Show Me Your Pallet Projects!

[gtaus]

Fodder Tower made from scrap wood update

I have posted my fodder tower made from scrap wood... cost me nothing for the wood.

I had to cut off the top 3 bin sections when I moved the tower into the house. As I said, I grow fodder in our spare bathroom (in the bathtub), and the complete tall tower was too tall.

So, the initial sprouting takes place in the bathroom, with very little natural light, and the bins stay in there about 4-5 days. The top 3 sections of the tower that I cut off is placed in my south facing dining room window to dry out the fodder for a few days and get a nice dose of sunlight to turn the fodder grass into a rich darker green.

It was a nice, bright, sunny day today so I thought I would take a picture of my finishing fodder tower in front the window.

Here is a close up of the top bin. I feed half a bin of fodder to my 10 chickens every morning. It's the only greens they get during our cold, dark, northern Minnesota winters.

My chickens absolutely love the fresh fodder. What's not to like? Like I always say, I feed the fodder as a supplement to their commercial, well-balanced feed. It is not a cheap substitute for the commercial feed they need for proper egg laying.

Anyway, the fodder tower was just thrown together with reclaimed wood I had laying around at the time. The plastic dish bins were from the Dollar Tree. It's a pretty good system with minimum labor involved in growing the fodder.

If you are interested in my build and learning more about fodder, check out the article I posted here on the BYC forums.

My $10 Inexpensive DIY Fodder Tower with Dollar Tree Dish Bins

 

[gtaus]

Just came across this eBay ad for a fodder tower - only $179.95! Really!? For those following the pallet wood project thread, make your own for zero dollars with reclaimed or pallet wood. I guess I should have patented my fodder tower idea and made it public domain. Anyways, you can still get my easy build plans here on the BYC forums for free if you are interested in making your own fodder tower.

 

[gimmie birdies]

Above is my gate, but for the winter I used a pallet on it's edge and put 2 poles in the slots to hold up the roof (below) It is hard to see but there are 2 dark posts near the tree. The 2 light colored skinny posts are in the pallet holding the roof.

You cannot tell but the little roof is keeping the snow off the gate and I can swing it open normal. Any how I stay up all night thinking of how to improve my coop. (I would rather sleep) I used to have an awning like the one above over this door, for some reason I took it down. I then I was not using a pallet for the base. I am going to bring back the awning before the next fall.
(I know the coop looks bad- but it has good bones don't worry.)

I will get pics when I build it.

 

[gtaus]

(I know the coop looks bad- but it has good bones don't worry.)

Thanks for the pics. My chicken coop is also due for a facelift this spring/summer when I can get to it. Have to do some wood repairs and a paint job on it this year. Not complaining, but 3+ years on the initial build needs some exterior maintenance to keep it in good shape.

 

[raingarden]

Chicken coops come with some tradition that should not be trampled on with glitz. Take rustic to the extreme.

 

[gtaus]

Pallet wood raised garden bed design considerations...

OK guys, I don't' want to pretend to state that there in only one way to make a pallet wood raised bed, but recently I came across a YouTube video where a young lady was talking about all her "mistakes" in design of building her raised beds out of pallet wood. I'll link to that video a little later. But first, let me show you what I consider a good design for a pallet wood raised bed and what makes this type of design better than other options.

What I want to call attention to is the 2X4's frame on the outside, and the pallet wood slats on the inside of that 2X4 frame. There are a number of advantages to this design. First of all, the 2X4's are screwed together with GRK fasteners in his build. Here is a nice picture of the type of screw he is using.

Notice that top of the screw head has a built in "washer" to add additional strength and holding power to fasten one 2X4 into another. You could do the same thing with a regular screw and washer, maybe even less expensive, but the idea is that the washer provides lots of additional strength to the frame compared to a regular screw and narrow screwhead. So, in the first place, your raised bed frame is going to be rock solid. You can do the same with nails, adding a washer to extend the nail head for more holding strength.

Next, I want to point out that the pallet wood slats are attached to the inside of that 2X4 frame. There are a number of advantages to that design. First of all, the raised garden bed soil can get heavy, and it pushes out on the sidewalls. If you have the rock solid 2X4 frame on the outside of the build, then the pallet wood slats on the inside are held in place by both any nails/screws you used to fasten the side pieces, but also by the outward pressure of the soil in the raised bed. That is important to consider.

If you fastened the pallet wood sidewall slats on the outside of that 2X4 frame, the weight of the raised bed soil and the outward force on those slats would weaken their hold over a much shorter time period and you would have what I would call "blow outs" when the wood deteriorates and the planks no longer hold on to the frame. You can see that problem in the second video I will link to about mistakes she made in her build.

Another advantage to using the slats on the inside of the 2X4 frames is that you can use lots of boards that are not quite the same height. All you need to concern yourself is that the top edge, which you see, is aligned. The bottom edge of the boards, which you cannot see, are covered by 3-1/2 inches of that outside 2X4 frame. That gives you a good 2-1/2 to 3 inches of room to use those shorter plank pieces you might have laying around. Have I done this? Absolutely. And you will never know because you cannot see it at all behind that lower frame.

I normally make my raised garden beds and planters 16 inches tall. With the 2X4 frames on the outside, I was able to use any of my shorter pieces 13 to 16 inches tall. I cleaned up lots of scraps in the wood box on one build alone. Don't throw out those shorter pieces! You might find a good use for them!

Now for the "mistakes" video I was talking about. This lady is providing a 3 year update on her pallet wood raised beds. They are falling all apart after only 2-3 years. She is pretty hard on herself. It's not the pallet wood that was the problem. It was how she built the raised beds, or the design of the raised beds, that failed her. Although I am not a carpenter, I was easily able to see how her intial design of her raised beds would not hold up over time. I'm sure they looked just fine when initially built. But she made a number of mistakes that she will talk about so you don't have to make the same mistakes she did. I think it's brave for someone to share and show their mistakes so others can do it better. Anyway, here is the 5 minute video of how not to do it....

One thing she mentions in her mistakes video, is that she would put a plastic liner inside the raised bed to protect the wood from rotting out so fast. That is an interesting idea. If you can protect the wood sidewalls from direct contact with the wood planks, I imagine your boards would not deteriorate as fast. In another thread here on the BYC forums, we were discussing if stapling those empty feed bags to the inside of a raised bed would help protect the wood sidewalls for a few years longer. I know some of my empty feed bags have a plastic-like feel to them. They are not all paper. And, I would think, they might last a little longer as a liner. Tell me what you think.

Also, I would appreciate anyone suggesting a non-toxic way to "treat" the pallet wood in a raised garden food bed to help the wood last longer. I have avoided any treatment of the wood at all because I grow food in my raised beds. But if there is a food-safe way to add years of life to my pallet wood raised garden beds, then I would love to hear about it. Thanks.

 

[raingarden]

But if there is a food-safe way to add years of life to my pallet wood raised garden beds, then I would love to hear about it. Thanks.

In the old days we used copper sulfate. It stunk to high heaven but is not a carcinogen. The only toxicity concerns are associated with the application process.

Thompson's water seal is completely non-toxic and works surprisingly well. It is the easiest thing in the world to apply and the more raw, new and pourous the wood is, the better it works.

 

[gtaus]

In the old days we used copper sulfate. It stunk to high heaven but is not a carcinogen. The only toxicity concerns are associated with the application process.

I think I'll pass on the copper sulfate. I read online that it can damage your lungs. I already damaged my lungs while I was in the Navy. Don't need to make things worse.

Thompson's water seal is completely non-toxic and works surprisingly well. It is the easiest thing in the world to apply and the more raw, new and pourous the wood is, the better it works.

I'll have to check on that. Sounds like a better option than the copper sulfate.

BTW, any ideas on if stapling empty plastic-like feed bags to the inside of a raised bed would help at all? Just trying to bounce the idea of people to see if anyone has tried it and if it works, or not.

 

[raingarden]

BTW, any ideas on if stapling empty plastic-like feed bags to the inside of a raised bed would help at all? Just trying to bounce the idea of people to see if anyone has tried it and if it works, or not.

They are certainly strong enough. We sometimes fill them with sand or rocks and stack the bags for errosion control.

Without any first-hand experience, I'm a little bit skeptical of using feed bags for protecting wood. You can not easily make the overlap between two bags waterproof so moisture and microbes are going to get back there regardless. Moisture plus microbes equals rot. A blue tarp sheds water when put on a roof, but they are not waterproof and moisture will seep through. Feed bags are made of similar stuff. If you set a new bag of feed on moist ground it will start to mold at the bottom in just a few days.

I appreciate your posts. Let us know how it turns out.

 

[BDutch]

Pallet wood raised garden bed design considerations...

OK guys, I don't' want to pretend to state that there in only one way to make a pallet wood raised bed, but recently I came across a YouTube video where a young lady was talking about all her "mistakes" in design of building her raised beds out of pallet wood. I'll link to that video a little later. But first, let me show you what I consider a good design for a pallet wood raised bed and what makes this type of design better than other options.

What I want to call attention to is the 2X4's frame on the outside, and the pallet wood slats on the inside of that 2X4 frame. There are a number of advantages to this design. First of all, the 2X4's are screwed together with GRK fasteners in his build. Here is a nice picture of the type of screw he is using.

Notice that top of the screw head has a built in "washer" to add additional strength and holding power to fasten one 2X4 into another. You could do the same thing with a regular screw and washer, maybe even less expensive, but the idea is that the washer provides lots of additional strength to the frame compared to a regular screw and narrow screwhead. So, in the first place, your raised bed frame is going to be rock solid. You can do the same with nails, adding a washer to extend the nail head for more holding strength.

Next, I want to point out that the pallet wood slats are attached to the inside of that 2X4 frame. There are a number of advantages to that design. First of all, the raised garden bed soil can get heavy, and it pushes out on the sidewalls. If you have the rock solid 2X4 frame on the outside of the build, then the pallet wood slats on the inside are held in place by both any nails/screws you used to fasten the side pieces, but also by the outward pressure of the soil in the raised bed. That is important to consider.

If you fastened the pallet wood sidewall slats on the outside of that 2X4 frame, the weight of the raised bed soil and the outward force on those slats would weaken their hold over a much shorter time period and you would have what I would call "blow outs" when the wood deteriorates and the planks no longer hold on to the frame. You can see that problem in the second video I will link to about mistakes she made in her build.

Another advantage to using the slats on the inside of the 2X4 frames is that you can use lots of boards that are not quite the same height. All you need to concern yourself is that the top edge, which you see, is aligned. The bottom edge of the boards, which you cannot see, are covered by 3-1/2 inches of that outside 2X4 frame. That gives you a good 2-1/2 to 3 inches of room to use those shorter plank pieces you might have laying around. Have I done this? Absolutely. And you will never know because you cannot see it at all behind that lower frame.

I normally make my raised garden beds and planters 16 inches tall. With the 2X4 frames on the outside, I was able to use any of my shorter pieces 13 to 16 inches tall. I cleaned up lots of scraps in the wood box on one build alone. Don't throw out those shorter pieces! You might find a good use for them!

Now for the "mistakes" video I was talking about. This lady is providing a 3 year update on her pallet wood raised beds. They are falling all apart after only 2-3 years. She is pretty hard on herself. It's not the pallet wood that was the problem. It was how she built the raised beds, or the design of the raised beds, that failed her. Although I am not a carpenter, I was easily able to see how her intial design of her raised beds would not hold up over time. I'm sure they looked just fine when initially built. But she made a number of mistakes that she will talk about so you don't have to make the same mistakes she did. I think it's brave for someone to share and show their mistakes so others can do it better. Anyway, here is the 5 minute video of how not to do it....

One thing she mentions in her mistakes video, is that she would put a plastic liner inside the raised bed to protect the wood from rotting out so fast. That is an interesting idea. If you can protect the wood sidewalls from direct contact with the wood planks, I imagine your boards would not deteriorate as fast. In another thread here on the BYC forums, we were discussing if stapling those empty feed bags to the inside of a raised bed would help protect the wood sidewalls for a few years longer. I know some of my empty feed bags have a plastic-like feel to them. They are not all paper. And, I would think, they might last a little longer as a liner. Tell me what you think.

Also, I would appreciate anyone suggesting a non-toxic way to "treat" the pallet wood in a raised garden food bed to help the wood last longer. I have avoided any treatment of the wood at all because I grow food in my raised beds. But if there is a food-safe way to add years of life to my pallet wood raised garden beds, then I would love to hear about it. Thanks.

I used a dark fungi ‘paint’ as a preservative for my wooden chicken constructions (normal cheap wood).
Its not toxic and works great for over 5 years now. It needs a bit of line-seed oil every 2 years to keep the fungi alive.

https://theexplodedview.com/material/fungal-coating/
https://www.fungiforce.com/
It’s a Dutch invention and sold in Europe. But I don’t know if you can buy it in Canada /US.