Fill a Sand Barrel in the Summer - PEP BB homesteading.sand.little.sandbarrel

Today at the 2019 PEP1 event, I was running the tractor with a loader bucket.  What a great time to fill a sand barrel!  I collected dry sand from Arrakis (parking lot) so that the barrel won't freeze solid in winter.  The barrel that needed sand wasn't empty but since it needed filling, I filled it.  It will be used to sand the driveway when it gets icy.

I'd like to propose that the BB requirements be changed so that the barrel doesn't need to be mostly empty when you begin.

We didn't actually have one of these last winter but when taking things to the local recycling I saw this barrel and I asked if I could have it. It's now got a second life as the gravel bin to gravel the icy paths in the winter. I'm hoping that the gravel will pass for sand since it'll do a better job in the winter time. Thanks guys!

Making reserve of fresh sand in the summer. I use it when trails and road are icy. Use it also for the square of sand for the hens where they bathing.

Last June I decided to use sand instead of salt this year. So I set up a large new can, filled it with sand from the floor of the in-progress henhouse and waited for winter.

Here is my submission for this BB. This spring we pulled up some square brick paving stones next to our patio and discovered a thick layer of sand underneath. We dug the sand out, dumped it in a pile on the patio, and filled in the area with soil to plant sandcherries (maybe we should have left a little more of the sand than we did, given what we were planting. 😁)

So for this BB I transferred the pile of sand to a barrel to be used on our steep driveway on icy days in the winter. We live in Salt Lake City, and we will certainly have those. Last winter I bought sand to use, so finding this sand for free is definitely a stroke of good fortune.

You'll see the sand isn't totally pure--a bit of dirt got mixed in. However the darker you can make the snow, the faster it melts, so that's not bad.

I'm including:

  - a before picture of the mostly empty sand barrel
  - an action shot of me filling the sand barrel last week (July)
  - an after picture of the filled sand barrel

EDIT: I added another photo, see attachment: "2.2_action shot with sunflowers in the background"

I filled a metal barrel with sand in June after we received a few good rains that carried the sediment down the bluff and separated the sand from the clay and silt.

To show you've completed this Badge Bit, you must provide:
See Attachment 1 - a before picture of the mostly empty sand barrel
See Attachments 2 and 2.1 - an action shot of the sand barrel being filled during what's obviously summer
See Attachment 3  - an after picture of the filled sand barrel
   - a description of how the sand barrel is going to be used: The sand will be used on the driveway and the sidewalks in the winter when we anticipate icy conditions (thaw and refreeze without fully melting/evaporating).

So exciting! This is my first homesteading BB!

It's still summer and I filled the sand bucket today. Our "barrel" is kept in the garage where it can be accessed while both vehicles are parked in it. I don't have access to sand on my small property so it's purchased. (Other option would be removing from the beach at a state park- I'll pass thank you)

To show you've completed this Badge Bit, you must provide:
  - a before picture of the mostly empty sand barrel
  - an action shot of the sand barrel being filled during what's obviously summer
  - an after picture of the filled sand barrel
  - a description of how the sand barrel is going to be used

The empty barrel. I put it in the mud room to keep it dry. I've tried keeping burnables in this thing outside with the lid on and it all still ended up wet so this is staying inside.


I went around the field with the wheelbarrow looking for vole hills. The voles kick up a lot of super sandy stuff that is now readily accessible. Thanks, voles.



Almost full. This is about two wheelbarrows' worth of sandy stuff.


Me filling the barrel.


Ta-da. Pretty full. And dusty.


I plan on trying out the method of sanding icy pathways this winter. We usually just break up the ice with a sledgehammer and maybe use a little bit of salt, but this might be easier if it works well. If it doesn't work well, I'll use it to fill in part of the driveway that floods in the spring.