Earlier this week I purchased the items needed to build 3 simple 4' x 4' raised garden frames - pressure treated 2"x8'x12" lumber ($20 each) and some wood screws. I expected it to be somewhat difficult as I'm not a particularly handy person (insert Red Green joke here), but it turned out a bit harder than I thought. But I persevered and managed to get a semi-solid frame. Here's how it went down ...
1) Bought the lumber at Lowe's, got a guy there to cut each of the 2"x8' pieces in half as I wanted the frames to be 4' x 4' each (so two pieces of lumber make one frame - $40 total for each frame);
2) Got the wood screws (3");
3) Have a drill;
4) Didn't have the right drill bit (I mean the screwdriver type of attachment) ... OK, problem #1.
I bought a drill not long ago. I mainly was looking for a drill to make holes in stuff. I wasn't really thinking about drilling screws. The drill came with an assortment of "screwdriver heads" (not sure that's what they are referred to, but that's what I'm going to call them). I figured it came with all the basics, so I picked one that seemed best suited. I should have known better; it's not as if I haven't used a screwdriver before, so I am well aware that there is a different head for each type of screw. However ...
5) I started to drill in the wood screws with the wrong head. Not only did the screws not get very far, as I was obviously stripping the head, but I was also on a funny angle (problem #2 - need to figure out how to drill them in straight).
Once I realized I needed a square head, I remembered that I had one in my cordless screwdriver set. But it quickly got mangled, as it must not have been the right quality - problem #3. I finally understood what was wrong. I boogied down to Crappy Tire and picked up a square screwdriver head for drilling into wood and was on my way.
It all went together in the end, albeit a teeny bit wobbly. Maybe it's just because I didn't (intentionally) use any bracing at the corners. Good enough for now! I think I'll wait to do the other two frames until I can get some advice on how to make it stronger (or maybe just get some help altogether!).
I put down some cardboard underneath to keep the weeds and grass from coming up (it might be a few weeks before I can finally get some soil delivered).
