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Talking trash

Thursday is a sombre day for me as I am the unfortunate family member who gets to take out the garbage bags. It is a dirty business and, fed up with this ongoing struggle, I decided to make myself a garbage trolley.

 

By André Gous

Materials

2 820mm of 25mm x 50mm rectangular tubing

900mm of 25mm x 25mm square tubing

3 560mm of 8mm round bar

200mm of 16mm round tubing

120mm of 25mm round tubing

180mm angle iron

845mm x 550mm plywood

Two 200mm x 30mm wheels

Tools

Welding machine

Tape measure

G-clamps

Jigsaw

Angle grinder

Drill

Project guide

Difficulty: Easy

Estimated time: An afternoon

Cost: R350

Step 1: Cut all the material as follows: Take the 25mm x 50mm rectangular tubing and cut it into two pieces measuring 880mm each and two other pieces measuring 530mm each. The 900mm of 25mm x 25mm square tubing is kept as is.

 

The 3 560mm piece of 8mm round bar needs to be cut into eight different lengths; two lengths measuring 1 300mm each, two lengths measuring 230mm each, two lengths measuring 150mm long and the final two measuring 100mm each.

 

Cut the 120mm piece of 25mm round tubing in half so that you have two pieces measuring 60mm each. The 180mm piece of angle iron needs to be cut into six pieces measuring 30mm each. The 200mm length of 16mm round tubing is also left as is.

 

Step 2: Determine the centre (440mm) of the 880mm rectangular tubing and mark it. Now determine the centre of the 440mm lengths, thus leaving you with three marks indicating 220mm intervals. Do this with both pieces.

 

Step 3: Take the two 530mm pieces of rectangular tubing and determine their centre points as well.

 

Step 4: Weld the six 30mm pieces of angle iron onto the rectangular tubing. The six pieces should be flush with the side of the rectangular tubing that will be the bottom of the base. These six pieces will be the inners on which the floor board of the trolley will rest.

 

Weld one on each of the 530mm pieces at the determined centre mark. The remaining four get welded onto the two 880mm lengths at the marks indicating 220mm from each end. The centre mark does not get one.

 

Step 5: Now it is time to construct the base of the trolley. Line up the four rectangular lengths by placing the ends of the 880mm against the face of the 530mm and make sure everything is square before you weld.

 

Place a square in each of the corners to make sure they are 90 degrees. Once you have finished welding you can check whether it is square by measuring diagonally from one corner to the other.

 

Step 6: Take the two 60mm pieces of 25mm round tubing and drill a hole in each close to the edge. There should be about a 5mm distance from the edge of the tubing to the edge of the hole.

 

Step 7: It is time to weld the axles onto the base of the trolley. Note that the placement of the axle will determine the height of the trolley. To make the trolley as high as possible, weld the axles onto the base so that it is flush with the bottom side of the base. Decide which side will be the back of the trolley and measure out 200mm on the 880mm length to get the position of where you should weld the axles.

 

Step 8: Measure the distance from the edge of the hole in the wheel to the outside edge of the wheel and write this measurement down somewhere; you will need it a bit later. Fit the two wheels on the axles and secure them by placing split pins through the holes you drilled earlier.

 

Step 9: To make the handle, weld the 200mm length of 16mm round tubing onto one of the ends of the 900mm length of 25mm x 25mm square tubing to make an L shape.

 

Step 10: At the front of the trolley weld the handle onto the base in the centre of the 530mm length. Use a G-clamp as an extra pair of hands and lightly clamp the handle to the base of the trolley.

 

To make sure the trolley is level the handle should protrude below the base of the trolley the distance you measured from the edge of the hole in the wheel to the outside edge of the wheel. If you have a long spirit level you can use that to make sure the trolley is level. Once you are satisfied that the trolley is level, weld the handle onto the base.

 

Step 11: To ensure the garbage bags stay on the trolley when you move it around, construct a rail from the remaining pieces of round bar. Take the 1 300mm piece of round bar and measure from one side 252.5mm. This is the point where you need to bend the length of round bar 90 degrees so it forms an L shape.

 

Now weld the 230mm pieces of round bar onto the base of the trolley on either side of the handle near the edge. Place the L-shaped piece of round bar onto the 230mm pieces to determine where you should weld the 150mm and the 100mm pieces of round bar onto the base of the trolley. Once that is done weld the L-shaped rail onto each of the pieces of round bar as well as onto the handle.

 

Step 12: Clean the trolley and give it a nice paint job to protect the metal. To round off the ends of the rectangular and square tubing and to prevent water from entering, buy some plastic plugs and insert them into the ends.

 

Step 13: The only thing that is left is to place the floor board onto the trolley and you are set to go.

 

Note

Avoid using diamond mesh for the floor board as the garbage bags will push through the holes and tear.

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