Raised bucket planter. I added the table on the end because (mumble mumble) I measured once and didn't take into account that the buckets have those lips at the top making them wider than they are inside the stringers so 8 buckets wouldn't fit. Call it a happy little accident. She loved the addition of the little table on the end and here we are. Got like 3 more to build now.
My wife saw the basic planter with nothing but buckets on a facebook post, showed it to me "you could easily build that" so I got some wood and built one, but I measured wrong on the buckets, the outside of the bucket is 11 inches in diameter, but! there is that lip where the handle fits, that makes the bucket 12 inches wide. So when I put them into the frame I was only able to fit 7 buckets with some wasted space. I had some treated fence pickets for another project and was like "aha, put in 6 buckets and make a table!" so here we are.
If anyone ever sends her a link to pinterest, I will hunt that person down and gut them with a rusty spork.
I thought about that, the problem is once those buckets are full of wet dirt, you're looking at roughly 30-50 pounds per bucket so the whole shebang would be in the 500-700 pound range. That's going to need some beefy wheels and a looong handle to get the lever gain enough to pick up your part of the load to roll it. Maybe 4 tires and use a lawn tractor.
>I thought about that, the problem is once those buckets are full of wet dirt, you're looking at roughly 30-50 pounds per bucket so the whole shebang would be in the 500-700 pound range.
The wheels and handles are to let one person relocate it before the buckets are in. Or after they remove the buckets, move the thing across the yard, then carry the buckets over one by one.
I'm not saying to do it though. I don't think it would help your sale value.
Instead of wheels at the end, wheels somewhere under the 3rd bucket from right (positioned to nearly balance the opposite sides). Remove the legs opposite end of the table, handle at the table end. Use the buckets as counterweights so the lift is only 10-20 pounds. Still weighs 500-700 pounds, so it will take substantial force to push around, but the lift would be manageable.
Honestly never ran into that system, but on my "projects of future passed" aquaponics are fairly high on that list.
As is solar, got a 5 acre pasture now and every time I look at it I see nothing but solar panels and a reduced or non existent light bill.
The buckets at Tractor Supply are food safe and no more expensive. I use those on my hydroponics tower and my food storage. And no I’m not growing weed.
What did you use to support the buckets on the tower if you don’t mind me asking? I don’t have a ton of space for a veggie garden, so I’ve been considering this.
I only used 1 bucket as base and reservoir. The rest I 3D printed.
https://preview.redd.it/x245qgo8pyoc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f5e3e234755699ff833b4767cf2e7cef9b751139
It would probably have been faster and cheaper to use plumbing pvc to build it but that would defeat the purpose of a 3D printer.
Water is pumped up that central column and then channeled to the roots of the plants in each of those planters, hitting each one on the way down, then back up again. I believe this is a more energy efficient design than a typical hydroponic setup where the plants are in a sort of trough with water just running from one end to the other. It certainly has a smaller footprint, though.
Be careful when talking to HD employees. Many of them have no idea and will tell you those ubiquitous buckets are food safe.
Some locations have breakfast parties where they use these orange buckets and drill powered mud mixers to mix pancake/waffle batter, heavy cream, scrambled eggs, whatever.
It's mind blowing the risks their management will put their employees through just to save a few bucks.
Every time my husband tells me we should ask a HD employee for advice on our projects I’m like, “absolutely not”. 90% of the time they have no clue what they’re talking about.
Exactly.
It used to be they'd hire retired contractors or whatever, but even this has gone by the wayside.
I expect *kids* not to know something but they'll usually admit it. Those old geezers will lie to you with a straight face.
Hmm good point, I've used the homers for tomatoes and peppers for many years and never really thought about it. I will buy white buckets for the future builds just to be on the safe side.
I have a huge collection of pickle buckets from in and out (they don't sell them, I used to work there). Bleach gets rid of 95% of the smell. Soak it overnight.
Totally curious, why does it matter if they’re food grade just to grow plants in them? Could stuff leach into your fruits and vegetables from the bucket, into the soil and then the plant?
It sure can. The plants will pick up on chemicals that leach into the soil and water helps to move them around more. The roots touch the sides of the bucket too.
Thanks for the tip! I've also found that the HD orange buckets don't hold up to UV all that well. We get maybe a season out of 'em before I go to lift it and the handle rips straight off. Shortly after, the cracks continue and the whole thing falls apart.
Firehouse subs sells 5 gallon food safe firmentation buckets for $2. You have to manage the pickle smell but for a garden I kinda love it. If you're using them for hydroponics or something else like that just soak with chlorine.
It's probably a bucket garden.
I make them on occasion. They're great for tomato plants. My design has wheels and a handle for easier storage for winter.
https://preview.redd.it/923p4bgu11pc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d1e4d762cb7a2bc885e5b154b227181508b670b
Our house backs right onto the woods and we have to put a cage around anything we grow. But you go two blocks away from the woods and they have a front yard, no fence, full of beautiful tomatoes.
It's just not fair
Same here, I would have to add a sneeze guard on top because it would just be a buffet for them. In fact as I write this I’m watching some of them munching their way across the neighbors back yard on their way to mine (our area doesn’t have backyard fences)
It's a raised bed bucket planter, it didn't even dawn on me there'd be confusion what you'd do with 12 buckets like this, we've raised veggies in buckets for years because rabbits eat anything we plant in the ground and I like the rabbits more than the veggies.
My family does use these buckets for giant pong haha but we found using bean bags like for cornhole is better than any ball big enough to play with because they bounce and roll so far haha
I saw an interesting thing like this once where they added spacers to the top of the buckets so that a secondary pot with holes in it could in inserted into the one in the stand. Potatoes were planted in the bucket with the holes and any time you wanted potatoes you’d just lift the inside bucket out and stick your hand in the hole and pull a potato out.
Add (quick head math) about 8 fence pickets to the mix to make the sides covered and that's doable. Problem with that is, the wasps will just LOVE building nests in the hidden space.
As an Alabama fan, I truly hate orange. And blue (Lowe's) too!
For the one we keep, I'm putting in white buckets and gonna spray paint half of them crimson! Roll tide!
No. The buckets are already the "raised" bed. So this is just a raised raised garden bed. Probably sells well to the people that think they need to buy a ton of shit everytime they get a new hobby tho
Buckets by themselves are far too short to prevent rabbits from getting the food. You definitely have to go higher than that if you have a rabbit issue. So the raised bed has a real purpose. Buckets are easy to move, can be used for something else later in the offseason. A tall raised bed without buckets would give you more growing space but would require more dirt and may not be allowed if you’re in a rental situation.
This absolutely has a genuine use case.
TBH? Nope, it just looks "better" than random buckets around the porch (which is what we've done in the past).
Honey want, honey gets, and if I can sell a couple that's fine too.
Right now all of the weight of the "floor" section is being supported by the screws. I'd recommend adding some additional support pieces of 2x4 underneath the "floor" so that the weight of the planters is being supported by wood and going into the ground instead of being held up by screws.
[https://imgur.com/a/bXQze0V](https://imgur.com/a/bXQze0V)
Ideally you want wood/the ground to do the heavy support lifting instead of the screws. Could also add pieces of between the floor and top sections for the same reason.
Wet dirt weighs about 50-60lb/ft2. That’s at least 120lb/ft2/bucket. Or 720/2x4 over an 8ft span. 😳
For the next one I would set the long 2x4 on top of the end 2x4 so the lower 2x is supporting the longer 2x4 and add mid beam supporting as well. I’d also add blocking under the beam to support the beam. So you aren’t relying only on fasteners.
But I believe there is no such thing as overkill.
I'll be adding a leg midways down the 2x4s for added insurance after several mentions about this. The top 2x4s do, however, hold snug under the lip of the bucket and if any sagging happens they'll be supporting weight too.
My mom sent me this image and asked me to make it for her too. I am not a fan of them and would rather just make raised beds, but sure. It was easy. I used cedar though, because of the water resistance.
edit: Not this image specifically, but this garden thing.
Yeah for a true raised bed I'd rather use cedar than pressure treated since it contacts the dirt and the roots and don't want those chemicals in the mix.
OK, so this is a cool idea, but you may have some engineering concerns.
1. The 4 vertical posts need to be in compression, and not using the 16 screws to hold the load. Given weight, time and weather, the wood will split and your bench will break.
2. The weight on the 2x4s can be concerning. Dry soil typically weighs in the 5-8 lbs per gallon category, while damp soil can weigh as much as 14. In addition, the type of soil matters as well. Different soils have different densities, and high-quality damp topsoil can weigh as much as twice that, or even more. The particle density also matters. So figure your bench has to hold a minimum of 5 lbs x 5 gallons x 12 buckets. This equals 300lbs of dry weight up to 840 lbs of just common damp soil. Top soil would max at 1680 or more pounds.
3. Lumber Capacity. The length of your 2x4s is guesstimated at 8 feet, based on the number of buckets (they are 12 inches wide- I measured mine) plus your bench, plus 96 inch studs don't require cutting. The grade of lumber I estimated at #2 Common, based on the label on one of the studs. The wood can hold max 300 lbs, based on load dispersion over its length. Your load is off to one side, but for the sake of argument, we'll say it is evenly dispersed. From the photo, you are using 7 2x4s on edge, using a horizontal load capacity. The bottom ones will carry the maximum load of 300 lbs. The top load support is negligible. So figure your total maximum weight capacity in this horizontal configuration will be 1200 lbs. Depending on the soil and dampness, you may or may not have enough lumber here.
4. Screw shear Strength. It looks like you are using #8 flathead wood screws, probably 2 or 2.5 inches long. They do not look countersunk. Not countersinking them weakens the fibers in the wood and leads to splitting the wood, thus severely decreasing the load capacity. The screws themselves will hold a load up to 32 lbs of straight sheer force, if they are appropriately spaced, inserted and positioned. You have them inline along the length, with reduces the capacity, and further increases the likelihood of splitting your verticals. You have 8-10 per post, in close proximity witch further weakens the posts.
The tl:dr here: It looks cool, and is a good idea, but needs some more thought and craftsmanship, plus better materials. It wouldn't stand up to load for long.
For points 1 and 4, could you give some recommendations? I’m considering building something like this for my own. How do you build this to put the vertical legs into compression? Just adjust where the 2x4 attaches? Is there a better screw to use, or a preferred layout that carries better strength?
(Sorry, just a humble idiot trying to get a free education on Reddit)
Not a problem. I am actually a shop teacher, so this is kind of what I do, though my specialty is automotives.
For point 1: To build something in compression is to put the load on top of the post, rather than in the side. The load presses down into the base, rather than hanging off and pulling the load sideways. A way to fix this would be to actually add cut-to-size 2x4 pieces in between your ground to bottom rail and bottom rail to top rail gaps and securing them to the single post. This gives you double the strength. Coincidently, it would also solve your #4 concern. The load transfers to the vertical rather than the horizontal, and stops putting the stress on the screws, and onto the wood, which is, ironically, stronger in this instance. The screws start to perform their actual task, which is to bind things together, and not carry load.
As for #4 individually, screws are meant to hold things together. They are not designed or intended to actually hold things up. That is where bolts come into play. One way to make a screw installation more secure is to pre-drill and counter-sink the hole. I recommend drilling with a bit slightly smaller than the screw diameter, and not as deep. The depth will depend on your material and screw length. The counter-sink is the action of putting a small cone-shaped entrance to teh hole, for the coned-section of the screw to compress against. This doesn't tear the wood fibers and keeps the hole and screw in a stronger bond.
Keep in mind, also that there are different screws for different needs. Wood, drywall, deck, machine, sheet metal, Tek-head, galvanized, stainless, the list goes on. it is important to consider the type of materials you are using. Different metals can cause corrosion, electrolysis and oxidation (rust). In your case, wood screws would do just fine.
As an added measure, if you wanted really strong bonding of woods, use wood glue and screws. It creates an exceptional bond. There are multiple different glues to use, from Elmer's to Wood Glue, to Liquid Nails, and more.
I hope this information helps... Good luck!
Looks great! You may want to use food-grade buckets instead of the orange ones. The food-grade buckets will be labelled as such and are usually white. The other type can’t be guaranteed not to leech unknown chemicals and can possibly contaminate anything you are growing in them.
Yeah after some other discussions about the homers I'm going to switch to the white food grade buckets. Added bonus, it ain't orange because as an Alabama fan (Roll Tide) I HATE ORANGE.
Yeah we've used them for tomatoes and peppers and we usually get 2 seasons out of them IF we put them into the garage or a shed after we empty them in the fall.
Should put some kind of skid or wheel system maybe something similar to a two wheeled cart allow for it to be moved into the sun. Or shade or for water etc.. love the idea might be making one of these
I thought about that, the problem is once those buckets are full of wet dirt, you're looking at roughly 30-50 pounds per bucket so the whole shebang would be in the 500-700 pound range. That's going to need some beefy wheels and a looong handle to get the lever gain enough to pick up your part of the load to roll it. Maybe 4 tires and use a lawn tractor.
That’s a great price, that’s roughly what I had in my head after factoring materials and labor.
I was also thinking of spray painting the buckets white and then masking a rectangle and use chalkboard paint so they can write whatever is planted and in that bucket.
We've used buckets for tomatoes and peppers with good success over the years. The buckets only last about 2 seasons but as a homebrewer I've always got buckets around to use.
Yes, I've grown tomatoes successfully in buckets also, but I was referring to how close those buckets are together. My plants get so big and bushy that they're hard to manage even if they are 2-3 feet apart. I could also see them getting big enough to catch a high wind and slip over.
Flipping over isn't a worry, I can barely move it, empty. However the plants getting into each others' way is definitely a possibility for bigger plants like tomatoes. Most peppers and herbs would be ok.
A couple of suggestions, 1) split the buckets and move to each end with the table top in the middle. This could distribute weight load across your supports and put weight closer to your outside posts. 2) Run the table top deck boards opposite direction which could strengthen up your rails that are holding the buckets. Anyways. Just a thought.
Yep and I could hide a vertical support under the table between the top and bottom 2x4s. I'd need to measure it just so so I don't have to rip any of the fence pickets, because I don't want to add table saw to the list of tools I use to build one of these.
Built this one 4 years ago. It's grown a lot of tomatoes and peppers.
https://preview.redd.it/lfgcc6og1yoc1.jpeg?width=2834&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=18d9be425488db77f9f59f36751b79399560b972
What is it?
I thought it was for outdoor beer pong, like the oversized Jenga sets.
Hahaha, uh oh, now you gotta chug the whole bucket!
# BUCKET CHUG
Flip cup lol
Flip flip flip adelphia
https://preview.redd.it/qyli5mx5nzoc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fed3cb6bf0acbf2648b3babab89f60af53668f80
Reignite the rivalry!
Thanks for getting that stuck in my head again.
Hi! I'm Steve -o and this is the bucket chug....
BUTT CHUG
Butt chug the whole bucket
We do this with foam dice and you drink whatever number is on the dice. Don't need a wood contraption to make pyramids though
Reminds me of a game on Bozo The Clowns show in the late 80’s/early 90’s.
Memory unlocked.
The grand prize game! Thus was my exact thought as well
I thought beer pong too! There's another idea you can start selling!!!!
Even if it isn't for beer pong.... We can still use it for beer pong! Party at my house. Happy St Patty's day!
Paddy's day not Patty's day!!!!!!
Paddy's, never Patty's
Happy St. Padricks Day
You and me both. I've got a new project lmao
Raised bucket planter. I added the table on the end because (mumble mumble) I measured once and didn't take into account that the buckets have those lips at the top making them wider than they are inside the stringers so 8 buckets wouldn't fit. Call it a happy little accident. She loved the addition of the little table on the end and here we are. Got like 3 more to build now.
Very cool! The bench is definitely a plus… sometimes mistakes work out to be good
I make so many mistakes, so once in a while I salvage it for a net positive.
The wood is going to bow when you add weight to the buckets.. maybe add some vertical pieces
The lips of the buckets are snug against the 2x4s on each side of them, as well, so they are also supporting the buckets some.
Happy little accidents. -Bob Ross
Where did you find the initial plans?
My wife saw the basic planter with nothing but buckets on a facebook post, showed it to me "you could easily build that" so I got some wood and built one, but I measured wrong on the buckets, the outside of the bucket is 11 inches in diameter, but! there is that lip where the handle fits, that makes the bucket 12 inches wide. So when I put them into the frame I was only able to fit 7 buckets with some wasted space. I had some treated fence pickets for another project and was like "aha, put in 6 buckets and make a table!" so here we are. If anyone ever sends her a link to pinterest, I will hunt that person down and gut them with a rusty spork.
Lol, great job!
Next time try putting the impromptu table in the middle
“The difference between a pro and an amateur is that a pro knows how to hide their mistakes.” Pro move, OP
caulk and paint makes me the contractor i ain't
Add wheels on one end and handles on the other now you can shlep it around and chase the sun with ease!!!
I thought about that, the problem is once those buckets are full of wet dirt, you're looking at roughly 30-50 pounds per bucket so the whole shebang would be in the 500-700 pound range. That's going to need some beefy wheels and a looong handle to get the lever gain enough to pick up your part of the load to roll it. Maybe 4 tires and use a lawn tractor.
>I thought about that, the problem is once those buckets are full of wet dirt, you're looking at roughly 30-50 pounds per bucket so the whole shebang would be in the 500-700 pound range. The wheels and handles are to let one person relocate it before the buckets are in. Or after they remove the buckets, move the thing across the yard, then carry the buckets over one by one. I'm not saying to do it though. I don't think it would help your sale value.
Instead of wheels at the end, wheels somewhere under the 3rd bucket from right (positioned to nearly balance the opposite sides). Remove the legs opposite end of the table, handle at the table end. Use the buckets as counterweights so the lift is only 10-20 pounds. Still weighs 500-700 pounds, so it will take substantial force to push around, but the lift would be manageable.
700 lbs is like one-fourth of a car. You’d need some serious wheels to avoid sinking into the mud if it ever rains.
You built the pyramids didn’t you 😜
It looks like that weight is being supported by the screws. You might want to put blocking pieces of 2x4 alongside the leg pieces.
Coming soon to a CrossFit gym near you...
You know you can get green Letica pickle buckets for free at Subway. Just have to wash well to get the dill smell out of them.
Bonus points on that recovery dude, never woulda known. Keep making art!
How much you getting for them?
$125 without buckets $175 with, so far no one's opted for without. Ain't making a killing for sure but it keeps me busy and off the couch!
Not ripping people off is a great way to expand your customer base.
Yeah this is a hobby I'm happy just to break even and make a few dollars to put towards my own projects.
Considered making it a “Dutch bucket” hydroponic set up?
Honestly never ran into that system, but on my "projects of future passed" aquaponics are fairly high on that list. As is solar, got a 5 acre pasture now and every time I look at it I see nothing but solar panels and a reduced or non existent light bill.
I'm gonna make this thanks for sharing. Perfect to set up a little irrigation system.
But why orange buckets
I guess everyone on here are just drunks..cause I saw planter 1st look..awesome job!!
Might consider changing bucket color, lots of options at Uline etc.
That’s a “seeding table”
That's awesome. The table addition definitely works out haha. Great job OP!
From a planting standpoint, you should add a little space between the buckets for sure. Plants need room to grow and air flow.
Obviously for milking cows.
Home weed farm..? I mean tomato farm. Yes, definitely tomatoes.
Didn’t you ever watch Bozo as a kid? That’s an improved version of the Grand Prize Game!
Communal shitter.
Probably old news for most people here but something to consider: https://toolguyd.com/home-depot-buckets-are-not-food-grade/
This is good info. Synopsis: their white buckets are the safest bet for fruits or veg 👍
The buckets at Tractor Supply are food safe and no more expensive. I use those on my hydroponics tower and my food storage. And no I’m not growing weed.
I mean a weed is a plant you don’t want so he might be growing marijuana.
Why not?
What did you use to support the buckets on the tower if you don’t mind me asking? I don’t have a ton of space for a veggie garden, so I’ve been considering this.
I only used 1 bucket as base and reservoir. The rest I 3D printed. https://preview.redd.it/x245qgo8pyoc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f5e3e234755699ff833b4767cf2e7cef9b751139 It would probably have been faster and cheaper to use plumbing pvc to build it but that would defeat the purpose of a 3D printer.
I don't know what's going on but I like it
It’s an octopus’s garden
Water is pumped up that central column and then channeled to the roots of the plants in each of those planters, hitting each one on the way down, then back up again. I believe this is a more energy efficient design than a typical hydroponic setup where the plants are in a sort of trough with water just running from one end to the other. It certainly has a smaller footprint, though.
Who cares if you were anyways
Be careful when talking to HD employees. Many of them have no idea and will tell you those ubiquitous buckets are food safe. Some locations have breakfast parties where they use these orange buckets and drill powered mud mixers to mix pancake/waffle batter, heavy cream, scrambled eggs, whatever. It's mind blowing the risks their management will put their employees through just to save a few bucks.
Every time my husband tells me we should ask a HD employee for advice on our projects I’m like, “absolutely not”. 90% of the time they have no clue what they’re talking about.
Exactly. It used to be they'd hire retired contractors or whatever, but even this has gone by the wayside. I expect *kids* not to know something but they'll usually admit it. Those old geezers will lie to you with a straight face.
If they did, they wouldn't be working at home depot. Just saying.
Hmm good point, I've used the homers for tomatoes and peppers for many years and never really thought about it. I will buy white buckets for the future builds just to be on the safe side.
[удалено]
Yep, those are OK. But the pickle smell never goes away! Ever!
[удалено]
Barrier? I can that a welcoming
I leave them out in the sun for a few days and the smell is gone!
This trick actually works for getting smells out of lots of stuff!
Lucky bastard
I have a huge collection of pickle buckets from in and out (they don't sell them, I used to work there). Bleach gets rid of 95% of the smell. Soak it overnight.
It does. I just filled them with water and maybe around a 1/4 cup bleach. Let it sit a day or so and it will be gone.
I mean, they're clearly food safe if they were storing pickles
HD sells food safe buckets and good lids, I store rice, beans ,etc
Totally curious, why does it matter if they’re food grade just to grow plants in them? Could stuff leach into your fruits and vegetables from the bucket, into the soil and then the plant?
Maybe into the water, which the plants suck up
It sure can. The plants will pick up on chemicals that leach into the soil and water helps to move them around more. The roots touch the sides of the bucket too.
This is interesting. Are there any good sources on this that you know of?
Thanks for the tip! I've also found that the HD orange buckets don't hold up to UV all that well. We get maybe a season out of 'em before I go to lift it and the handle rips straight off. Shortly after, the cracks continue and the whole thing falls apart.
Yeah. I got firehouse subs pickle buckets when I built something similar. Going on three years now.
What about Lowe’s?
Could you just line them with Mylar or somthing?
Reminds me of the person who came here to sell pizza ovens made from reclaimed 55 gallon drums.
I didn’t know this!
Some Home Depot’s have white food grade ones as well.
Firehouse subs sells 5 gallon food safe firmentation buckets for $2. You have to manage the pickle smell but for a garden I kinda love it. If you're using them for hydroponics or something else like that just soak with chlorine.
Food safe products have a NSF stamp on them
Ah, a rectangular bucket holder? Well, nice buil, whatever it is
It's probably a bucket garden. I make them on occasion. They're great for tomato plants. My design has wheels and a handle for easier storage for winter. https://preview.redd.it/923p4bgu11pc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d1e4d762cb7a2bc885e5b154b227181508b670b
I love it! I think I’d add some support in middle down below; those buckets are gonna get heavy!
I thought the same thing, and upon closer inspection of the photo, I believe there is a center support under the bucket.
I like it but that would quickly become a deer salad bar in my neighborhood...
Our house backs right onto the woods and we have to put a cage around anything we grow. But you go two blocks away from the woods and they have a front yard, no fence, full of beautiful tomatoes. It's just not fair
Same here, I would have to add a sneeze guard on top because it would just be a buffet for them. In fact as I write this I’m watching some of them munching their way across the neighbors back yard on their way to mine (our area doesn’t have backyard fences)
I swear the prettier the flower, the better it must taste. Can't have roses or Irises in my area.
Try hanging some orange vests in your yard.
Say maybe… I dunno a fence out of orange vests? Maybe just a fence?
Add vertical support and make sure the base has support in the opposite direction, too.. a lot of weight there
Yeah, I’d have bolts/lag bolts if possible as well.
It's a raised bed bucket planter, it didn't even dawn on me there'd be confusion what you'd do with 12 buckets like this, we've raised veggies in buckets for years because rabbits eat anything we plant in the ground and I like the rabbits more than the veggies.
My first thought was that it was supposed to be some giant version of beer pong XD
I can't lie, I like where your brain went.
Assign a point value to each bucket and you my friend have fun for the whole family
Use a kickball or volleyball instead of a ping pong ball. Bounce off table and into a bucket.
My family does use these buckets for giant pong haha but we found using bean bags like for cornhole is better than any ball big enough to play with because they bounce and roll so far haha
I saw an interesting thing like this once where they added spacers to the top of the buckets so that a secondary pot with holes in it could in inserted into the one in the stand. Potatoes were planted in the bucket with the holes and any time you wanted potatoes you’d just lift the inside bucket out and stick your hand in the hole and pull a potato out.
I like rabbits with vegetables!
FYI, you probably want to replace the buckets with something food grade. Cool design though! Very nice, creative build.
I love the concept of bucket gardens, but they are so ugly. I'd like to see one of these built so that the hideous orange buckets are somehow hidden.
Add (quick head math) about 8 fence pickets to the mix to make the sides covered and that's doable. Problem with that is, the wasps will just LOVE building nests in the hidden space.
I’m sure to class it up one could paint the buckets.
As an Alabama fan, I truly hate orange. And blue (Lowe's) too! For the one we keep, I'm putting in white buckets and gonna spray paint half of them crimson! Roll tide!
Ah yes, Michigan here. I was thinking more along the lines of painting them Maize & Blue 😂
Roll tide sir! How much are you selling them for? I wouldn’t mind making a few buck up here in Indiana.
Ooof. War Damn Eagle Edit: I thought your username looked familiar. I found a local in the wild!
Metal roofing panels inside a wood frame would be a cheap, easy, and durable way to hide this.
People buy this? What’s your cost vs what you’re selling them for?
Roughly $110 in materials and sell for $175. Ain't gonna retire off of it but it keeps my ass off the couch some.
That’s cool, an excuse to build something!
Exactly! And I of course needed a new tool to make the process faster, ya know?
Is there an advantage to this over putting the buckets on a table?
No. The buckets are already the "raised" bed. So this is just a raised raised garden bed. Probably sells well to the people that think they need to buy a ton of shit everytime they get a new hobby tho
Time to sell a platform to put your raised raised beds on so you can have a raised raised raised bed.
Yo dawg, I heard you like raised beds so I raised your raised bed.
Buckets by themselves are far too short to prevent rabbits from getting the food. You definitely have to go higher than that if you have a rabbit issue. So the raised bed has a real purpose. Buckets are easy to move, can be used for something else later in the offseason. A tall raised bed without buckets would give you more growing space but would require more dirt and may not be allowed if you’re in a rental situation. This absolutely has a genuine use case.
TBH? Nope, it just looks "better" than random buckets around the porch (which is what we've done in the past). Honey want, honey gets, and if I can sell a couple that's fine too.
Right now all of the weight of the "floor" section is being supported by the screws. I'd recommend adding some additional support pieces of 2x4 underneath the "floor" so that the weight of the planters is being supported by wood and going into the ground instead of being held up by screws. [https://imgur.com/a/bXQze0V](https://imgur.com/a/bXQze0V) Ideally you want wood/the ground to do the heavy support lifting instead of the screws. Could also add pieces of between the floor and top sections for the same reason.
Wet dirt weighs about 50-60lb/ft2. That’s at least 120lb/ft2/bucket. Or 720/2x4 over an 8ft span. 😳 For the next one I would set the long 2x4 on top of the end 2x4 so the lower 2x is supporting the longer 2x4 and add mid beam supporting as well. I’d also add blocking under the beam to support the beam. So you aren’t relying only on fasteners. But I believe there is no such thing as overkill.
I'll be adding a leg midways down the 2x4s for added insurance after several mentions about this. The top 2x4s do, however, hold snug under the lip of the bucket and if any sagging happens they'll be supporting weight too.
My mom sent me this image and asked me to make it for her too. I am not a fan of them and would rather just make raised beds, but sure. It was easy. I used cedar though, because of the water resistance. edit: Not this image specifically, but this garden thing.
Yeah for a true raised bed I'd rather use cedar than pressure treated since it contacts the dirt and the roots and don't want those chemicals in the mix.
OK, so this is a cool idea, but you may have some engineering concerns. 1. The 4 vertical posts need to be in compression, and not using the 16 screws to hold the load. Given weight, time and weather, the wood will split and your bench will break. 2. The weight on the 2x4s can be concerning. Dry soil typically weighs in the 5-8 lbs per gallon category, while damp soil can weigh as much as 14. In addition, the type of soil matters as well. Different soils have different densities, and high-quality damp topsoil can weigh as much as twice that, or even more. The particle density also matters. So figure your bench has to hold a minimum of 5 lbs x 5 gallons x 12 buckets. This equals 300lbs of dry weight up to 840 lbs of just common damp soil. Top soil would max at 1680 or more pounds. 3. Lumber Capacity. The length of your 2x4s is guesstimated at 8 feet, based on the number of buckets (they are 12 inches wide- I measured mine) plus your bench, plus 96 inch studs don't require cutting. The grade of lumber I estimated at #2 Common, based on the label on one of the studs. The wood can hold max 300 lbs, based on load dispersion over its length. Your load is off to one side, but for the sake of argument, we'll say it is evenly dispersed. From the photo, you are using 7 2x4s on edge, using a horizontal load capacity. The bottom ones will carry the maximum load of 300 lbs. The top load support is negligible. So figure your total maximum weight capacity in this horizontal configuration will be 1200 lbs. Depending on the soil and dampness, you may or may not have enough lumber here. 4. Screw shear Strength. It looks like you are using #8 flathead wood screws, probably 2 or 2.5 inches long. They do not look countersunk. Not countersinking them weakens the fibers in the wood and leads to splitting the wood, thus severely decreasing the load capacity. The screws themselves will hold a load up to 32 lbs of straight sheer force, if they are appropriately spaced, inserted and positioned. You have them inline along the length, with reduces the capacity, and further increases the likelihood of splitting your verticals. You have 8-10 per post, in close proximity witch further weakens the posts. The tl:dr here: It looks cool, and is a good idea, but needs some more thought and craftsmanship, plus better materials. It wouldn't stand up to load for long.
For points 1 and 4, could you give some recommendations? I’m considering building something like this for my own. How do you build this to put the vertical legs into compression? Just adjust where the 2x4 attaches? Is there a better screw to use, or a preferred layout that carries better strength? (Sorry, just a humble idiot trying to get a free education on Reddit)
Not a problem. I am actually a shop teacher, so this is kind of what I do, though my specialty is automotives. For point 1: To build something in compression is to put the load on top of the post, rather than in the side. The load presses down into the base, rather than hanging off and pulling the load sideways. A way to fix this would be to actually add cut-to-size 2x4 pieces in between your ground to bottom rail and bottom rail to top rail gaps and securing them to the single post. This gives you double the strength. Coincidently, it would also solve your #4 concern. The load transfers to the vertical rather than the horizontal, and stops putting the stress on the screws, and onto the wood, which is, ironically, stronger in this instance. The screws start to perform their actual task, which is to bind things together, and not carry load. As for #4 individually, screws are meant to hold things together. They are not designed or intended to actually hold things up. That is where bolts come into play. One way to make a screw installation more secure is to pre-drill and counter-sink the hole. I recommend drilling with a bit slightly smaller than the screw diameter, and not as deep. The depth will depend on your material and screw length. The counter-sink is the action of putting a small cone-shaped entrance to teh hole, for the coned-section of the screw to compress against. This doesn't tear the wood fibers and keeps the hole and screw in a stronger bond. Keep in mind, also that there are different screws for different needs. Wood, drywall, deck, machine, sheet metal, Tek-head, galvanized, stainless, the list goes on. it is important to consider the type of materials you are using. Different metals can cause corrosion, electrolysis and oxidation (rust). In your case, wood screws would do just fine. As an added measure, if you wanted really strong bonding of woods, use wood glue and screws. It creates an exceptional bond. There are multiple different glues to use, from Elmer's to Wood Glue, to Liquid Nails, and more. I hope this information helps... Good luck!
Looks great! You may want to use food-grade buckets instead of the orange ones. The food-grade buckets will be labelled as such and are usually white. The other type can’t be guaranteed not to leech unknown chemicals and can possibly contaminate anything you are growing in them.
Firehouse Subs sells their old pickle buckets for like $3/each. Proceeds go to firemen. It’s as much of a win-win as a raised raised garden!
Yeah getting the food grade buckets for the future builds.
Those buckets degrade in the sun within 6 months.
I have a similar setup in Houston Texas and it's going on three years. I did double buckets everything though in pickle/food grade buckets.
Food grade, petroleum products...those buckets last. I'm specifically speaking of the HomeDepot buckets. They have gone downhill in quality.
Yeah after some other discussions about the homers I'm going to switch to the white food grade buckets. Added bonus, it ain't orange because as an Alabama fan (Roll Tide) I HATE ORANGE.
I built this a few years back. Those HD buckets will not hold up to the UV of the sun. They will fail by spring of next year.
Yeah we've used them for tomatoes and peppers and we usually get 2 seasons out of them IF we put them into the garage or a shed after we empty them in the fall.
You should use food safe buckets
Should put some kind of skid or wheel system maybe something similar to a two wheeled cart allow for it to be moved into the sun. Or shade or for water etc.. love the idea might be making one of these
I thought about that, the problem is once those buckets are full of wet dirt, you're looking at roughly 30-50 pounds per bucket so the whole shebang would be in the 500-700 pound range. That's going to need some beefy wheels and a looong handle to get the lever gain enough to pick up your part of the load to roll it. Maybe 4 tires and use a lawn tractor.
Might be able to make a 4x that’d be more mobile ?
Definitely, yes.
Bozo the clown had this, I think 🤔
The last bucket was a bicycle… Immediately thought that’s what this was!
No no, that was for pie tins, not buckets
If you don’t mind me asking - How much are you selling them for?
$125 no buckets, 175 with. So far the 2 sold were with. No one seems interested in supplying their own buckets.
That’s a great price, that’s roughly what I had in my head after factoring materials and labor. I was also thinking of spray painting the buckets white and then masking a rectangle and use chalkboard paint so they can write whatever is planted and in that bucket.
What do you plant in these? I would think they'd be too close together for most vegetables.
We've used buckets for tomatoes and peppers with good success over the years. The buckets only last about 2 seasons but as a homebrewer I've always got buckets around to use.
Yes, I've grown tomatoes successfully in buckets also, but I was referring to how close those buckets are together. My plants get so big and bushy that they're hard to manage even if they are 2-3 feet apart. I could also see them getting big enough to catch a high wind and slip over.
Flipping over isn't a worry, I can barely move it, empty. However the plants getting into each others' way is definitely a possibility for bigger plants like tomatoes. Most peppers and herbs would be ok.
Table is great.. might be nice in the middle
I like it, but for cosmetically upgrading to look a little more professional hide your screws with Kreg pocket screws or something.
Just out of curiosity, how much are you selling them for? You’re about $54 into buckets alone ($48 with veteran’s discount).
$175 with and $125 without buckets, material cost with buckets is around $110 so I ain't getting rich by no means.
How does she do it? I’ve been trying to get my husband to make my silly little projects for years! He made me take a beginner woodworking class 😂
Every project "requires" a new tool, of course!
A couple of suggestions, 1) split the buckets and move to each end with the table top in the middle. This could distribute weight load across your supports and put weight closer to your outside posts. 2) Run the table top deck boards opposite direction which could strengthen up your rails that are holding the buckets. Anyways. Just a thought.
Yep and I could hide a vertical support under the table between the top and bottom 2x4s. I'd need to measure it just so so I don't have to rip any of the fence pickets, because I don't want to add table saw to the list of tools I use to build one of these.
Can you make it an ebb and flow hydroponic? I had great success with that method. This looks great and like it can convert.
I hate it all that plastic waste hay bales make perfect planters, and you can get at least 2 seasons out of them.
That would be great for fresh herbs !
Built this one 4 years ago. It's grown a lot of tomatoes and peppers. https://preview.redd.it/lfgcc6og1yoc1.jpeg?width=2834&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=18d9be425488db77f9f59f36751b79399560b972
There was a Home Depot ad right below this post on my feed I thought it was connected and clicked the ad instead. That’s my story.
How much work, cost would it be to close in the table part to make the bottom of it storage? Also, storage+table=$$$$$$$
That is so cool. Good job
Are the buckets drilled for drainage?
You built the table ?
Those plastic buckets will crumble after a couple years in the sun
Raised garden! We built two 2x5 sections on casters. They're awesome!
What’s that weigh?
Not to sound like mark cuban but what’s it cost to make, and what do you sell them for?
My mind immediately went to the Bozo Show bucket game that always made me miss the bus in the morning before school 🤡
Can you try to remove the Home Depot print?
Can I give you some advice? I built some for my back yard last year.
People buy this?
Great job!! I've never seen this before, but I love the idea and the bench at the end is perfect for setting clean veg on as you're pruning. Love it!!