before cutting the MDF into two doors, Tony measured and drew the decorative pattern directly onto it. This made it much easier to make sure the design would line up properly once the doors were finished and hung.
We then cut the large piece of MDF into the two individual doors and fitted the hinges to make sure everything opened and closed correctly.
Some of the hinge screws came through the MDF slightly, but this wasn’t a problem because they would eventually be hidden underneath the decorative trim.
Adding the Trim to the TV Cabinet Doors
To create the pattern on the front of the doors, we used very thin MDF.
This was probably one of the fiddlier parts of the project because several of the pieces needed angled cuts so that everything fitted neatly together.
Once we were happy with the placement, all of the decorative pieces were glued onto the doors.
We then filled any small gaps with wood filler before giving everything a good sand.
Simple black knobs were added to the centre of the doors to contrast with the white cabinet.
Painting and Installing the Outdoor TV Cabinet
Once everything had been sanded smooth, we painted the entire cabinet white.
To attach it to the wall, we first cut a piece of pine stud to size and securely attached that to the wall.
The cabinet could then be attached to the timber from the top. Doing it this way meant we didn’t have obvious screw holes showing through the front or sides of the finished cabinet.
Once it was installed, the television was nicely tucked away whenever we weren’t using it, while still being easy to access when we wanted to watch something outside.
From Our Pool Deck to Our Outdoor Bar
The finished outdoor TV cabinet was originally the perfect addition to our pool deck and helped make the television feel much more integrated into the space.
Since then, our outdoor areas have continued to change—as they always seem to do around here!
We’ve now moved the cabinet from the pool deck into our outdoor bar area, and I actually love it there. It still gives the television some protection and hides it away when it’s not being used, while the style of the cabinet works beautifully with the bar area.
It’s also a good reminder that things we build or buy for our homes don’t necessarily have to stay in the place they were originally intended for. Sometimes a little reshuffling gives them a whole new life.
And considering the work that went into cutting all of those fiddly little pieces of MDF, I certainly wasn’t letting this one go to waste!
Our outdoor spaces have become some of our favourite areas to spend time, particularly during the warmer months.
If you enjoy seeing how we’ve transformed our outdoor spaces, you might also like our games room makeover, where we turned another part of our home into a relaxed and welcoming space for family and friends.
