Professional Documents
Culture Documents
by Spike Carlsen
For Peter Hasselquist the original backyard homesteader and Kat my partner in all things
Sneak Peek
This is a sampling of pages from The Backyard Homestead Book of Building Projects Text and art are not nal and may not be shared, copied, licensed, or distributed without permission.
Storey Publishing
www.storey.com
Book of
Spike Carlsen
Storey Publishing
Foreword
often say that a backyard homestead is not just a place, but a place of the mind. Its an approach to life that leads you to want to make something rather than buy it, no matter how much (or how little) land you have. After all, you can make yogurt or preserve fruit or sprout grains whether you live in an apartment or a house with 10 acres. Wherever you live, any skill you acquire is a step on the path to self-sufciency. At some point, though, the homestead becomes an actual physical place that requires some level of infrastructure a few tools, some raised beds, maybe a chicken coop or a bee hive. It requires careful planning; when youre ramping up to the point of keeping larger animals, especially, you need to think seriously about how youll house them. But sometimes little things can make all the difference on a homestead: a well-built place to store your root vegetables, an organized way to stash tools, a sturdy hoophouse that wont collapse under a load of snow. This is where the rubber meets the road, where the hoe meets the soil, where the dreamy homesteader of the mind must hunker down and learn some building skills. And this is where The Backyard Homestead Book of Building Projects comes in handy. First of all, Spike Carlsen is the ideal teacher. A master carpenter with more than 30years experience and a true afnity for the homesteading life, Spike is superbly qualied to lead novice backyard builders through a variety of projects, from simple to complex.
With his background as a homesteader, he understands what one needs on the homestead and has selected projects with practicality, usefulness, and thrift in mind. In my own garden, Ive been lucky to have friends and neighbors show me the ropes. When I was building the fence around my garden, Ron Kujawski co-author of The Week-by-Week Vegetable Gardeners Handbook and his wife, Pat, and my neighbors Brian and Diane came to offer guidance and several days of elbow grease. Im not sure what I would have done without them. The days when I was working solo (or with another inexperienced helper) were full of snapped fence welds and smashed ngers. Also, the hoophouse in the garden would still be a pile of metal hoops and a roll of plastic in the garage if it werent for the Kujawskis and my friend Sarah FournierScanlon, who spent a day in the garden with me, pounding stakes and sharing hilltown gossip. As you read this book, think of Spike as your virtual neighbor the homestead mentor you wish lived next door. Whether hes teaching you the basics of using a circular saw or how to build a shed from the foundation up, hell give you the skills you need to take another step down the path to self-sufciency. Happy homesteading! Carleen Madigan Editor of The Backyard Homestead
VII
THE PROJECTS
POTTING BENCH
(page 85) Crafted from standard cedar boards and lumber, this potting bench has a large work surface for working with plants, and plenty of space above and below for storage. The side bins provide a convenient place to stow dirt, clippings, and other gardening materials as you work.
(page 36)
FLOWERPOT SMOKER
(page 133) You dont need piles of wood and expensive equipment to smoke your own meat. This owerpot smoker using a hot plate for heat and wood chips for smoke can cook everything the big boys can (just on a smaller scale).
3
HOOP GREENHOUSE
(page 90)
Add months to your growing season with this hoop greenhouse made of PVC pipe, plastic sheeting, and standard lumber. It is easy to erect and disassemble for off-season storage.
CONCRETE PLANTERS
(page 263) A ve-gallon bucket, a cardboard tube, and a bag of cement are all you need to form these inexpensive planters. Create the perfect home for those back stoop spices and herbs.
CHICKEN ARK
(page 198) Build an excellent home for your eggs-cellent friends. The spacious coop and run provide plenty of wing room, and the built-in handles allow you with the help of three friends tomove the coop around your yard or eld.
CHAPTER 1
W I DT H Nominal Size Actual Size 1" 3" 5" 7" 9" 11"
Many of the projects in this book are for outdoor use; you should pick your lumber accordingly. Treated lumber cant be beat for strength, price, and longevity. Its commonly available in a wide range of dimensions. On the downside, its often so saturated with preservatives that it spits at you when you drive a nail through it, its heavy, and it doesnt take stain well until it dries out (see The Dirt on Treated Lumber, page 73). Some treated lumber also tends to twist and warp as it dries, so nail it down as soon as you can after buying it.
Note: The width of 8", 10", and 12" material can vary up to " from the actual size listed here.
Decking material, sometimes referred to as 54 or ve-quarter material, can range in thickness from " to 1". Its a great material to use for furniture and other projects since its usually straight, dry, and relatively knot-free. Several projects in thebook call for it; make sure to tweak the given dimensions based on the actual thickness of your material.
Shears and clippers will cut faster and cleaner when sharp. In both cases, begin by removing the bolt that holds the two blades together. Wear thick leather gloves, and be careful! Clippers: One by one, secure the blades in a vise. Rock a mill bastard le back and forth along the edge to feel the existing bevel of the blade. Once youve established the correct angle, push the le along the entire length of the blade in long, even strokes. Unless your tool is extremely dull, it should take fewer than a dozen strokes to restore each edge. Pruning shears: Clamp the curved-blade (sharp) half of the shears in a vise. As with clippers, feel the angle with your bastard le, and then make one large swooping stroke along the entire cutting edge. Check your work after each stroke; a smile of bright, shiny steel should be growing along the bevel with each pass. Clamp the crescentmoon-shaped half in the vise and use a half-round le to atten the inside of the curve.
You can easily restore the tip of a chipped or worn screwdriver. Straight-slot screwdrivers: Position the tool rest of your grinder square to the wheel, and then grind the tip of the screwdriver at. Finish by adjusting the rest to a very steep angle and tapering the tip. You can also do this by gripping your tool in a vise and sharpening with a hand le. Phillips screwdrivers: Use a le to slightly atten the tip, and then use the square edge of the same le to deepen the four side grooves. Square-drive screwdrivers: Use a le to atten the tip, and then give each of the four tapered sides a few strokes to atten them and restore the original size of thetip.
Sharpening Screwdrivers
push
half-round le
Three projects for turning trash into treasure or at least good, rich soil
the optimum size for a compost pile is somewhere between 3 3 feet and 5 5 feet. Smaller, and your pile may not heat up adequately for efficient decomposition; larger, and not only will your pile be harder to turn, but air will have difficulty reaching the center material, resulting in less-efficient composting.
hook-and-eye closure
4 4 FOR TH E GAR D EN
116
182 A NI M AL S H ELTER S A N D FE E D E R S
252 FOR TH E H OU S E A N D YA R D
Materials*
(per pole)
One 10-foot cedar 44 One 4-foot cedar 44 Gravel Wood preservative Scrap 24s (or other lumber; see step 4) Concrete mix Two 3" lag bolts Sixteen " 2" screw eyes Braided " cable Four cable clamps Two turnbuckles Five " 2" screw eye bolts or clothesline pulleys Clothesline One decorative fence post cap per post
*All hardware and cable/wire must be rust-resistant.
notches in each, as shown. Set a circular saw to cut 1" deep, and make a series of cuts between your marks. To create the notches, use a hammer and chisel to remove the ngers of wood.
TA K E N O T E The tighter the notches t together, the more solid and wobble-free the crossbar will be. Err on the side of making the notches too narrow, test-t the pieces, and then gradually widen the notches as needed.
2. Fit the notch of the crossbar into the notch of the upright to
create a T, and use two 3" lag bolts to secure the crossbar and upright to each other.
inches of gravel to the bottom of the hole to promote drainage. Position the pole in the hole, determine the best height for your clothesline, and remove the pole and cut the bottom to length as needed. Soak the cut end in wood preservative, to extend the life of your pole.
42"
3"
3"
1"
Clothes pole and trellis wire construction screw eye or clothesline pulley
cross bracing. Fill the hole with concrete, checking the post with a level to make sure it remains plumb in both directions. Overll the hole slightly, and shape the concrete into a mound that slopes down and away from the post to help shed water. Let the concrete harden overnight before moving on to the next step.
small cable clamps to secure one end of the braided cable to the uppermost eye on the upright. Thread the cable through the eyes as shown, keeping tension on the cable. Secure the other end of the cable to a turnbuckle hooked onto the lowest eye. Use the turnbuckle to tighten the cable. Tighten the turnbuckles evenly on both sides so you dont rack the crossbar out of whack. Install a wood or copper fence post cap to the top of the upright to protect the end grain and add a decorative touch.
cable clamp
16"
16"
turnbuckle
concrete
2 54 FOR TH E H OU S E A N D YA R D
Woodworking FAQ
304 pages. Paper with partially concealed wire-o. ISBN 978-1-60342-729-6.
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Drying racks, outdoor cookers, and root cellar storage help you prepare
and preserve fresh food.
Whether youre a new woodworker or a seasoned expert with power tools, youll nd projects sure to make your life easier. Clear instructions guide you through every step required to build 76 useful items that perform exactly as promised.
The Backyard Homestead Now with More Than 200,000 Copies Sold!
This fascinating, friendly book is brimming with ideas, illustrations, and enthusiasm. The New York Times Book Review
Mini Tool Shed, page 158
ISBN 978-1-61212-085-0
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and A Splintered History of Wood and former executive editor of Family Handyman magazine. He has been involved with wood and woodworking for more than 30 years and lives in Minnesota.
EAN