We have an ad campaign here in Seattle / Washington... "Recycling, It's Easy To Do".

Iv'e arrived at a point in my life (49 years) where I find that old stuff is better than new stuff. So, when new stuff breaks, I look at it and try to figure out what "new useful thing" can I make out of that "new broken and no longer useful thing". I think this is a great mental and physical excercise for us prepper types as it helps develope and hone improvisational skills.

Here's an example.

Over the summer I use two five gallon paint buckets to make a compost tumbler. Cut the bead off one bucket and cut flanges in the remaining lip. Insert the flanges into the second bucket, drill holes and pop riveted them together. Used a dremel to cut a hatch in one bucket and some old hinges and a window latch make it swing open and lock closed.
Drilled a hole in either end to slip a piece of pipe through and then several air holes in either end.

It works great! Fill it with veggie scraps from the kitchen, grass and yard clipping, ,little water and tumble by hand every couple of days. In a couple of weeks I have some great rotted veggie matter to mix into the garden beds!

So... anybody else invented new stuff from old stuff? Let's hear our experiences and ideas.

BrudderT

test

I have made a foundry for sand casting aluminum, zinc, iron, and brass. I am following the Gingery Series of making your own metal shop. The only modification thus far is, instead of using charcoal and blow dryer I use a souped up propane burner. The first casting project will be for completing the lathe. After work today, I will be going to the junkyard to get some 3x3 angle iron to build a bending break for another project (a new tool box). I'll report back with pictures from time to time.

Added Tuesday 10/13/09
http://once4all.wordpress.com/2009/10/13/my-diy-bending-brake/
I finished it!

Small cabin made from scrap wood that I have collected.

what are you going to use as a floor?
packed earth?
or do you plan on milling some of those 6xs down for flooring?

just dirt for now. I hope to finish the roof by next sunday. I may add a floor out of some additional strip wood that I have.
Thanks for looking. My boys are excited to stay overnite in it!
It is 12' x 12' all the wood was free

great!
Free wood is always a bonus.
Check the jobsites for long pallets and cribbing.
For the trades it is very common for the pallets to be made out of 1x4s and 2x4s.
A lot of the wood cribbing used in the steel erection construction is 3x3s, 4x4s and 2x6s.

Best of it is that it's usually free for the hauling.