Getting Our Feet Wet
Earlier this year, our basement gave us a wonderful present in the form of several litres of water which took up residence in our carpet.
While generous of our basement to do this, we really don’t like that sort of gift. Unfortunately, there was no gift receipt, so we had to get rid of the water using a friend’s dehumdifier and a bunch of fans.
We determined that the problem was because of the weirdo-thaw we had at the time, and matters weren’t helped by the strange layout of the asphalt in our backyard.
It sloped towards the house, and ended at the gate to the front of the house, due to some previous owner paving on top of the asphalt that was already there, causing a lip to form, which acts as a dam.
So Mrs. J and I decided to landscape…
Bin busy…
Click to enlarge…
Don’t Like It? JunkIt!
Over the summer, I took time here and there to wield a sledgehammer against the forces of asphalt, cracking it and prying it up in large chunks.
Since there was so much of it – and since it’s not environmentally friendly to dump it – I asked around my circle about disposal companies.
Since Mrs. J and Little J were heading out to Mrs. J’s Grandpa’s cottage over the long weekend, I called JunkIt to rent a five-cubic-yard bin for hauling concrete and stone.
I figured that it would be a good time for me to take care of the asphalt on my own. It was much cheaper than getting other people to do it. It would also be great exercise.
The spade broke on the last ten square feet…
Click to enlarge…
Hauling Ash
So that’s how I spent the majority of my long weekend.
I discovered that the “rugged” plastic wheelbarrow was beginning to crack under the strain of the rubble I was filling it with, so I moved the pile one shovelful at a time.
It certainly was time consuming, but now the section of backyard beside the house is now asphalt-free!
And was it a good workout?
Hell yeah! Everything is so much lighter after you move around heavy debris!
Next year we will be making a nice path and a garden along the side of the house, along with an enclosure for the garbage/recycling bins. Perhaps even a nice sandbox for Little J.
Mrs. J was kind enough to snap these photos of the result of my weekend Labour (go figure it was Labour Day weekend)…
A job well done…
Click to enlarge…
UPDATE: One of the fine folks from Junk It just left a comment informing us that the capacity of this bin is much higher than I thought. Awesome.
Filed under: Anecdotes, General Dialogue | 12 Comments »
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