Recycling Pallets for DIY home use!
Using waste wood to create furniture, fencing, pet housing etc
Summer 2009 saw a special Category in the Down the Lane Forum named 'Project Planet'. This encouraged Members who had a 'DIY Slant' to get out the hammer, nails and search around for old Pallets and finding a use for them.
What came out of this was not only the expertise some people have, but the imagination to come up with various ides; some simple and effective and others quite intricate.
Looking at the pictures on the right and below you can see some of the participants work.
The most interesting points are that not only are we recycling products which would probably end up on a bonfire or rotting around spoiling the appearance of Industrial Estates, but saving a small fortune at the same time!
All you need is a bit of time, but using that you are achieving an item which is your own, it's your design and built exactly for the purpose and space you have.
Pallet Project Pictures
1. Mallard's Table and Storage Box
. If you're looking for Garden frugality, Allotments are a great place to look around, but this has exceeded Frugal - it's 'a proper good job'!
2. Ch1Ck4NDave, A nice corner Compost Bin
3. Manda's Potato Box
4. Suechef Once more, a corner Compost Bin. This of course means only two pallets needed!.
5. Mallards very fine and well structured Fruit Cage
6. Manda's raised Vegetable Beds
7. Sebrahs kids are kept happy for the time spent sawing off the ends of a pallet !
8. One of my old efforts, about 7 years ago (the Bench, not my son, he's now 20!!).
9. Meanqueen's Shelf Unit, soon to become a Book Case. A lot of sanding required for making pallets look good inside the Home. Read more of Meanqueens Frugal Life on her Blog 'Life After Money'
Bottom of page various uses with Chickens in mind!
Below
Left is Al's winning Chicken House(or as he calls it 'Buckingham Pallet' - oh dear !!), what savings there ! Second left is Suechef using the left overs from the Compost Bin to make a Chicken Playground! Second from right, Manda from New Zealand's Pig House, what an effort ! and finally, far right is Jake7hen's Chicken Run, with varnish as well!
So you can see here what just a few Pallets can do for you and save you quite a bit of money.
The main thing about this is that it takes us back to basics, takes us back to before the Credit Card and Power Tools, takes us back to a time we used the resources around us. Each item built has the builders name written on it, no other will look the same, it is a unique item built solely for a purpose and for yourself.
If you took there being just one Compost Bin on this page, I would guess the overall savings for the items would be not far off £1,000. Take the Chicken Shed, one that size would be £300 plus and it probably wouldn't have tucked itself into the space right either !
Even a Pallet just as is can be laid down on the ground to stand stuff on and avoid it getting damp from underneath. The hardest part is the splitting of the wood, but usually a good crowbar, hammer and brute force will sort it out.
Tip - If you can't prise the wood apart, leave the nail in and saw through the join thus sawing the nail in two
Naturally, I have to say that taking a Pallet without permission is not the right thing to do, so you should always ask first. Normally you'll get a look of amazement that you even asked, but I've never been turned down yet.
See all the above mentioned Projects in the DIY Projects from Recycled Materials Category on the Down the Lane Forum . The Forum now boasts over 200 posts a day on subjects from Chicken Keeping to Strictly Come Dancing, via more relative things of course !!
