creative uses for t hings that accumulate around the homestead

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I think hay strings are about the most useful item on the place. I four-strand braid them into ropes for long and short ropes which then become leads, mud rugs, halters, collars, you name it. They're great to tie up tomato plants. Another item I collect are the "range extender" tubs after my cattlemen neighbors throw them by the road. They become hay feeders, waterers, feed bins, retting vats when I grow flax to spin. Feed sacks are still sacks when emptied or split with the stitching removed, they help extend limited mulch supplies. I'd like to hear creative uses to which others put "trash."

-- Marilyn Dickerson (rainbow@ktis.net), February 02, 2000

Answers

We use a lot of baling twine too, but if only it weren't that hideous orange color! I guess that is so it can be seen easily. What is a range extender tub? What do they use them for? they must be pretty cheap if they can be thrown away like that. We recycle just about everything that comes our way. I keep thin cardboard, the kind you get from frozen pizza boxes or gift boxes, and cut quilting templates out of it. Then those cookie tins,the metal kind, are used to keep the templates dry and flat. We save any kind of ziploc bag that comes our way and put all kinds of things in them.The sort that flour tortillas come in are great for keeping the quilt pieces in once they are cut from fabric, you can put several blocks worth of pieces in there with small scissors a needle and thread, and take it along with you when you go to town and have to wait at an appointment, or you can take them to work on while visiting a friend. Spools- I save them for my children to make stuff out of, I always wante more spools when I was a kid.Baby wipes boxes and shoeboxes are great to keep legos or other collections of toys or small thing. You can label the baby wipe boxes with a grease pencil. Baby food jars are great for beads,herbs and spices bought in bulk, small screws, and who knows what else! My husband keeps all the tin cans, washed and depapered,and keeps bits,nails, screws,and other hardware in them.Parmesan cheese containers, the kind with a screw on lid is nicest, are great for putting diatomaceous earth in to dust animals or plants, or you can mix small seeds with sand and shake them out to space them more evnly in the garden.Or you can buy the parmesan cheese by the gallon and put it in the shakers.We save any kind of broken glass,old glass jars,and broken dishes,and my husband throws them in the concrete mixer to break them up and uses the glass to stretch the concrete mix.One thing I haven't found a use for is used canning jar lids.We reuse a few to cap jars with herbs or dry goods,but still have a lot leftover.Any large cardboard boxes that are too far gone too do anything with are flattened and used as mulch to keep the quack grass at bay in the garden.Also newspaper or old letters and bills and things we don't want to put in the trash decompose very quickly under the cardboard.In winter we use the papers and newspaper as fire starter. Manila envelopes can be resent to other people if you put a piece of paper over the old addresses or if they are too beat up or marked on for that you can keep papers in them. Bubble wrap cut into insoles will keep your feet warm even in the coldest weather.In fact they can get too warm if it is not cold.We use the plastic feed sacks to put dirty or clean laundry in, trying of course to use thee nicer cleaner ones for the clean laundry. And they are good to put time out toys or thrift store stuff in. When our boys won't pick toys up, the toys go on time out for a few weeks or even a few months. Then when they get them again they forgot all about them and are happy to play with them again.We don't use the bags as mulch because of the plastic fibers, my husband hates to pull strands of plastic out of the soil.When they get too beat up to use for anything else, we put our trash in them.

-- Rebekah (daniel1@transport.com), February 02, 2000.

Sorry I wasn't specific. The tubs are huge, about 15"deep and about 24-30" wide made of a food grade plastic. Locally they are red but in other areas, I have seen blue ones. Range extender is a protein, vitamin and mineral supplement that allows the cattle to eat coarser pasture and hay in winter and still do well. It has molasses etc., in it and the cows love it. I do have uses for used canning jar lids, especially the ones with a white enamel interior. Use a scratch awl to write the variety of a garden crop on the enamel side, punch a hole in it and tie it to a plant or stake. The writing rusts quickly and makes it even more legible. I've used several suspended from a stake to scare birds and rabbits away

Our hay strings are sisal and feed sacks are paper, thus biodegradable. I have had the woven plastic kind and used them to hold manure for manure tea as well as usual jobs.

-- Marilyn Dickerson (rainbow@ktis.net), February 02, 2000.


That's a really good idea for the lids! I needed some garden markers that would be visible, so that will be perfect. Oh,the paper feed sacks are wmonderful mulch, I like them a little better than the other kind. The other thing we use a lot of are baby formula cans, even though we nurse our children, if you can get someone to save them for you ,they are metal cans with a nice plastic lid- perfect for storing beans or seeds, etc so the mice can't eat the food or seeds. Again,we label these with a grease pencil. Also, we cut the bottom and part of the side off of gallon size vinegar botttles and make our own feed scoops.It is fun to come up with uses for things that would otherwise be thrown out.

-- Rebekah (daniel1@transport.com), February 02, 2000.

What a great idea to ask for these hints! Thanks. I save my colored jars and bottles. When I have a good supply I crush them with a hammer (between heavy cardboard) and put them around my fruit trees. It keep the cats and other critters away from the trees. Plastic mulch under the glass keeps it from getting into the soil. Looks great, too. I also collect the shiny CDs that flood the mail from Internet Service Providers. String them up, attach to a stick or pole, set in the ground and it will keep the birds from eating your seeds when it's time to plant.Tied on the branches they will keep the birds from eating your fruit. Ditto for berry bushes.Any store that carries computer supplies is loaded with these disks.

-- Paulette Mark (kiwi333@ipa.net), February 02, 2000.

Great idea for the used canning jar lids! I always turn mine upside down and put back on the empty jar to keep it clean and keep spiders, etc. out, but could use some for garden markers. We have a wonderful feed store that puts all the sweepings of straw in one bin and hay in another, also any broken bales go there, and you can have all you want for free. We load the old feed sacks up with that and use it for bedding for the sheep, ducks, chickens, etc. As long as it isn't wet, it can be stored in a shed. You can always layer old newspaper over the feed sacks if you get the newspaper, and it eventually decomposes too. If you pass building sites, they will often give you any lumber they have tossed into the discard pile, or dumpster, and some is as good as what we have bought at the lumber store in town. We build our entire small sheep barn out of it for free. Lots of good ideas out there, lets keep this going!

-- Jan Bullock (Janice12@aol.com), February 02, 2000.


I ask my CLOSE friends to save their ruined panty hose for me and when I have a giant bag full I start on a comforter and use the panty hose for filler...you'd be surprised at how warm a filler they make.Because the nylon threads snag on my machine,I make them in patches by hand and then sew them together on the machine.They make nice fluffy comforters.I've also used them to make couch/chair pillow stuffing, etc. Now if somebody can tell me what to do with dryer lint?????(yes, I use a clothes dryer in the Winter,call me lazy) I save it in a box and put it out in the Spring for the birds..have read that some folks actually spin it.

-- Lesley Chasko (martchas@gateway.net), February 02, 2000.

There are some wonderful ideas here, i like the canning jar lids for garden markers. I save all our tin cans, especially the large coffee cans, i use a baby wipe container for string, I can pull out what i need and cut it off. I feed my steers feed supplement from 200# tubs which become wateres when emptied & I buy molasses in 5 gallon food grade jugs, when empty are stored away. when I sold the baler i had a whole roll of string left, (Orange) now i buy my hay and it comes with yellow strings, years ago I used a lot of baling wire to hold fences, equipment and so forth together but there was always the fear of an animal injesting a piece that was dropped. Now i use the colored string, I can see it, therefore noting is left behind. I have a real fear of mental on the ground around the ranch, every fall we burn a huge pile of brush and many times there is old useless lumber with nails, screws aand other hardware, after the fire i rake it with a big magnet until i have all the iron out of it. The plastic holder from six-packs I use to hang up air lines, extension cords, battery cables, garden hoses, any thing I can get them around. Old cable spools, (the smnaller ones) are used to take up old electric fence wire & tape. I paint the handles on all the garden tools, axes, picks,splitting wedges, even hooks on log chains, with a bright orange or yellow paint so they do not get left behind when in the woods or anywhere on the ranch.

-- Hendo (OR) (redgate@echoweg.net), February 03, 2000.

Old panty hose make good ties for plants as they have enough stretch the plant can move some in the wind and not break off so bad. They can also be used to re-bottom chairs. I have repaired several that way. Tie the hose to the rail at the back of the seat, stretching the hose as tight as you possibly can, and bring over the rail at the front. Knot the hose there on the BOTTOM side of the seat, run it back over the back rail, knot and repeat. Add more hose in with additional knots. When finished with that part, turn the chair sideways and repeat the operation. You will probably have to have a jumbo size crochet hook or make one from wire to complete this part. When finished, cover with a cushion that has an extra long ruffle, or whip stitch a piece of cloth over the hose to cove it. It isn't pretty, but it lasts at least 20 years, will hold up even us truly overweight people, and is comfortable. Not to mention cheaper than re-caning. My mother used to make Christmas decorations from the lids of tin cans. Punch two holes in the center with a nail, then use tin snips to cut half way to the center all the way around the lid at evenly spaced intervals. Using a piece of wire, "sew" a bright colored button in the center, leaving long pieces of wire to tie. Use a pair of pliers to arrange the cut pieces at different angles to make a flower effect. It is prettier than it sounds and looks good on evergreen wreaths, or as the entire wreath. BE SURE TO WEAR GLOVES while doing this. You can use old margarine tubs to make waters for plants. Repot your plant, inserting about 8" of thick cotton rope (like clothes line) in one of the drain holes in the bottom of the plant, allowing about 6" to hang out the bottom. Cut a small hole in the lid of the container for the string to go through, and a larger one near the edge to allow ventilation and to add water. String the string through the lid, add water, and that's it. Save old brown jars to root cuttings or start a sweet potato house plant in, as they won't become ugly with algae growing in them.

-- A.C. Green (ratdogs10@yahoo.com), February 03, 2000.

A friend of mine uses nylons braided together to make the most beautiful braided rugs, My husband uses nylons to put a shine on his polished boots.

-- kathy h (saddlebronc@msn.com), February 03, 2000.

Dryer lint can help make a great fire-starter. Take the bottom half of a cardboard egg carton and pack each cup full of dryer lint, tightly. Melt some old candle stubs or paraffin. Put the egg carton on some wax paper or other paper to protect your counter. Fill each cup with wax until it is full and the wax starts to soak through the cardboard. Let it cool, and tear the cups apart. Each one will burn well for several minutes. The lint acts as a wick, increasing the flame and also keeping the wax from melting and running all over the fireplace. Also, you use less wax if the cups are already full of lint.

-- Laura Jensen (lrjensen@nwlink.com), February 03, 2000.


Great thread! Great uses for stuff, we could keep this going forever! Dryer lint makes a wonderful base for 'homemade paper'. I saved the instructions years ago, of course I can't find them now, but you soaked the lint in water with liquid starch, drained well then spread on screening-when dry enough to 'lift', put each 'sheet' between layers of newspaper and press. Press for a few days. Lay out and dry again. Tear or cut to size. Makes great 'designer' paper

-- Kathy (catfish@bestweb.net), February 03, 2000.

An old timer years ago told me that during WWII that his grandfather use to recycle motor oil by using a 5 Gal. pail on a bench with andother 5 gal. container below on the floor, a section of 3/4" hemp rope (or whatever you have I suppose) runs from can to can and the oil wicks through the rope to the lower can and the result is clean oil. Keeping in mind back then the motor oils were not loaded with detergents & other additives. Last summer I was looking through a homestead/farm book publised in Asutralia during world war two and there was the exact system illustrated & described. I have not tried it but intend to now that I am thinking about it. Another thing in that book was using a bicycle pump to pressurize a drum of fule for transferring to another tank, i have done that with water & a little 12 volt compressor.

-- h (redgate@echoweb.net), February 03, 2000.

Used canning flats: I gather up twenty or more, and put stickers or alphabet letters on the bottoms IN PAIRS and the kids play "memory" with them. You know, all of them upside down, try to find the pairs. Matching animals, capital and lower case letters, etc. They store theirs in a cigar box.

Garden markers: I use the wooden stir sticks that home warehouses give away when you buy paint. Not that I buy much paint, but they will usually gladly give you a handful.

Paint: Because where I do get my paint, is the consumer waste place in town. It's free. Yep, I can go there one day a week from noon to 2 p.m. and take paint that other people coulsn't throw away because it's considered hazardous waste. (but not in the Winter) They pay to drop it off, in fact. Our household hazardous waste place sorts the paint neatly on shelves by type and color. This has saved us hundreds of dollars! Check to see if there is a HHW in your area, or even a drive away from you.

Old clothes: If they have been through four kids and I would be ashamed to donate them anywhere, I might use the fabric for patchwork quilts. If it's a torn bath towel, it turns into 20 dish towels or rags.

Dryer lint: It makes alright stuffing for a chair pad, or a ripped stuffed animal that needs a repair.

Junk CDs: I made a funky reflective mobile out of some. You can heat them over a burner and bend them in spirals, etc.

Parmesan cheese containers: These become utility type shakers for bulk spices. I have a matching green topped set!

I can't recall any more now.

-- Rachel K. (rldk@hotmail.com), February 05, 2000.


My mother used to take the old bedsheets after they were too worn to use on the bed any more and use the better sections to make handkerchiefs, window valances, aprons, or pillow cases, or to patch other bed sheets, depending on how much decent cloth was left. Then she used the really worn part for dust rags, straining clothes in the kitchen, etc. The sleeves of old shirts were used for quilt scraps, while the backs were used for handkerchiefs. The skirts from out grown dresses were used for aprons and quilt scraps. If you are not "quilty", don't worry. Just cut the fabric into strips the same size. Later, just sew the strips together in groups of three or four to make blocks. Turn the blocks at right angles to each other when you assemble. Put a backing on the quilt top, stuff with filler, and sew shut. Tie the stuffing at random by using a large needle to pull crochet string through all layers, down then back up, and tie in a hard knot.

Use old feed sack string to crochet dish rags. My ex-ma-in-law did this for years.

You can use the empty plastic berry baskets like strawberries come in to store steel wool and plastic scrub pads in the kitchen. They drain well for the pads dry out. Those baskets can also hold string from feed sacks, spools of thread in the sewing drawer, and any other assorted miscellaneous that usually crawls free range in the drawer.

Use the tongues of old LEATHER shoes as hinges for doors on outbuildings, etc.

Use an old funnel nailed to the wall to store a ball of string. Run the loose end out the hole of the funnel and it makes a pull and cut dispenser.

-- A.C. Green (ratdogs10@yahoo.com), February 05, 2000.


For garden markers, we get old mini blinds from our local thrift store for next to nothing, disasemble and cut the slats into markers. Label them with a permanent marker. My husband priced these at a local nursery and they sold for $.05 each.

-- Kathy (DavidWH6@juno.com), February 05, 2000.


My boys like to use the computer CDS as targets for their .22 plinking, especially if they hang and spin in the wind. It takes some a pretty good aim to get THAT target. I have been digging 5 gallon buckets out of the recycle area of our co-op (a lot more of those, since we are post y2k), and use them for critter watering, floor mopping, food storage (esp. if they have good rubber seals and lids), and garden gathering of veggies. I have heard that if you poke a hole in the bottom of one of these buckets with a hot nail or awl, you can bury it next to tomatoe plants and fill it with water. The water will leach out slowly, right near the roots of the plants. Put the lid on loosely, so critters don't fall in and drown, and to avoid mosquito wigglers.I suppose you could feed the plants this way, too. I might try this; the Farmer's Almanac says that this area will have a dry summer this year. Old jar lids, well scrubbed off, work just fine, keeping bugs and stuff out of quart jars of beans and dried herbs. I'll have to try the garden marker idea! I remember braiding halters out of the jute bailing twine, when I was a kid. I have been buying the polyester (nylon?) 50 lb. sacks that the store gets their potaoes in, for .10 cents each. It is just like the "lawn fabric" that garden centers sell for horrific amounts, to use as mulch for under plants. NOW--I have asked this at other sites. Can you compost dryer lint? Some say yes, others say no (because of the bits of non-organic material that might be in it). What do you folks say?

-- Leann Banta (thelionandlamb@hotmail.com), February 06, 2000.

Leann: I don't know about composting the dryer lint...Probably, but it does work well as a fire starter. We don't even mix it with wax, but stuff the empty cardboard roll out of toilet tissue with it, and then use it to start the woodstove. Even my parents save the lint for us. I also found a use for those large sheets of "bubble wrap" that came packed around something that we purchased. I was looking for some clear, heavy plastic to cover the inside of the windows in the chicken house to keep out drafts this winter, and didn't have any, so used the bubble wrap. It worked even better at keeping out the drafts, and is still transparent enought to let in light. I have also been hoarding old pairs of jeans to make quilts out of, which are great for camping, taking the dog in the car to the vet (covers the seats, etc.)and made a new bag for my clothespins out of some of the fabric. My husband now wants me to make a new wood carrier for the firewood out of some, and a "farrier apron" to protect his legs while getting hay. Keep those ideas rolling! Jan

-- Jan Bullock (Janice12@aol.com), February 06, 2000.

Some things which may not be interesting to some folks: jar flats mounted to a board, with the ring behind it, makes a nice place to hang jars holding screws, nails etc. Small jarsof instant iced t or coffee and other things can be attatched the same way. Cleaning used oil, dirty gasoline, kerosene-strain thru an old felt hat. Uses for old appliances-gas burners from old water heaters-makes a great burner for an outside kettle. Same for burners from gas heaters. Natural gas will have to be converted to burn L.P. Transformers, contactors and capacitors from central a/c's make good items for a number of projects. I built my pumphouse controller from these parts. Discarded but good, thermostat controls the contactor to control the heat lamp/electric space heater. Works when it gets to 40F. A/C compressor from automobiles makes a good air compressor hooked to L.P. Gas cylinder for air tank. Old, discarded lumber makes beautiful furniture after being planed. Bunches more of things but I'm tired of thinkin of'm.

-- hoot gibson (hoot@wworld.com), February 06, 2000.

While we are on the subject of reusing those canning jar lids, has anyone SUCCESSFULLY reused them to can with? I read somewhere that someone had boiled them for several minutes until the rubber seal lost it's indentation, then just used them to can with again. Is this true? Does it really work? Sure would be nice to get two uses out of them, but I would hate to pressure cook a batch of beans twice if they didn't seal. Maybe not worth the effort. Any experienced ideas on it? Thanks! Jan

-- Jan Bullock (Janice12@aol.com), February 07, 2000.

When I accidently boiled my canning jar lids, the rubber compound came off like crumbs. They were then useless.

-- Jean (schiszik@tbcnet.com), February 07, 2000.

Yes, I have run out of new flats while in a deluge of canning (no doubt an end-of-garden salvage operation) and reused once used flats. I didn't boil them to get rid of the ridge or anything. I have also used old store jars to can, and I have used store jar LIDS, i.e. jam jar tops.

Keep in mind that if you break a jar while canning, or have increased spoilage, then you have certainly not saved any money. I do this in a pinch, or if I have a half jar left over after putting up quarts, etc.

Re-use of homestead things: My second child was a bed wetter and I used vinyl tablecloths to sew rubber, velcro closure pants to go over her trainers. We folded a cloth diaper like a pad, and she put that in her training undies, then a cover. This way, they were large enough and had bright patterns. I sewed the velcro and leg elastic to the outside so only the flannel backing touched her skin.

Used up mop heads: I have washed one out and dyed it with Kool-aid in the sink and after it dried it made a wig for a bottle-necked gourd girl. It is now one of my 6 year old's favorite room decorations. It could be a mane for a rocking horse.

greeting cards: tear off the writing half and use the pictures for kids' crafts, or tape them in the kids' rooms at the ceiling and work your way around for a personalized border.

Anything paper and feed sacks: Garden mulch

Old milk gallons and laundry detergent bottles: feed scoops

-- Rachel (rldk@hotmail.com), February 07, 2000.


We use old pantyhose for storing onions in.Cut the top of each leg off,drop an onion in the foot,do a knot and repeat.When we need an onion we just cut under the knot.We use our coffee cans in the garden.We punch a bunch of holes in the bottom and sink them around our plants and water the cans instead of the plants.This gets water straight to the roots and save on water.We also use them to elevate our melons for more heat.I save toilet paper rolls for xmas.We glue wrapping paper to them and line them with waxed paper and stuff them with cookies ,fudge,etc and roll them and tie the ends off to make them look like "Christmas Crackers".

-- Barbara in Ky (conlane@prodigy.net), February 07, 2000.

I have cut the bottoms out of milk jugs and used them as mini greenhouses for early garden plants. Leave the lid off for ventilation. You can also put a tiny hole in the bottom and bury them between plants to provide deep irrigation. Leave the lid on for this one, it slows the flow. Blue jeans, cut into strips and braided or woven, make great rugs. I recycle my jar lids for storing dried foods. Just use a washable marker so you can relabel as needed. popsicle sticks make great markers for seed flats. I also have been sticking to the same brand of peanut butter, and got a matched set of spice jars. We also buy pretzels in big plastic jars, and reuse the jugs to store flour, pasta, etc. We feed the excess salt to the goats. Worn out towels make good insulation for pot holders, and old blankets make good quilt batts.

-- Connie Christoffer (litlgaea@cs.com), February 07, 2000.

FREE INTERNET access:

I have been using NetZero (www.NetZero.com) for several months now. The CD with the software was $6.95 for shipping and handling. It also provides us with e-mail. It was easy to install, and if you go to the website it will show you a list of access phone numbers, so that you can check to see if there is a local call for you to use. Don't use the free ISP if the dial-up number is a long distance call for you!

In exchange for this free access, I had to fill out a questionaire (took about three minutes) and I have a movable advertising header that displays different ads (no doubt targeted at me based on my questionaire). I can drag it around, but I can't close it. It also has buttons on it, one lights up if I have e-mail, one opens a browser window, one has ABCnews links, etc. Some of the ads are obnoxious, flashing or bright, but overall, I ignore it. This "zeroport" header is smaller than the browser icons on my Windows Explorer header, so it is another layer on top of my Windows header. Actually, I can still see the "Address" box up top.

Altavista offers a free ISP and there are some smaller ones, too. NetZero has been around a while, and they just added more dial-up numbers, so I usually get on-line the first try. For a while it took several tries, depending on the time of the day.

I'm not trying to sell this service, but damn, it's free.

-- Rachel (rldk@hotmail.com), February 09, 2000.


If you have some old quilts that have started to wear here or there you can recut them to make a quilt that is a few inches larger that your window. Attach loops to the top to hang them by and use them either for or behind curtains. They help lots with the cold air and I refer to them as window quilts. You can loop long loops around them like the roll up shades and tie them up during the day to let light in.

I have actually made these quilts just for this purpose. They were made from off white sheets and filler, and they looked great behind my thin curtains. Boy did they help with the drafts, as we live in an older house and our windows are not insulated.

Beth

-- Beth (craig@icu2.net), February 09, 2000.


We noticed at the local hardware/lumberyard that they throw away the large reinforced/plastic "tarps" that come on stacks of lumber, so asked for, and took home several. Good covers for firewood, plastic mulch in the garden, etc.

-- Jan Bullock (Janice12@aol.com), February 10, 2000.

We pick up wood pallets when we find them, mostly when visiting relatives in the city. We've used them for temporary low walls or dividers in the barn, to back up a fencing gate when it needs to be made more "visual", we take them apart for scrap lumber (great for kid's building or scrollsaw projects), stack hay bales on them to keep them off the floor, to make a shady spot when leaned up against a fence... I'm sure there are lots more ideas...

-- Jean (schiszik@tbcnet.com), February 11, 2000.

I use a wood stove for heat and my curtains suffer from excaped smoke. I have found that thrift stores sell used wedding gowns very cheap. The older versions are usually covered in pretty lace. Perfect for making new curtains.The dogs hapilly accept the grey smokey ones for bedding. Does anyone know the trick to making fireplace logs from newspaper? Mountain Momma

-- Susan (sbrennan@multipro.com), April 02, 2000.

The kids and I had to take a longish car trip yesterday, and I was ammusing myself thinking about what us homesteaders might be using duct tape for. You see, it performs two functions on my van: it hold the driver's window up so it doesn't continually fall off track, and it holds the little door to my gas cap closed.

Only in the company of other homesteaders do I not need to be embarrassed to type that.

It wraps my garden hose in several places. It's holding a tarp around the rabbit hutch where I am brooding chicks. (that, and the staple gun, but don't get me going about the staple gun)

Any of you have duct tape on your car? Thought this might be good for a chuckle.

-- Rachel (rldk@hotmail.com), April 10, 2000.


To make logs from newspapers: roll and tie with twine, then soak in a tub and let them dry out. I've never done it, but that's how it's supposed to work.

But don't do it - the smoke given off by the burning ink is toxic.

-- Deborah (ActuaryMom@hotmail.com), April 10, 2000.


Rachel, No, I don't have duct tape on my old van but now that you mention it...it might just do to hold the ceiling fabric back up where it belongs! Jean

-- Jean (schiszik@tbcnet.com), April 10, 2000.

I have heard that three strips of duct tape, folded sticky-sides together and braided makes a passable replacement for a fanbelt in an emergency, so there you are. Free advice is always worth every penny. On the subject, those berry baskets are good for planting your bulbs in. Just set the bulb into the basket and plant that way. Moles can't get through the plastic.

-- Soni Pitts (thomkilroy@hotmail.com), August 05, 2000.

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