Monday, April 4, 2011

Getting Off the Grid Kevin Builds a Wood Shed

Getting partially "off the grid" is not that simple, but if you have a large backyard with trees that are aging out, a wood burning stove, a wood shed, and a willing helper, you have the  keys.  Kevin built the 4"x8" base first, then the four uprights, two longer, two shorter to give the roof a pitch, then the supports for the sides.
 Here Kevin is building a wood shed from 16 2"x4"x8' treated boards,
 18 4x8"x16" cement blocks,
 5 PALRUF clear corrugated sheets, 2 1/2" x10 square Drive Exterior Screws with an appropriate drill bit, and 3/4" Tecks self-tapping Screws.  He is cutting the roof with large Weiss Scissors to trim it a bit. The roof will be reinforced  with extra 1"x1"  wooden strips, for snow.
 Here you can see that he built it on top of the cement blocks so that the wood would get enough circulating air to dry properly.
 Logs are being split using a 20 Ton Ramsplitter Horizontal Electric Log Splitter.  Kevin had always split the wood with a maul and wedges, but we cut down several trees this year and the log splitter does a great job in short order.
 It was quiet and has a hitch and wheels so that it can be transported from house to house, as needed.
 Kevin points out the oozing sap in the center of a pine log.
 He carefully stacks the wood in a crisscross pattern in the corners of the shed, to gain maximum circulation.
 A metal garden cart with four wheels makes moving large quantities of split wood easy.
 I hand the wood to him and he stacks it.
 The log splitter hitched to the Ford Ranger pick-up truck.
Getting ready for next winter.  Great job Kevin!

4 comments:

Kat_RN said...

We keep wood that is cut to size and seasoned in the summer kitchen behind the house. We have long pieces that have not been cut yet and this years unseasoned wood out in the barn. We cut the long skinny pieces with a small electric chain saw but we have to get help with the big stuff. Real wood fires are wonderful.
Kat

Willow said...

You can cook and keep warm all winter! Well done!

diane b said...

A great picture story. Nothing beats a log fire in winter but we don't have the need for them here in the sub tropics.

Elizabeth said...

Good for Kevin!
I saw how the shed is filling up beautifully!
Such a happy day yesterday.