May 30 2007
Some Minor Renos - Part II
I was supposed to do some rewiring in the shed today, but that’s going to take a few more power tools so I’m leaving that until next payday (before Lisa notices how much I’ve spent so far). Instead I decided to sort out the interior of the shed using the materials and tools already at hand.
Of course I thought I had the right tools, but the one shelf inside the shed was installed using nothing more than 2×4s and 4″ nails, the removal of which cost me both the hammers I had (as shown in the picture above). Taking a small break to sneak off and buy myself a slightly more expensive hammer and a crowbar I returned to dismantle the wooden monstrosity, and installed two shelves at better heights in its place.
The shed still looks cluttered, but you’ve no idea. With the same items inside before there was no floor space what so ever, and getting anything out of the shed was akin to playing a game of Jenga. With the main shelf moved up the garbage is now stored underneath, and a second half-length shelf gets the assorted gardening odds and sods off the floor.
It’s not perfect, but it’s a damn sight better than it was this morning. More importantly however the shed door is no longer one I dread opening, which will make the rewiring considerably easier.
You really did screw up those hammers.
Sounds like you need to talk to KD about wrecking bar shopping.
Nah, already picked one up when I bought a replacement hammer. Fricken guy musta had 40 4″ nails in that “shelf”, kept find nails hammered in from all angles.
Ah well. I’m equipped for next time.
-GRIN-
After years of using ‘conventional’ wrecking bars, and more recently, those ‘wonderbars’, it wasn’t until KD and I got involved in that never-ending demolition at the cottage that we discovered ‘I-beam’ pry bars.
So make a note for future reference … this is the only way to go. They’re a bit pricey, compared to the conventional and flat bars, but they can get into places the others can’t, and because they’re rigid they can really tear stuff out.
Estwing is the brand name, but clones are available at the chains … http://www.estwing.com/bar4.htm
Wish I’d discovered these years ago
Looks good! Gosh, sounds like you’ve got the “never use a nail when a dozen 4″ spikes will do” demo blues like we do. I love my I-beam wrecking bar, but also have a quality hammer for the first time in my life and find it really makes a difference…
Looks like you’ve got your compost bin at last too!
Dad has and only ever needed one Estwing hammer for all hammering work, so I’d recommend springing the once and being content. They used to be one of those companies that if you brought a murdered hammer in they’d replace it with no questions asked.
I’m sure you’ve heard him say you can never have enough clamps? Every Engineer at work agrees.
Well I think the wrecking bar I have now should be just fine for the time being. I’m sure it’ll be adequate for the basement teardown/rebuild, but if we ever do go into the walls upstairs I may just take some advice.
Clamps? Jebus, he gave me a big box of clamps for Christmas. Clamps I have.
-GRIN-
But you can never have enough clamps. It’s just one of those things.
It’s the truth … you can never have enough clamps. I have about 50-60 of the little buggers, but still seem to run short at times.
I’ve even tried leaving them alone in the upstairs closet so they can breed … those wire coat hangers seem to be able to manage that, why can’t the clamps?
Nails?? Jeeze, screws are where it’s at. Good work on the shelves, space-making is premium-value labor - it’s organizational-design and that is the thinking worker’s “information technology.”