Our compost bins made from pallets

[chuck_n_grace]

Hi,
I have access to an almost unlimited supply of wooden pallets. Having done some searching on Google and Youtube, I decided to upgrade our compost bins to something larger and nicer. I'm linking to two videos that show my compost pile before and after we constructed the bins from 10 pallets.

Part 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LU_KF8IUthQ
Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxcoLkCJnTA

My wife and I are now researching other possible uses for the pallets. A couple of useful ideas are fencing around some of the uglier parts of our garden and a small shed.

Regards,
Chuck

[fran]

Well done, I also have compost bins made out of pallets. Another allotment blogger has also used pallets as a base for his shed and 'decking' for his seating area!

[gregorach]

The entire British allotment movement would grind to a halt without pallets. I doubt there's a single plot on my site that doesn't have some serving one purpose or another.

[clanpowell]

I too made mine from pallets. There's a book on amazon called Build it with pallets. Not got it myself but I do have the one from the same series about building animal housing and it's great so I would imagine that the other book would be as good as it's by the same guy. It's on my wishlist puely on the strength of the book I already have.

[chuck_n_grace]

Hi,
I told my wife last week that I could obtain a lot of free pallets. She was a bit skeptical. Then I sent her this link. She called me later and was very excited about all the possibilities.

http://summerville-novascotia.com/PalletWoodShed/

Do any of you have any posted pics so I can see what you've built?

Also, have you developed any 'secret' techniques at disassembling pallets?

Regards,
Chuck

[niknik]

Have a look here ( about hlfway down.couple photos to help with dismantling

http://www.downthelane.net/forum/viewto ... 44&t=23621

[chuck_n_grace]

Niknik,
That's a great idea using the pitchfork. I'm going to spend time tomorrow practicing on some pallets. In fact I picked up 8 more to go with another 8 I already had. I'm thinking of building a 3 sided lean to with a slanted roof.

Regards,
Chuck

[niknik]

Not my idea....... just a great post on another great site!

[greenorelse]

Have a look here ( about hlfway down.couple photos to help with dismantling

http://www.downthelane.net/forum/viewto ... 44&t=23621

Neat idea, thanks.

I made a few moveable fences to keep the ducks from going up me back passage. I can step over them or lift them with one hand.

[chuck_n_grace]

greenorelse,
I don't have ducks to deal with...just two young grandsons on the weekend...and the fence would have to be much taller. I like how you shaped the ends. Those curves look very nice.

I like the photo! I've a few questions if that is okay. Is that a greenhouse on the right side against your house? I like that wooden shed...did you design and build yourself? Or is that a kit? The water pump on the right...does that work? Is it just a barrel of water? Groundwater (shallow well)? Are those two pallets on the right being used as a trellis?

Regards,
Chuck

[chuck_n_grace]

I forgot! We have one of those useful but ugly IBC containers (265 gallons) with an aluminum frame by the corner of the house. It may be seen from the street. We have it connected to the downspout and it does a great job collecting rainwater...but it is ugly.

Took 7 pallets today and constructed a wooden pallet fence around the tank. It actually looks nice. From the street it's difficult to recognized the tank unless you knew it was there. I'll post pics soon.

Regards,
Chuck

[greenorelse]

I like how you shaped the ends.

And functional to a degree - they push into each other where there's a corner, which means the ones longways to the wind support those facing the wind.

Is that a greenhouse on the right side against your house?

It's a 'solar lean-to' - double-glazed with insulation under the floor. We grew heaps of tomatoes in it in 2010 which we've just this weekend finished.



We sat reading and drinking coffee in there today - the middle of January!

I like that wooden shed...did you design and build yourself? Or is that a kit?

A kit.

The water pump on the right...does that work? Is it just a barrel of water? Groundwater (shallow well)?

It's a shallow well and yes, it raises water. It was the only source of water for the animals (apart from our deep well) during the recent very cold weather as all the butts were frozen solid. It's about 6 metres down to the water so, as there's no foot valve, it takes three or four strokes to start the water. There's deliberately no foot valve so the water drains back down - otherwise that would have frozen too.

It's very cheap, this pump: see here. Good fun though.

Are those two pallets on the right being used as a trellis?

Ah, right, back on topic... No, they're a temporary prop to hold a store of turf, which is now being used.



Usually it's open to the elephants:



Note the recycled telephone poles!

[battybird]

greenorelse
"I made a few moveable fences to keep the ducks from going up me back passage. "
sorry just my dreadful sense of humour but I read this thread straght after the one talking about IBS problems!! Love the fencing too

Our allotment has many different uses for pallets and I often wonder who actually pays for them originally!

[subcomandante]

Amazing compost heaps, pallets are so handy

[clanpowell]

Inspired by the pics on this post I ordered the book I mentioned before. Build it.......with pallets by Joe Jacobs. It's great. The author's got a good sense of humour and there are projects ranging from fencing to a go kart! I would definately recomend it.