More things that can be built with 2x4s

A ramp for the shed which *should* be capable of supporting the industrial drill press that's currently in there.

Quick (stackable) sawhorses using these plans, currently minus the plywood caps.

Updates (and pictures) to follow.

One thing led to another...

I built a dolly:

I did this because I need to clear and rearrange space in the living room, workroom, and attic to receive a bunch of (mostly) books from back east that have been sitting in a storage locker for several months longer than my father would like. This sudden flurry of boxing and moving boxes and furniture contemplation led to the following:

1. Box up books in one corner of living room. Consider placing them temporarily where the desk is currently located.
2. Realize the bookshelves that are also coming from NY would fit well where the desk is, and decide to place something else in that space, something that will be gone before the shelves arrive.
3. Decide to take all the stuff I agreed to store for someone for the month of August and put it in the place where the desk resides currently. Plan to move other things to the foyer where the stored stuff is currently.
4. Realize all this is contingent on moving the desk.
5. Remove everything from the corner where the desk will go.
6. Empty desk drawers, clean top, finally unplug and put away various electronic devices atop the desk that are no longer being used.
7. Find that desk is too heavy to move by myself.
8. Mutter 'I could do this if I had a dolly.'
9. Decide to build a dolly.
10. Get sidetracked for an hour sorting all the lumber I rescued from the theater festival strike by size, even though I only need four pieces of wood.
11. Finally begin this fifteen minute construction project:

You'll need:

• 2x4s (I went with 2@18" and 2@25")
• four casters
• carpet padding or scrap carpet
• staple gun and staples
• 2.5" screws
• power drill and bit set

Cut your wood and lay it out, ensuring everything squares up. Fasten with at least two screws per intersection; predrilling recommended. Remember to keep the screws to the outer edges of the intersection to make sure you can place the caster in the center.

Cut the carpet padding to size (a little hanging over all edges is best - the point is to protect anything you're dollying) and staple directly to the top surface of the 2x4s. If you're using carpet, you will need heavier staples or possibly tacks.

Drill a hole dead center of each intersection. The casters I had are threaded, so I chose a bit a little narrower than their dimension, inserted a caster, hand screwed it one or two turns so it was firmly in the hole, then used an adjustable wrench to tighten them down. (These casters, conveniently, had an octagonal plate between the wheel and the stem.)

12. Use new dolly to move desk fifteen feet. Call it a day and plan to deal with the rest of the living room tomorrow.

I need this like I need another hole in my random metal rectangle

UPDATE: Figured it out - these are rail tie plates for railroads. They'd be attached to the tie and the rails would lay on top of them. I put two and three together when I found another one attached to a decaying tie used for a landscape boundary in the backyard. Why these were buried next to the house, I can't say for sure - they quite possibly were forgotten during some renovation project.

I haven't Googled that thoroughly, but anyone know what these things are? Heavy old metal, possibly iron, about ten inches long (each; there are two in these pictures, next to each other). These were uncovered while digging an inch below the grass, but I've found one of these lying around in my basement as well.

Oh man! Today I did stuff!

97 degrees today and I decided to work outside most of the day. With the breeze, working mostly in the shade, and drinking plenty of water, it was fine (I think - check back tomorrow to see if I'm dead). Peaceful at times, actually - a good day's work in the great outdoors, or whatever a small backyard is considered.

All the joists are laid out and soaking up rays. 95% of the gravel has been moved from the yard to the new parking spaces, to be spread about soon. Tomorrow I'll flip the boards and figure out how to stow them where the gravel was, thus freeing up my driveway for, y'know, a car or something.

This would probably make more sense with pictures. And it would probably matter more if anyone were reading this blog aside from me. You are? Well click on an ad to say hi or something.

Tomorrow: more stuff. Yes.

Lumbering about with lumber

Remember the other big pile of wood? With two straight days of near triple digit sunny weather, I'm temporarily covering my lawn with the stuff to dry and de-mold it, and see what condition it's in. Then maybe I'll sand some of it, but mostly I think I'll just be wrapping it tightly in plastic and putting it somewhere else in the yard for use next year. Oh the planning...

Cheap building materials you say?

In my never-ending quest for the right fittings for my reclaimed-materials bookcase, I traveled to my local Habitat for Humanity Restore, a veritable treasure trove of stuff I shouldn't be thinking about buying because I don't really at this moment have a use for it. Windows and doors, plumbing fixtures, contractor remainders of all types - it's a great place to pick up cut-rate materials, although you can never be sure what will be in stock. I left with four 4x4 beams (non pressure treated) at $2/piece. Worth checking out the one in your area.

More stuff

A gravel expansion of angled parking spaces next to my still technically gravel driveway continued apace today. Details and pictures soon, when it's complete. So maybe not so soon, really.

And also today, two revelations about mulberries:

1) They are delicious. I knew they were edible, and had even started looking up things one can make with them online, but hadn't actually tried real nice ripe ones until today whilst wandering around the yard talking on the phone with an old friend.

2) They stain things. I knew they stained my hands and the tarps on which they've fallen over the last few years, but I just realized that maybe they could also stain wood. This could add an interesting, very purple, twist on projects in the future.

Related - noticed that the black walnut by the driveway is bearing fruit this year, so homemade stain plans are definitely back on the agenda for fall.

Spring balances - a note of caution

If you've skimmed this blog, you know I like salvaging old building materials for new projects.  Such was the case with a set of 60s era windows, still in frames, out of a house up by the lake.  Disassembling the frames to free up the sashes is pretty straightforward - you just need a little patience to separate the pieces without splitting to much of the wood.  The reason for this post is just a bit of fair warning about the object on the top right of the frame in this picture:

These are spring balances - one per sash - a technology still very much in use today.  They are just a strap wound and spring loaded in the case, and attached about a quarter of the way down each sash:

I've seen a few of these with rubber straps, but typically they are thin, flat metal. With very sharp edges. The safest way I found to approach these is to relieve the tension on the spring - free the sash from the frame and tilt it so the strap can retract almost all the way (see next to last photo).  Then and only then should you try and release it from the hook inside the sash.  Wear gloves (seriously) and safety goggles (no reason not to).

Another big pile of wood

These are actually pretty cool, and I hope they're in good enough shape that I can get a lot of use out of them.  One of the old buildings downtown is being completely renovated.  As part of this, they removed and replaced the old floor joists - and I hauled them back to my place for nefarious purposes.  In the process, I confirmed that I really want a pickup truck.

After cleaning all this off the planks....

I have 40 or so planks of 4-6+ feet each.  They look like oak.  They are definitely 100+ years old.  And if enough of them are in good enough shape, I think I've got a deck, a nice floor for the back room, or at worst some serious shelves and furniture.

And in the critter file, this fierce creature decided to set up house under the original pile.  I've tried to cover the cleaned wood a little better...

Why I love flea markets

Three dollars.

Tuesday

Bullets, because it's been a long day:

- applied for permit to have the shed put in out back; looks like that will be fine
- hung a couple of pictures (long overdue)
- dragged all the old shed up to the driveway and sorted the scrap pile into aluminum and steel
- cleared some undergrowth from around where I plan on having the shed installed
- pulled down some broken branches that were stuck in other branches after that storm a few weeks back
- cleared some brush from the area around where the shed should go
- tried installing a missing storm window in the dining room. Having trouble finding one that's the right size - moreover, the sash cords are broken on that window and at one point the lower sash slammed down and I lost a piece of 100 year old glass. C'est la vie. Tomorrow I'll take that whole storm down and try and get something to fit.
- moved a lot of furniture and tools around in the living room because I had one half of Ian Wilson's band crashing overnight.
- older note but worth mentioning: cleaned several of the downstair's radiators' steam valves with vinegar and now have minimal whistling.

What to do with a large pile of wood

1) Build a step stool for reaching ceilings.

2) Build a sink stand for a portable slop sink (There's a pic around here someplace).

3) Put in a temporary floor in your attic so you can move around without fear of falling through a ceiling, and store stuff for a garage sale someplace other than the laundry room.

The Big Pile of Wood and Other Things

In an effort to both clear stuff off my camera before an upcoming trip and put my various scattered pieces of knowledge about the house in one place, I'm adding a few other categories to the blog - materials and tools, and projects that haven't been started. Maybe they'll help me get a better view on what can happen.

This post, of course, doesn't really cover either. But here are three things that have happened around the house in the last few weeks:

The College is renovating part of Severance (as well as several of the dorms) and Hans and I pulled all of this lumber out of a dumpster. Some pieces have cracks and splits but there's at least a 6' run on each stick that's good, most are 8-10'+, plus two long planks of 2x10 or 2x8 (I don't remember now). It's enough lumber to almost create a floor in the old 8'x8' shed out back, except I've decided to take the shed down and get a new one. Most of the quick constructions you'll see on the blog in the coming weeks are made from these 2x4s - free lumber is a good thing.

Speaking of the shed:

This is most/all of the stuff that was pulled out of there over two days. Some salvageable lumber, some salvageable other things, and then about 20 bags of trash. The bricks on the right came from a decades old attempt to create a floor. Not visible are the 20 or so flagstones salvaged from next to the shed. Thanks to Benny and Molly and Ellen for doing most of the hauling (for pay).

And speaking of Hans:


I just had to get this shot of Hans falling asleep on my couch mid-crossword.