Pull-ups help you to build a strong upper body.
Pull-up bars for the home provide a way to challenge yourself and step up your workout without having to go to the gym. You can buy pull-up bars or stations that fit over a door frame, but these stations can seem overpriced for what you get, and they don't always fit perfectly. The design of a pull-up bar is simple to replicate. For a more cost-effective and perfectly-fitted alternative to buying a pull-up bar, you can easily and quickly make your own.
Instructions
1. Measure your doorframe carefully. Make sure the pieces of PVC pipe will fit. You may need to make some adjustments to the lengths of PVC pipe based on the dimensions of the doorframe you plan to hang the pull-up bar on. The key measurements you need are the width of the doorframe opening, the thickness of the doorframe opening from your side of the door to the other side of the door, and the height of the molding around the top of the frame.
2. Plan your construction and design before you begin cutting and assembling. The basic design for an over-the-door pull-up bar is a bracket-shaped length of pipe connected to a long bar that is wider than the door frame. Two horizontal pipes connect through the doorway and form 90-degree angles to connect to a second bracket-shaped structure, fitted to two T-shaped caps that will hold it in place over the molding on top of the door frame. You may wish to sketch this out to be sure you fit the pieces together correctly during assembly.
3. Begin to assemble your pull-up bar. The 2-inch long sections of PVC pipe will connect between the T caps, the 90-degree elbows, and the end caps. Use two of the T caps to connect the longest bar to the rest of the structure, fit the two 3.5-inch long sections to either end, and top with two end caps. Fit each piece carefully as you go, and glue into place with PVC cement. You may wish to dry-assemble the structure first to make sure it fits and connects together correctly before applying the cement. If you need to make adjustments, cut the pipes using a PVC cutting tool.
4. Assemble the two 8-inch long sections of pipe to the T-caps. These sections connect the long bar through the doorway. Fit two 90-degree elbows to the 8-inch long sections, and then fit the two 10-inch sections to the other end of the 90-degree elbows.
5. Connect the remaining two 90-degree elbows and two lengths of the 2-inch sections of pipe to the ends of the 10-inch sections. Fit the 2-inch sections with your remaining two T-caps, and connect the 14-inch bar to act as the back hanger for the structure. Fitted and connected properly, the T-caps will hold the structure in place over the doorframe from the other side of the door. Hang the pull-up station through the door so that the T-caps hold the structure in place over the doorframe on one side, and the long bar on the other side of the door fits snugly against the doorframe.
Tags: 90-degree elbows, long sections, side door, door frame, other side