Hard Cover for a Splitter

[Philbert]

Old canoe?

Old shower stall?

Repurposed Porta-Potty?

Plastic sled that also doubles as a wood mover?

Easiest might be 2-3 plastic, 55 gallon barrels cut up, so that you handle it in sections, instead of a single, huge cover to lift.

Philbert

 

[ETpilot]

You have to work with the weather you have. Cool is nice. Texas weather is wet and windy in winter. Last week and a half has been horrible. Tried working in the wood pile but I was just creating mud with the tractor. Just gave up. Splitting in the summer heat. Yep I do it. Better able to do it when younger. Just a bit slower now that I’m old.

Repurpose items, yes I do that often. Repurpose for a splitter not too easy. You don’t want bulky, nor many pieces, nor heavy weight. Best if it does not collect water and it all has to be tied down for the wind. I’m trying to address these issues. Will see if it is doable.

 

[rarefish383]

When we go fishing we use live bait we catch with a throw net. Last year we picked up a cheap rubber maid tub we could drop the end of the net in and dump the fish. Some times we pull up a five gallon bucket full at a time. John didn't want to leave it on the boat, so I took it home. was perfect for covering the engine. I have the same splitter.

 

[rarefish383]

Old canoe?

Old shower stall?

Repurposed Porta-Potty?

Plastic sled that also doubles as a wood mover?

Easiest might be 2-3 plastic, 55 gallon barrels cut up, so that you handle it in sections, instead of a single, huge cover to lift.

Philbert

I have two plastic 55 gallon barrels I used to put my squashed soda cans in. Had about two years worth of cans, over 100 pounds, and got less than 20 bucks for them, so now I just throw them in the recycle. Free pick up!

 

[sb47]

I have two plastic 55 gallon barrels I used to put my squashed soda cans in. Had about two years worth of cans, over 100 pounds, and got less than 20 bucks for them, so now I just throw them in the recycle. Free pick up!

There was a time the aluminum can could net a nice little pile of cash. Seems prices have gone down over the years and the trick is to get on the net or call to see what they are fetching because the prices go up and down quite often. I have 2 of those 4x4x4 totes full of a cans. I wont take them in till the prices goes up.
I don't crush each can individually. I wait till I get a tote full then just dump it over and drive my truck back and forth over the pile. lol It crushes them flat as a piece of paper. A full tote of cans crushed down turns to about a 1/4 tote full. I took a full truck load bed full of crushed cans in last year and only got about 45 bucks. But I have plenty of those totes and a place out of the way where I can't see them so I just keep saving them up till the prices go up.
It's quite satisfying to hear the cans crush as you drive over them. The trick to getting more money for them is to keep them clean of any trash or water. They will deduct the price if there not clean. I just dump the cans on a concrete slab and drive over them then use a big grain shovel to scoop them back up. I don't use trash bags because the bag is worth almost as much as the cans thats in them. I have a small window in front of my kitchen sink thats in the back of the house so just open the window a toss them out the window rite into the tote. Then when full I drag the tote to a place out of the way and out of site. The recycle place I go to has a fork lift that picks up the tote and will flip it 180 and dump them in there separator so there is no handling of them once I crush then down and shovel the flat can back into another tote. I have a tote for cans, and one for scrap metal and one for scrap brass. The metal comes in handy when I want to fab something up. Most times I can find a piece of scrap that will work.

 

[rarefish383]

There was a time the aluminum can could net a nice little pile of cash. Seems prices have gone down over the years and the trick is to get on the net or call to see what they are fetching because the prices go up and down quite often. I have 2 of those 4x4x4 totes full of a cans. I wont take them in till the prices goes up.
I don't crush each can individually. I wait till I get a tote full then just dump it over and drive my truck back and forth over the pile. lol It crushes them flat as a piece of paper. A full tote of cans crushed down turns to about a 1/4 tote full. I took a full truck load bed full of crushed cans in last year and only got about 45 bucks. But I have plenty of those totes and a place out of the way where I can't see them so I just keep saving them up till the prices go up.
It's quite satisfying to hear the cans crush as you drive over them. The trick to getting more money for them is to keep them clean of any trash or water. They will deduct the price if there not clean. I just dump the cans on a concrete slab and drive over them then use a big grain shovel to scoop them back up. I don't use trash bags because the bag is worth almost as much as the cans thats in them. I have a small window in front of my kitchen sink thats in the back of the house so just open the window a toss them out the window rite into the tote. Then when full I drag the tote to a place out of the way and out of site. The recycle place I go to has a fork lift that picks up the tote and will flip it 180 and dump them in there separator so there is no handling of them once I crush then down and shovel the flat can back into another tote. I have a tote for cans, and one for scrap metal and one for scrap brass. The metal comes in handy when I want to fab something up. Most times I can find a piece of scrap that will work.

I used to drive by one of the good recycle places. Went by one day and the sign said 65 cents for cans. Two days later I threw a bunch of bags on my 12" stake body, I worked the night shift and drove a Chevy Sprint, so took the truck to work. Next morning took my cans in and the guy handed me $12. In two days the price dropped from .65 to .12. Scrap is a volatile market, and you do have to check every day.

 

[Trapper_Pete]

I almost never buy cans any more , tried to cut way back on soda . so when I do get it it is 2 liters to mix with bourbon or rum.

 

[Philbert]

I volunteer with some storm / disaster clean up groups. Several times, while sawing up fallen trees, I will see hundreds (or more) of aluminum cans scattered all over.

Some of these folks may have lost their house (or more), but the effort to collect all those cans, then see them scattered to he wind, always strikes me.

Back to the OP: can enough of those flattened cans be knit together to make a cover for his splitter?

Philbert

 

[sb47]

You have to work with the weather you have. Cool is nice. Texas weather is wet and windy in winter. Last week and a half has been horrible. Tried working in the wood pile but I was just creating mud with the tractor. Just gave up. Splitting in the summer heat. Yep I do it. Better able to do it when younger. Just a bit slower now that I’m old.

Repurpose items, yes I do that often. Repurpose for a splitter not too easy. You don’t want bulky, nor many pieces, nor heavy weight. Best if it does not collect water and it all has to be tied down for the wind. I’m trying to address these issues. Will see if it is doable.

East Texas covers a lot of territory. From Beaumont to Texarkana And Dallas down to Houston.

 

[Mike Van]

I picked up an old jon boat I was going to scrap, but at .20 pound, I use it to cover most of a brush hog. It would do a splitter pretty good too. Any car cover would work too -

 

[ETpilot]

sb47, yep East Texas is BIG. Upper East Texas in the Piney Woods. Also known as the ArkLaTex. Rain finally stopped mid-morning. Then the cold wind took over. Wind is still blowing but has died down some. Good inside day.

Philbert, knitting aluminum cans together sounds like a labor intensive project. I would not tackle it. Working with aluminum is a slightly different animal. Unless you are thinking of gluing them together. Still that would be a problem.

Today I determined a one piece top is possible. I’m on Plan B for the glue I’ll use. This weekend I’ll see if I can pick up 2 sheets of foam. I get large pieces of cardboard from the trash area of a local furniture company. I use the cardboard for pattern making. I can also get scrap wood, packing foam, some plywood and lots of large plastic sheets. I once found a whole bunch of pennies. I kept moving trash and finding pennies. I may have to wait for some furniture sales before I can get some dry cardboard.

I guess I’m committed now.

 

[sb47]

sb47, yep East Texas is BIG. Upper East Texas in the Piney Woods. Also known as the ArkLaTex. Rain finally stopped mid-morning. Then the cold wind took over. Wind is still blowing but has died down some. Good inside day.

Philbert, knitting aluminum cans together sounds like a labor intensive project. I would not tackle it. Working with aluminum is a slightly different animal. Unless you are thinking of gluing them together. Still that would be a problem.

Today I determined a one piece top is possible. I’m on Plan B for the glue I’ll use. This weekend I’ll see if I can pick up 2 sheets of foam. I get large pieces of cardboard from the trash area of a local furniture company. I use the cardboard for pattern making. I can also get scrap wood, packing foam, some plywood and lots of large plastic sheets. I once found a whole bunch of pennies. I kept moving trash and finding pennies. I may have to wait for some furniture sales before I can get some dry cardboard. I guess I’m committed now.

I'm looking for a used metal car port for cheap to park the spliter under to keep the rain off of it. I can build one cheaper the buying one using R panel for a roof with no sides. I may put it on a skid so I can drag it around to where I'm working and I can work in the rain and stay dry. Then just drag it to a new pile of rounds and setup under it and go to work. The only down side is in the summer when the summer heat radiates the heat from the tin roof so it would have to be tall to keep the heat from frying your brain radiating of the tin roof. I could use T post to anchor it down so the wind wouldn't blow it over. But it's just a thought at this point.
I could drag it over where the tree company dumps there load and use the gorillaback to drag the big rounds up to the splitter and lift them and park my trailer next to the shed and split and throw the splits in the trailer, then move the trailer to my stacking area and stack the splits. I think I would save a lot of work and I could work in all kinds of weather and have shade in the summer. But it's just a thought at this point. Everything under the shed would stay dry so no cover needed and with just a roof I would get a good breeze blowing through.

 

[Philbert]

I may put it on a skid so I can drag it around to where I'm working and I can work in the rain and stay dry.

I like the 'dual-purpose' approach! Can't imagine the noise level inside of a thin metal shed.

Philbert

 

[ETpilot]

sb47, I’ve had the same thought. A 3 purpose towable shelter. The thought came up flying model airplanes. I have a runway for models on my property. Flying in the summer with no shelter from the sun is tough. So the thought of a shelter germinated. I figure 10x10x10 on wheels so it can be towed. Also insulation to reduce the heat from the sun. Three purposes; airplane flying, firewood splitting and equipment repair in the field if it can be towed to the equipment. I designed it in my head, priced it out but never built it. Just too many projects to work on. Summertime in Texas is rough.

 

[alleyyooper]

Paint the roof with a white or Alum color paint to reflect the sun and not asorb so much heat like a dark color will.

Al

 

[ETpilot]

Yes there is a Sun! I got to see it today. LOL. Beautiful day to work outside.

Thought I’d post a picture of what I have in mind. The wood batten is the basic shape of the cover. A little flatter on top and more vertical on the sides. A 76”x48” panel will cover from the cylinder head to the splitter foot. I tie wrapped the return hose closer to the unit for less width. Tested it in the vertical position and no problem. The valve handle I’ll have to lower and raise. I have a good pin for easily doing that. The test pieces were checking for edge gluing. I reinforce it with bamboo skewers as needed. The main test was can it easily be bent? Yes it can. I will just see how this works out.

 

[066blaster]

I have used a plastic storage bin to cover the engine, put a log on to keep in place.

 

[066blaster]

The plastic tank from a metal tote would probably work good. cut the top off and cut a slot out of 1 side for the tongue. or lay on its side and roll the splitter into it. it would cover most of it

 

[dave_dj1]

If you look up my build thread here you will see how I cover my splitter, still going strong.

 

[Sandhill Crane]

Thought I’d post a picture of what I have in mind.

This build will be interesting.
Please show a picture or two of your planes as well. It is fun to see others hobbies.