Don’t Throw Away Old Tires – Put Them To Good Use!

tires

 

Unless you live in an area where you can discard your old tires when you purchase new ones, chances are you have few old, worn tires lurking in some dark recess of a barn or shed.

While they may look like trash, they have practical purposes, or re-purposes that you can use around your property saving money in avoided discard fees and in creating stuff you otherwise would have to pay for.

Planters

Tires make the perfect planters, and you can either use them for horizontal or vertical planting. Place dirt, nutrients and seeds/seedlings into the tire and you have a self-contained system. You can hang them vertically and use them for herbs and other edible items such as parsley and cilantro that do not require deep soil. The possibilities are endless, but tires can help you to organize your garden while maximizing space.

Steps

Tires, filled with sturdy material can be used as the basis for steps. If you have a path that leads up a hill, tires are an ideal way to create steps that make climbing safer and less energy-consuming. Flatten the ground, lay tires next to each other and fill them with the material that you want to use as the “floor”. Then level the ground about six to ten inches above the first row of tires and repeat the process. The finished product will be a level, sturdy and easy to maintain stairway.

Roofing Material

Tires provide a water resistant form of roofing material that can replace shingles or clay tiles. All you need to do is cut the treads into segments and nail to the roof in a manner similar to laying decorative Spanish tile. This method requires strength and good tools, but the end result can be the solution to expensive material that may not be available in a SHTF scenario.

The possibilities for those old worn out tires is literally endless. These are just a few ideas.

A neighbor of mine, for example, collected old, used tires from our local community and built a retaining wall next to his sunken driveway – It works as well as the concrete that was cracking before the tires and only cost him elbow grease!

For other awesome ideas on how to use tires, please check out Survival Kit.

Featured Image via Acumen


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