PVC Pipe Lamp

Pipe lights! You either love them or hate them.

I have quite the collection of PVC pipes and clamps leftover from other projects and I'm in that group of people who loves pipe lights!

This is how I made a PVC pipe lamp with a faux metal finish for this PVC speed challenge.

I already had everything I used in my workshop, so I didn't need to buy anything. I also live in Japan and all of the materials were purchased locally.

Here's the list:

Pipe stuff

-60cm of 16mm PVC water pipe

-3x16mm elbow fittings

-2x16mm end caps

-2x16mm metal pipe clamps

-2x65mm long pipe supports

-PVC cement (glue)

-PVC pipe saw

Wood stand

-120cm of a 45x45 wooden post

-Cemedine Super XG*

*This is old multipurpose super glue I wanted to use up. Any wood glue will work.

-One 4.2x75mm wood screw

-Auger bit to make the hole for the screw used on the vertical piece of wood

-WATCO Oil stain

-Stain brush

-Random orbit sander

-Sandpaper #320, #240

Electric stuff

-4m of SPT-2/18AWG lamp cord

-needle nose pliers

-E26 screw in light socket

-2 threaded cable grips

-Gorilla super glue for threads

-Panasonic plug

Painting the pipes

-Schuppenpanzer P

I found this German paint in Japan and it is awesome!!

It's a quick drying film that can be sanded to an iron sheen. If it's unavailable in your area, try Rust-Oleum specialty paints for plastic.

I had a 120cm/45x45 wooden post leftover from my Halloween projects. I cut it into five lengths.

The base is four lengths of 19.5cm and the vertical piece holding the pipe lamp is 40cm.

I had half of tube of Cemedine Super XG glue leftover from a ceiling project I did last year and it doesn't keep well, so I wanted to use it up. I used an augur bit to make a hole to sink the 4.2x75mm wood screw. I glued all of the base lengths together followed by the vertical piece and finally the screw.

Cemedine Super XG is a one-part solventless, fast curing, highly durable super glue. It acts as contact cement on plastic too.

I sanded the base using a random orbit sander starting with #240 sandpaper and finishing with #320.

I stained with WATCO medium walnut oil stain.

I attached the pipes to the wood using two 65mm pipe supports and I used pliers to bend the ends to create a 90 degree angle.

My only plan was to use as much of the stuff I had as I could. I had three elbows and two end caps and this is what I came up with. What would you have created?

I had the lamp cord, light socket, cable grips and plug in the workshop already, all leftover from other projects.

I started with drilling a hole in both of the end caps to screw in the threaded cable grips.

I started by making a guide hole with a regular bit for the stepped bit. I made the hole just big enough to screw in the cable grips and added a drop of Gorilla super glue to the threads. The cable grips have a screw on cap and you'll need needle nose pliers to tighten the cap inside the PVC end cap on the end the socket is installed.

Once the light socket is on, feed the lamp cord through the pipes, cementing the pipes together as you work.

The second threaded cable grip is installed like the first. Cable grips stop the lamp wire from yanking out. If you drill the holes for the cable grips too big, don't worry. There's not enough room in the pipes to make a knot, so use a heavy duty zip-tie on the cord as a stopper inside the PVC end caps.

I added the plug at the end of the project.

I attached the PVC pipe light to the wood and then painted on the first coat.

This paint has a heavy texture, so I was worried I wouldn't be able to fit the clamps on if I painted first. As you can see, I covered the clamps with painters tape and painting around them.

It took two coats of paint to build up a nice heavy texture. This paint can be sanded to an iron sheen, so I took #320 sandpaper and lightly sanded the entire thing. Again, this paint is awesome!!

And that's how I made a PVC pipe lamp.