We got all those wood mill scraps cut up and stacked in the woodshed.
Category: Urban homesteading
In addition, be sure to check out our older posts about urban homesteading.
How to cut fiberglass insulation
I learned the hard way during some recent insulation work that a pair of scissors is painful.
The standard method of using a utility knife on a hard surface is good if you have plenty of room.
An electric meat carving knife is much better and quicker. It’s light enough to use with one hand while you use the other hand to hold on to the insulation.
Firewood Teamwork
How do we cut up those long wood mill discards in just the right size for firewood?
We now use a fence post next to some porch steps.
Anna pushes the board up against the fence post where I cut a piece that drops straight down.
Slowly but surely we are filling up the greenhouse woodshed.
Firewood stacking puzzle
We started cutting up and stacking our neighbors’ wood-mill throwaways.
A new problem cropped up. How to stack unconventional sized firewood?
This is what we came up with.
Is there a better way to stack these pieces of wood?
2×3 mistake
I chose 2×3 over 2×4 boards in an effort to make our caterpillar tunnels lighter.
We now know this makes them a little too heavy and prone to decay faster than expected.
I was able to fix the problem with some brackets but needed a whole new design.
The new version takes advantage of the light and strong steel rails used to support ceiling tiles in big buildings.
I also decided that a smaller structure is easier to move and less prone to damage.
Stay tuned for a more detailed post on the smaller and better caterpillar tunnel after we’ve finished driving it around the block a few times this year.
Bite sized tomatoes
We got a late start on our deck grown tomatoes.
A bit of a mix up on which variety this is but I really like the sweet taste and easy harvest.
This is the second year our deck tomatoes seem to be healthier than the ones we planted in the garden.
I like to split them down the middle to add a sweet dash of color to our salads.
12 cubic feet steel dump cart choices
Anna and I assembled a Craftsman steel dump cart while visiting my Mom recently.
The book says it takes 45 minutes to put together but we needed nearly 2 hours.
It’s a solid cart that can handle 750 pounds. Lowes sells it for 350 but Menards has a Yardworks version that is a little over 200.
Kohl Wheelbarrow update details
Some of the problems with restoring a wheelbarrow is the damage around bolt holes which prevents the round headed bolts from biting in so you can tighten them.
An exterior screw with a washer isn’t exactly flat but it seemed better than a traditional nut and fastened in nicely with the wood of the handles.
Zip ties helped me hold it all together without needing a second hand while I tightened everything down.
Kohl wheelbarrow demise
What about the Kohl lifetime warranty?
Not so fast. Kohl tools have a generous lifetime warranty but Kohl products do not.
They still sell the same 6 cubic feet Kohl model…now it’s 179 dollars.
Wooden replacement handles are 19 dollars which hopefully will give us many more years of hauling.
Tenax green plastic mesh
We used some green plastic mesh to add some walls to our woodshed structure.
The Tenax brand of garden fence material has been the mesh I prefer because it’s cheap and easy.
Next step is to get some firewood cut up and stacked for the upcoming Winter.