Drying cart for my garage

[wahoowad]

I would like to move some seasoned wood into my garage for final drying. I do not have good locations for drying on my property (lots of trees) although my wood seems pretty seasoned. Use of tarps, or stupid stacking where rain drops off the roof, have me wishing for some final drying in the garage.

My garage is more a workshop and I don't have a convenient area to dedicate to stacking this wood. The plan is to build a sturdy cart - imagine a pallet on wheels/casters - with some form of walls to keep the wood from tumbling off. This way I can fill the cart with wood, roll it somewhere semi-permanent, but be able to roll it somewhere else if I need to get at that area. I'm picturing something with a footprint slightly bigger than a pallet (or a big pallet) and maybe walls 3 feet high. The wheels are strictly for moving around the garage, not for loading and moving the cart around outside. I have a sturdy wagon for that.

This picture gave me some good ideas as I was struggling to think how to incorporate walls onto a pallet. I'm hoping to build this thing from scraps or scavenged materials. I wish I could think of some kind of sturdy wall that would allow maximum air circulation (fencing?). I'd have to buy fencing though. Seen anything like what I am describing? Any advice? I already have heavy-duty casters for the wheels.

 

[Eric Johnson]

Old iron or galvanized pipe makes good stakes. You might be able to find some scrap pipe that would work. Drill 1" holes in pallet stringers and slide the pipe lengths into them to make a rack.

Another good material for making wood racks are old chrome dinette chairs--you know, the kind that kind of bounce on the u-shaped chromed steel tube.

 

[Marty]

Planks backed with chicken wire would give you some air.

 

[Roospike]

I have a friend that uses the plastic tank holders and are made of steel. Its a pallet made of steel and has the screen cage. He uses 3 and put an axle on them and a ball hitch so he can pull them out to the wood pile , fill them up and bring them back in. His are a little larger then the pictures being shown. You could build one out of cattle fence and a bottom frame.

 

[wahoowad]

Sweet. A pair of bolt cutters and I would be in business. What are those tanks? Where would I look for some place that uses them?

 

[Roospike]

The FIRST place is would look is EBAY . There are a lot of different things these tanks are used for. When my friend got his 3 he took the tanks and made water tanks out of them to put behind his house to collect water out of his gutters and then uses the water to water his garden when the rains dont come down as planed. If you were closer i could build you all you needed. If you know a welder you could go to the farm store and got a lot of cattle fence and get some bottom support frame.

 

[wahoowad]

I can weld - just need to find some fencing like that cheap. Did I say CHEAP!?!?!

 

[Roospike]

I can weld - just need to find some fencing like that cheap. Did I say CHEAP!?!?!

Dont forget CHEAP ! I know the farm stores have the fence but i dont know about CHEAP . You might get lucky if you hit your local steel yard and also you can try your local metal scrap yard. Some times you can pick up stuff like that at the scrap yard for .15 cents a lbs. The steel yard will have expanded steel but your are looking at $0.75 - $1.09 a lb .