I was gonna suggest a piece of furring strip on the floor up against the wall of course if it was me I would have plywood on the wall because I would damage that metal too quick.😊
A 2x6 or 2x8 at the base of the wall will keep the pallets from damaging your metal walls. And yes plywood wainscoting on the walls would have been a good choice for covering all the walls instead of metal siding on the entire walls. Best choice for garages and work shops.
Just a thought on protecting your walls, Adam - consider a 2x6 “bumper” attached horizontally along the wall, about waist high, with a spacer behind it to accommodate the ribs in your panels. Much like you’d see in a hospital to protect the walls from gurneys bumping into them. I always refrain from “you should…” comments, but I’d hate to see a rogue basket get away from you and cause damage to those pristine walls.
i had to learn that lesson as well. Fixed vs. swivel, always go with the swivel and better material. I never got a chance to say how much I enjoyed the garage build. Both, the breezeway and garage look awesome, especially with the added sightlines.
I really enjoy watching your videos. My wife and I had a firewood business in Pennsylvania and we have since moved to Florida. I’m sitting in my hot tub drinking a cup of coffee watching your videos and smiling. I have done everything that you are doing now. I can agree with many of the comments in the comment section because they are right and everybody has their own way of doing things. You do whatever works for you and enjoy the trip. Every time you come up with a new way to do some thing with firewood I just smile because I did that too. I have absolutely no criticism, only enthusiasm and all smiles watching you do what you do. There are very few things in life that I can say “I have done that before”, but anything to do with firewood I am pretty sure that I’ve done it. Keep making the videos and keep having fun. Your family will always remember it. I can’t wait until I get to the episode where you bust your ass constantly to provide for your family and then somebody steals your equipment one night in a snowstorm when you weren’t looking. That’s a good one for another time! In the final episode, you end up getting everything back in a very unlikely way!
Your garage, without a doubt, has to be THE cleanest most pristine residential garage that I have ever seen. Most impressive, with the steel siding on the walls and the ceiling. Talk about maintenance free. Thanks for sharing. Pallet concept with the large casters on IBC toes appear to be a great idea. Greetings from Ontario, Canada.
Nice going. I really like the blacked out nail. Hands of a workin man right there. I think casters tend to work better when you have 2 swivel wheels and 2 straight. That's the way they do it on heavy tool boxes. Thanks for all the content you bring to us project loving viewers.
Adam… I like it! I built a similar cart for my PTO leaf vac. I used carriage bolts on the inboard holes and long enough lag screws to go into the pallet runners on the outboard holes to attach the casters. Thanks for the real life comparison of the four different models of casters.
Great videos Adam! Lots of good suggestions mentioned in the comments. I like the 4x4 placed on the floor along the wall... no need to permanently fasten to the wall or floor. Just use treated wood because termites can eventually burrow up through the concrete (they have on my concrete shop floor). Also, regarding the pallet jack taking up space issue... just park it under one of the totes.
I put everything in the shop on casters. My shelves, workbenches, implements, and attachments are all on casters. I typically build my own pallets. It makes moving things around much easier. A pallet jack is great if your moving things around all the time, but for me the pallet jack is just something that will not get used very often and take up valuable space.
Adam I’m sure it’s been mentioned but I’ve utilized a pallet jack to move pallets in my pole building and garage and it works great. Every tractor attachment I store in the pole shed is on a movable crate like you did. It makes life so much easier. Hope to see you at Paul Bunyan this weekend.
I bought the HF six drawer service cart that came with heavy duty 5” rubber casters. The cart was rated for 1200# and I probably had half that weight and it flat spotted a caster within six months. Changed casters out to the 6” polyurethane and they seem to be holding up well.
perfect! I was thinking of something similar but was concerned about the weight based on what a video Morgan did on weight of a full tote of wood. that was green wood though. The other concern on a design was if a tote could slip off a pallet if you hit a stone or crack in the floor. I had considered adding blocks on the inside of each corner to ensure the tote couldn't move on the pallet. Thank you for this. Great content on what to buy and not to buy and how they perform. 👍👍👍
Great video Adam, I would definitely add a 2x6 along the bottom of your wall to act a wheel stop to prevent accidental dents, treated 2x6 as it will be ground contact. Personally, I like the locking casters better, and from a cost savings side, it makes economical sense. Good job adding bracing on the bottom of the pallets as well. We learn by making mistakes and I commend you for showing it on You Tube, it takes a humble person to do that.
I use the totes in my garage but I just bought a pallet jack to move them around I also screwed some treated 2x6 to the side of the wall at the bottom so the tote doesn't touch the wall I only have drywall so it would be pretty easy to poke a hole in it
For my job we build assembly’s for construction offsite and ship to site. These are usually shipping on wheels for easy of movement onsite. We have found that the rating of the wheels needs to be 2times the actual load if you want it to move decent. Also we now use 4” screws when attaching the 2x4 sleepers to the bottom of pallets.
This is a really good system. No heavy lifting, no unnecessary walking to transport, no critters living in the woodpile, no rotting logs on the bottom.
I have put caster on work benches and tables before and think having 2 fixed wheels with 2 rotating ones work better to steer into places. Could you put a pallet or thick plywood "inside" the bottom of the cages? That would lower center of weight and make reaching the wood in back easier. Like others have said, putting something along wall would help protect it from getting bumped, maybe a 6" tall piece of plywood would work. Nice idea!
Hey Adam, love your videos and also your YouTubing neighbor as well, just wanted to add a suggestion on improving audio in your videos.. Rode wireless mic setup which is 2 little boxes that you can clip one to your shirt or even plug in a lapel mics to it and then when you are away from the camera demonstrating something you don’t need to yell or raise gains post video which brings in all kinds of outside noise… I just started using a setup about 6 months ago and have a couple videos with them. My latest video old Man trying RC car on my channel you can see how good the audio is with me way away from camera. Keep up the good work love the life you have build for yourself
That's what I was thinking as well. But I can't find videos of people moving I.B.C. totes with pallet jacks. I wonder if one would even work with the other. If I needed to move 20 totes per month , it would be good to know
Great idea. The only thing I would change is using nuts, bolts and lock washers for greater stability on your build. I find that safer than screws. Again - great editing and cool topic.
Rockie and I are on the same page. Instead of a 4X4 though, I’d try a 2X4 or 2X6. You could glue & screw the corner with the 1-1/2 side touching the floor. It will save you a few inches. Obviously you’d want to be sure you still had wiggle room with the loss loss if an 1-1/2” against the wall. For my 2¢ worth you might want to see if you have a store that deals strictly with wheels & casters. I am fortunate enough to have a place in Omaha called Judah Caster. They have every conceivable wheel on mown to man for every application. All types of materials. That said you pay for it too, but you do it once. Thanks Adam! See you in the next installment.
I have casters on everything in my shop. Makes it easy for old age. I would suggest you get a pallet jack for your purpose. A good one does not cost as much as you might think. I have used one for years in my barn. It is much easier to move and pinpoint location. You can put anything on a pallet to move or store it, like machinery, parts, furniture, cabinets, etc.
You can basically zero turn a pallet jack easily. I would strongly suggest buying one. They are very handy and can be had for around $100 at all these big box stores going out of business left and right.
I do the same but with big bags containing one cubic meter which is about 80% of a short cord (16''X4'X8'). I fill them directly from the wood processor, no stacking. Less manipulation is always better unless you really enjoy stacking. Big bags containing less are not as heavy and easier to manipulate.
I would have opted for 2 fixed and 2 swivel castors per dolly, setting the fixed wheels in the direction of the lower support beam (the one you strengthened). This setup prevents the dolly wheels from wanting to do something else than you🤣. Just make sure the last few inches turn the dolly into its spot, so they can be persuaded to swivel when you need to take them out. Another thought: 6 dollies, 4 wheels per dolly, makes 24 wheels at $17 a pop totals over $400. With the setup I proposed (2 fixed, 2 swiveled): 12 fixed wheels at $12 and 12 swiveled at $17 makes about $350. A hand pallet truck would probably set you back about $300 with the extra benefit of being able to just drop the totes on the garage floor and pick them up and arrange them as you wish. You could have them all in the garage if you wanted. The missus would also be able to take it for a spin - it rolls way easier (and without the danger of reinforcements breaking off 😉) and it is much safer. I see it is called a pallet jack. I also see stuff like that is way more expensive in the US 😳 More importantly: you have thought this through, so never mind
The casters make things so much easier for moving things around. Just an FYI if you use carpenter glue when putting stuff like that together it will be much stronger.
I'd suggest 4" or 5" 3/8" lag screws with 1" washers to fasten the cross pieces to the pallets. Also, use glue to bond them together prior to screwing them together. The use smaller lag screws to fasten the casters to the cross pieces. Added strength and safety would be worth the additional cost.
If you haven't seen Mike Morgan's Video today, I would suggest it, might be something you could include in your Firewood Business, just a suggestion. Your Video is great. BTW, I almost jumped out of my chair when those wheels gave way...
for the load those carry, and the maneuverability you want, try adding another set of casters in the middle of the pallet, 6 per pallet, see if that works better. the load will be distributed better, and may swivel better. Just a thought
I used 4 Dowels that were 2”x4’ from Home Depot I could push them to the back of the garage in a straight line it was hard to do but I could do it . but then luckily I found a Brocken pallet jack I got for free but it’s a double pallet jack so it’s hard to maneuver in my a small garage but it only cost 54 cents to fix it ! 😜
For heavy loads I believe larger casters work better, especially if you are moving things on rougher surfaces. It’s worth it to use ones built for heavier loads than you actually have, to make it roll smoother. I regret not getting ones with brakes for a moving cart, on even a slight slope it tends to “escape.”
Hi Adam. I've used the HF casters also. But I use the neoprene or solid metal casters. They roll easier on concrete. Love the video and I love the garage as well. Todd at GSW.
Hi Adam, Checkout the Posch, Packcix firewood storage system. Also, they make locking casters that use a pin to hold position. It makes it much easier for one person to move around. Just one or two per pallet is all you need. Try McMaster Carr for them. Shalom/gw
I had to get behind my Craftman tool boxes to repair an outlet, I was suprised how easily they moved now that they are full to the max. My wood stove is in the basement so I back my covered trailer up to the sliding glass door and w/ an awning over the door I never get wet.. I used my garage before but it's not big enough..
You should always try to offset your fasteners in both pieces of wood. think of them as little wedges. If they both go into the same grain line, you have a better chance of them splitting the wood.
Just an idea. Put pool noodles on the floor behind the baskets. It will be the spacer preventing you from pushing the dollies into the wall. They will be out of sight when in use and can be removed during spring and summer.
DARN GOOD IDEA!!! I'm definitely stealing this one for use in my shop. One thing you may want to consider though is, going on marketplace and buying some of those blue (or gray or black) plastic pallets. I think they'll be much more durable, and they're between 10 and 20 bucks each. I'm pretty sure that they'll also be plenty sturdy enough to screw the casters into them as well.
Adam, enlist Doug. You might try some 4x4 material under the firewood cages and the run in some long lags, as well as attaching the 4x4 to the aluminum/steel. Yes, I’m an engineer.
I am a stagehand that has had a lot of experience in workshop and I can’t tell you the brand casters we use because we get different ones and I can’t remember. I can tell you we get heavy duty 900lb 4” casters that we bolt on. That’s 900 each. Everything is over engineered. But what I was going to say. If you are not moving these a lot and they are not in humidity don’t grease it just oil it. Gasoline or wd40 for cleaning out old hard grease.
Here's another project suggestion. Portable Work lights on portable poles for both the splitter and processor. The motors on the machines provide the power for four l.e d. Lights . The days are getting much shorter and you could get three more hours work done in the woodyard . Even if you only get a trailer load done a day. That's four cords a week.
Then when the tote is empty I can’t just take it off and bring a new full basket up and set it down on the dolly. I will likely go through 9-12 baskets per winter which means I will swap empty baskets for full ones a couple times through the winter
Adam, you might think about installing a curb against the wall at floor level to keep things from bumping into the wall. Just something as simple as wood beams from the saw mill would work. Lord knows that first dent in the wall is going to be hard to not stare at. If you had a pallet jack, it would be in the way the other 8,759 hours of the year it's not being used.
10/21/22. 2day 👀'd your attempts to put reliable casters on (thin wood) pallets to support heavy load of split firewood in those metal (ubc?) cubes. Suggest you up-size & invest in 2x6 dimension lumber; fasten flange top of casters w/coarse thread screws. We all go thru a kind of trial & error on making dollys..I am using 2x6's/8" no'-flat swivel casters as I must roll thru pea gravel, dirt & some grass. Your 3"-4" hard wheels work on solid surface/cc/blacktop etc. Much enjoy yur videos; beautiful property & great looking equipment. Stay safe & carry on...👍👍👍👏🛠⚙️🔧😊
If you put some 2" thick base base boards along the floor, the pallets will bump against that, instead of smashing the metal on wall. This is how van trailers protect their walls by having the kickboard along floor to space out the pallets. As long as the pallets are as wide or more than the totes, it will protect walls.
Hi Adam, When anyone buys those wheels they should first oil/grease the ball bearings and remove the shafts in the center of the wheels and grease the shafts also before you use them. Those bare steel wheel assemblies will rust if you don't paint them. It is better to use 2 fixed wheels on one end and 2 swivel wheels on the other end of the pallets, instead of using 4 swivel wheels.
Great idea my only concern is that when little man comes out to get wood it may want to move or slide and trap or land on him I hope the wheel have locks on the wheels
After 3 trips to Harbor Freight, those cheap casters ain’t so cheap anymore. Sometimes the “buy once cry once” approach pays off in the end. Also, I definitely would have swept the floor before I started rolling those totes around.
That tip-over was scary!! Thank God you didn't get hurt!! My hubby uses wheels like that on his workbenches, & he buys the locking wheels - they work well!! Another great video. Thanks! God bless you and your family - He surely did bless you with that wheel failure protection! 😵💫 Ooops, I should have watched it all, before commenting!! You got the locking wheels!! 👍❤️ One more edit...could you just attach the wheels to the aluminum totes & not have to use the pallets??
Hi Dianne, I could but then when one basket gets empty I can bring a new full basket up and set it on the dolly. I may rotate through 9-12 baskets per winter so having 3 Dollie’s that can interchange baskets makes sense
One suggestion: If you want to save on the wheels, and your weight limit is around 1000 pounds, you can buy the little hardwood dollys that Harbor Freight sells, the 12x18 is around 14.00 and you get 4 wheels. I used one of these to replace all the wheels on my tool chest. I possibly underestimated the weight of a 330 tote filled with split firewood.
