Fence: Part 7 - Rails and Pickets (No Stain)

The fence back by the shed is so decrepit that I've decided to jump into construction on the new fence. Especially now that the area has been cleaned of all ivy, laurel, and blackberry. I spoke to the neighbor and she was excited to get a new fence in that area. She even offered to pay for half of the fence!

I decided to put the pickets on the inside of the fence rails because I can install them with out having to go onto the neighbor's property and fighting with all the brush and junk. I also decided not to stain the fence on the south side of the yard because no one is ever going to see it. It's going much faster than the fence on the north side by the driveway!

The almost two-year-old enjoyed handing me screws and using the hammer to pound on the pickets. He knew about pounding on pickets because I had him help me repair some pickets on the neighbor's fence on the west side.

Leveling the Ash Pile

I want to build a couple of extensions onto the shed before winter so I started digging up the old ash pile on the east side of the shed. The pile is about 18" high and about 5' in diameter. It took about 6 wheel barrow loads to remove the pile.

Guess what I found under under the pile! An old plastic wrapped 55 gallon steel drum with a piece of concrete on top. Hmmm. I suspect it's an OLD DIY septic tank. It sounds hollow when I tap on it. All kinds of different ideas have passed through my mind as to what's in it.

I put the old piece of concrete back on top of it when I was done moving the pile.

I suspect that I'll get a load of 5/8ths crushed gravel, break the drum open, fill it, and then lay pavers over the top. Well see.

I also filled yard waste six bags with the leaves and branches of the big branch I cut off a couple of weeks ago.

Tree Trimming

I am going to try and finish building the extensions to the shed before fall this year. And since I have clear ground where those extensions are going to be I figure I should cut any overhanging tree branches now. There is only one branch that is truly overhanging so that's the one I cut on Sunday.

The branch was about twenty feet up, and since I needed to rent a chainsaw I thought I might rent a tree climbing harness and boot spikes and try to be safe. My spouse helped be put on the harness and spikes and explained the basics on how to climb. 

I had to first cut away all the undergrowth around the base of the tree. My neighbor says he thinks the tree is an English Laurel and we both agree that it's a weed. It's not on either of our properties. My other neighbor says I can do whatever I want to it. I may get more aggressive with the tree in the future and attack one of the really big limbs.

I used a ladder to climb up the first six feet. Then I strapped myself to the tree and started climbing. It wasn't easy! I think climbing a straight fir and pine tree would be a lot easier. The laurel tree's bark was not ideal. I slipped once and hit my chin. If I hadn't had a beard I would have lost some skin.

I actually just climbed up the last four feet without using the climbing gear. It was a little easier. I sat on the limb I was going to cut and then slowly started chainsawing it about three feet out from where I sat. The branch's fall was slow and controlled even though I didn't tie a rope to it. It grazed the fence but didn't do any real damage. My neighbor started right away cutting up part of the branch that was on his side of the fence. Then I climbed down and started cutting up all the branches into smaller pieces.

I also spent a little time cutting up a few fallen branches around the yard that are too big for me to dump into the yard waste container. It was kind of fun running around cutting stuff up. That was yesterday. I'm sore today.