How to build an outdoor DIY privacy screen for your hot tub or patio.
We’ve been living in our house for almost 10 years now and we’ve never done anything with the old patio area in our backyard.
Well, I finally got us something we’ve been wanting for a LONG time for Christmas – an inflatable hot tub for the backyard – and it was time to makeover the patio next to it.
As you can see from the before picture, the dirty house and HVAC unit were definitely something we wanted to block from view.
The best part of this project was the wooden DIY privacy screen with the bench attached!
Read on to learn how to build one yourself…
Why We Needed an Outdoor Privacy Screen
Well, here is what we were working with. It is a neglected patio area with part of the concrete overgrown with weeds and partially deteriorated. The front part of the pad is 6 ft by 8 foot.
It clearly backs up to our not-so-nice-to-look-at heat pump unit. And our house that badly needed power washed! Yikes…
My first thought was that I wanted to block the ugly view of our heat pump but wasn’t sure the best way to do that.
Here’s how I tackled this problem and the solution I came up with!
Outdoor Privacy Screen Inspiration
First I tried to figure out some way to block the view of the heat pump. The ground couldn’t take a fence post because there are power lines running underground and there are remnants of the old concrete.
So I needed something free standing to block the view. I came up with the idea of attaching a fence panel to the back of some bench type thing after spending way too long on Pinterest.
I wanted to create something like the planter/bench/screen combo pictured above.
I decided a full bench seat would be a lot easier than the planter/bench combo.
DIY Privacy Screen With Bench Materials
After I made a rough plan for the bench and screen I was off to Home Depot.
Here is the pressure treated lumber I used:
- Six 8-foot 2 x 4s pressured treated lumber for the seat and
- One 8-foot 4 x 4 post
MY bench is actually made with a 6 x 6 BUT we decided that the 6 x 6 was overkill and that a 4 x 4 would have been MUCH easier to work with! I recommend that if you try this project.
We built this basic 8 foot long bench in place there on the patio. The main consideration was to make all of the back side flat so we could attach the fence panel.
Here is my attempt at a rudimentary plan for the bench. I apologize if it is difficult to use – I’ve never drawn a plan before!
At the very least it will give you the cuts for the 2x4s.
DIY Privacy Screen Panel
I considered a bunch of different materials for the privacy screen portion but we ended up going with this Pressure Treated Fence Panel from Home Depot.
It fit the bill perfectly and only cost about $42. We ordered it online and picked it up in the store.
Then we screwed the fence panel to the back of the bench. This meant we didn’t have to dig into the ground at all and the panel is free standing.
Another plus is that we can move it if needed at some point! I was super happy with how to bench seat and screen turned out.
Here’s what I recommend for the project.
Pressure Treated Wood For the bench seat & posts:
- Six 2 x 6 x 8 ft boards = $33.42
- One 4 x 4 x 8 ft post = $6.77
- One 6 ft x 8 ft fence panel = $41.47
TOTAL = $81.66
Any benches we looked at buying started at about $400, so building one was definitely the way to go.
I was really pleased with how the bench and privacy screen turned out!
I love that it completely blocks the view of the house and HVAC unit. I also love that it provides a place to sit or lay your towels for after you get out of the hot tub!
It turned out to be a great solution that required minimum carpentry skills and stayed under $100 for cost.
DIY Privacy Screen With Bench Summary
This bench with screen was part of our budget backyard patio makeover – get all of the details in the full post here!
Any questions? Please leave a comment below or send me a message on The Frugal South’s Facebook page.