As if John doesn’t have enough projects to do already (chicken coop, pool deck, bathroom redo, etc…) I added another this week, but it was a very quick one. I thought it would be fun for the kids to eat lunch in their fort more so I decided John should put up some pulleys, clothes line and a bucket so I could send them their snacks direct from the porch. I’m sure they’ll use it when playing too.

John just mentioned to me that building the chicken coop (which is coming along great so far) is getting him thinking of building the kids a playhouse. So I’m not the only one thinking up the new projects and a backyard can never be too fun!

John’s instructions on building your own are below.

How To Build a Lunch Pail Pully System

This was one of those quick and easy projects that had me wishing I’d done it sooner. The parts cost roughly $15 and installation took 15 minutes.

Part List

• 2 Pulleys (I used nice brass pulleys because I expect they will hold up better)
• 2 Carabiners (to connect the pulley to my lag hook)
• 2 Lag hooks (These are threaded at one end with a circle at the other)
• Clothes line
• Bucket
• Clip for the bucket (optional)
• Clothes line pincher (optional)

I bought everything at Lowes. The bucket was in one of the paint lanes, but everything else was in the rope and chain lane within 15 feet of each other. Get your bucket first and throw all the other pieces inside it to make a nice self contained project.

Assembly

• Drill pilot holes at each location. Holes should be a little smaller than your lag hook. Also make sure the holes are high since the bucket will be hanging below the clothes line.
• Screw in lag hooks.
  TIP – Put a screwdriver through the hole and use that as a handle to turn the lag hook.
• Clip the pulley to the hook using the carabiner.
• Thread the clothes line through the pulleys
• Optional – I found the clothes line pincher (my name for it) alongside the clothes lines at Lowes. It lets you pull the line tight and pinches it so it won’t pull back out. I expect the clothes line to stretch over time and this is an easier way to keep pulling it tight.
• Optional – I bought another clip which I tied to the clothes line and clipped to the bucket. It works, but the setup is a little ugly. I might modify this later.
• Attach bucket. You could skip the 2 optional steps and simply tied the bucket to the clothes line.

The setup works great, although it is a little bouncy. I went with a plastic bucket so it won’t rust, but a metal bucket might bounce less. The boys enjoyed helping me set up this project and especially enjoyed the first “cookie test” when it was all done.

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