Show Me Your Pallet Projects!

[fuzzi]

That's an interesting idea! Large wood likes best for burying is scarce here too. I use lots of tree trimmings which break down faster than wanted.
Hope you share how it works out for you. Might be really helpful for getting landscape plants established in the crazy dry, crazy high heat conditions we get.

I used dead canna lily stalks, other garden trash, as I didn't have any wood either.

 

[fuzzi]

Hey @gtaus!

I'm thinking about investing in a Gorilla cart, and recall you did a post reviewing it. I can't find it, can you repost, or just give me your thoughts?

I see Tractor Supply has them on sale:
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...600-lb-capacity-poly-dump-cart-gor4ps-1600415

 

[gtaus]

Hey @gtaus!

I'm thinking about investing in a Gorilla cart, and recall you did a post reviewing it. I can't find it, can you repost, or just give me your thoughts?

I see Tractor Supply has them on sale:
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...600-lb-capacity-poly-dump-cart-gor4ps-1600415

Sure, I found one of the reviews I made on this subject. I will paste that at the end of my current thoughts on the subject.

To be clear, I have "Gorilla" like carts. They are not original Gorilla brand carts, but very similar with 4 wheels, load capacity, etc... You might be able to save lots of money on an "off-brand" cart. That's what I did with my carts purchased at Menards.

The link you provided is one of the smaller Gorilla carts for sale. I think it might be 4 cubic feet capacity. I have 6 and 10 cubic foot carts. Either way, 4 wheels will allow you to safely carry much more cargo than a one wheeled wheelbarrow. At my age, I don't want to risk wrenching out my back if the wheelbarrow starts to tip. You just don't worry about that with a 4-wheeled cart.

If you have a riding mower, I will strongly suggest getting a cart that has a convertible handle that can be used as manual pull behind or convert to a tow behind the mower hitch. When I fill my carts up with topsoil, I hitch them up to my riding mower for moving any distance. Yes, you could manually pull the cart filled with topsoil, but I use my riding mowers for the heavy stuff.

I was in Menards today and they no longer have the off-brand carts I bought on their shelves. They only had the Gorilla carts now, and they cost a premium. It could be that the end of the summer they just don't have the other carts in stock anymore. I know the off-brand carts sold out soon after I bought mine. I got my carts on sale in the spring, when inventories were high, and the gardening sales were going on strong.

Now. I have nothing against Gorilla carts, except I think you pay a premium price for the brand name. My off-brand carts work great, and I don't think an original Gorilla cart is any better. That's just my opinion, never actually having had a Gorilla cart.

I tend to pinch my pennies, but the 4-wheeled carts are worth the extra price over a one-wheeled wheelbarrow. When I bought my first 4-wheeled cart about 5 years ago, I paid 2X the cost of a replacement wheelbarrow. But I think it was worth the extra money. I now have three different 4-wheeled carts and I love them. Even Dear Wife, a small Filipina, uses the 4-wheeled carts to haul bags of mulch to her flower garden beds. She would never touch the old wheelbarrow.

Don't leave your carts outside where everybody can see them. One of my carts was stolen from my front yard. Since then, I park my carts in the back yard and/or behind sheds to keep them out of sight. That cart was the only thing stolen off my property in 30 years. But they are easy to steal and I guess pawn off for drug money, or whatever. So, take care to protect your investment.

Finally, here is a copy of the review I posted somewhere else on the BYC forums...

Well, I got 2 carts full of old wood chips and dumped them into the chicken run. After that, I was too tired and sweaty to continue. I filled up my bigger 10 cubic foot "Gorilla" cart so each load was a lot. Notice that "Gorilla" is in quotes because I actually bought an off-brand cart at Menards.

Here is a picture of the actual cart I bought.

IIRC, I got that 10 cubic foot Huntington Pro cart on sale at Menards for less than $150.00. It has the same specs - 10 cubic feet, 1,500 pounds - as the Gorilla cart. However, the Gorilla cart sells for about $359 at Home Depot. The Gorilla cart does have some inserts for side panels if you want. That might be nice if you needed higher sides. Both carts have the handles that convert to manual pulling or tow behind a mower. That is the main feature I wanted.

Here is the Gorilla cart for comparison...

Edit** You can't tell how big these carts are in these photos, but the "normal" Gorilla cart you might see all the time is a 6 cubic foot cart. These carts, at 10 cubic feet, are a whole lot bigger.

 

[chickengr]

That's an interesting idea! Large wood likes best for burying is scarce here too. I use lots of tree trimmings which break down faster than wanted.
Hope you share how it works out for you. Might be really helpful for getting landscape plants established in the crazy dry, crazy high heat conditions we get.

4 years ago I planted an almond tree with 2 pieces of cloth. I was not here and nobody watered it. it survived and grew well!

 

[fuzzi]

Sure, I found one of the reviews I made on this subject. I will paste that at the end of my current thoughts on the subject.

To be clear, I have "Gorilla" like carts. They are not original Gorilla brand carts, but very similar with 4 wheels, load capacity, etc... You might be able to save lots of money on an "off-brand" cart. That's what I did with my carts purchased at Menards.

The link you provided is one of the smaller Gorilla carts for sale. I think it might be 4 cubic feet capacity. I have 6 and 10 cubic foot carts. Either way, 4 wheels will allow you to safely carry much more cargo than a one wheeled wheelbarrow. At my age, I don't want to risk wrenching out my back if the wheelbarrow starts to tip. You just don't worry about that with a 4-wheeled cart.

If you have a riding mower, I will strongly suggest getting a cart that has a convertible handle that can be used as manual pull behind or convert to a tow behind the mower hitch. When I fill my carts up with topsoil, I hitch them up to my riding mower for moving any distance. Yes, you could manually pull the cart filled with topsoil, but I use my riding mowers for the heavy stuff.

View attachment 3625994 View attachment 3625996

I was in Menards today and they no longer have the off-brand carts I bought on their shelves. They only had the Gorilla carts now, and they cost a premium. It could be that the end of the summer they just don't have the other carts in stock anymore. I know the off-brand carts sold out soon after I bought mine. I got my carts on sale in the spring, when inventories were high, and the gardening sales were going on strong.

Now. I have nothing against Gorilla carts, except I think you pay a premium price for the brand name. My off-brand carts work great, and I don't think an original Gorilla cart is any better. That's just my opinion, never actually having had a Gorilla cart.

I tend to pinch my pennies, but the 4-wheeled carts are worth the extra price over a one-wheeled wheelbarrow. When I bought my first 4-wheeled cart about 5 years ago, I paid 2X the cost of a replacement wheelbarrow. But I think it was worth the extra money. I now have three different 4-wheeled carts and I love them. Even Dear Wife, a small Filipina, uses the 4-wheeled carts to haul bags of mulch to her flower garden beds. She would never touch the old wheelbarrow.

Don't leave your carts outside where everybody can see them. One of my carts was stolen from my front yard. Since then, I park my carts in the back yard and/or behind sheds to keep them out of sight. That cart was the only thing stolen off my property in 30 years. But they are easy to steal and I guess pawn off for drug money, or whatever. So, take care to protect your investment.

Finally, here is a copy of the review I posted somewhere else on the BYC forums...

Well, I got 2 carts full of old wood chips and dumped them into the chicken run. After that, I was too tired and sweaty to continue. I filled up my bigger 10 cubic foot "Gorilla" cart so each load was a lot. Notice that "Gorilla" is in quotes because I actually bought an off-brand cart at Menards.

Here is a picture of the actual cart I bought.

IIRC, I got that 10 cubic foot Huntington Pro cart on sale at Menards for less than $150.00. It has the same specs - 10 cubic feet, 1,500 pounds - as the Gorilla cart. However, the Gorilla cart sells for about $359 at Home Depot. The Gorilla cart does have some inserts for side panels if you want. That might be nice if you needed higher sides. Both carts have the handles that convert to manual pulling or tow behind a mower. That is the main feature I wanted.

Here is the Gorilla cart for comparison...

Edit** You can't tell how big these carts are in these photos, but the "normal" Gorilla cart you might see all the time is a 6 cubic foot cart. These carts, at 10 cubic feet, are a whole lot bigger.

Thanks!

I went ahead and ordered the cart from TSC. It's a 4 cubic feet cart, which should be big enough for my needs.

I bought a nice wheelbarrow from Lowe's a few years ago and discovered shortly thereafter that I cannot control it. It had a metal brace in front of the wheel which prevented me from dumping fully, and further hindered my control efforts. Currently the wheelbarrow is inside my hoop coop. I am using it to store two bales of straw, covered with an old shower curtain to keep the straw clean...so it is being used.

I have 2 small yard carts that are useful for small vertical loads. They're two-wheeled, and difficult to steer and move if full. They look like this:

 

[fuzzi]

I just noticed that Lowe's has the 7 cu cart for $30 more.

Should I splurge?

 

[ChicksnMore]

I just noticed that Lowe's has the 7 cu cart for $30 more.
View attachment 3626148
Should I splurge?

I might have to get one of those too. I've always used a big wheelbarrow for almost everything, but our goats decided she wants rides in it every time she sees me using it.

 

[Smokerbill]

My garden cart/wagon has only 2 wheels so no option to pull by hand. But it's great when pulled with my Cub Cadet riding mower. This is the current price. I'm sure I paid less over a year ago.

The bed pivots on the axle so a load can be easily dumped while still connect to my mower.

 

[gtaus]

Should I splurge?

I definitely would recommend getting the larger capacity cart. Especially for only $30 more. Also, I think that one has the convertible handle which is really useful if you have a riding mower to tow carts, or maybe will have one in the future. Either way, the bigger cart is stronger and should last much longer.

 

[gtaus]

I bought a nice wheelbarrow from Lowe's a few years ago and discovered shortly thereafter that I cannot control it. It had a metal brace in front of the wheel which prevented me from dumping fully, and further hindered my control efforts.

You really need to have a strong back and arms to control those one-wheeled wheelbarrows. Mine has a brace in front, too, and that is used to dig down into the dirt and hold the wheelbarrow steady when you dump it over. But like you said, it's not so easy. You will find the 4-wheeled dump carts much easier to control and to dump.

Currently the wheelbarrow is inside my hoop coop. I am using it to store two bales of straw, covered with an old shower curtain to keep the straw clean...so it is being used.

I know. I rebuilt my wheelbarrow to make it functional again. A wheelbarrow is a good tool for some jobs, but mostly my wheelbarrow sits unused behind the chicken coop these days. Like you, occasionally I use it to keep something up and off the ground for a short period of time. But I use my 4-wheeled carts almost exclusively.

I have 2 small yard carts that are useful for small vertical loads. They're two-wheeled, and difficult to steer and move if full. They look like this:

I have seen those type of carts. For really light loads, they probably work fine. If you get a 4-wheeled cart, you will really notice the upgrade.