I got an old fire hydrant today! I'm so psyched.
We take our trash and recycling to the town dump. A few weeks ago, I decided to see what was lurking near the big pile of metal objects off to the side of the dump. Usually it's just old, rusty bikes and some refrigerators in the "grizzy attitudes of death." * In the past, I've gotten some cool stuff there, including a stop sign, but when I noticed the hydrants, I decided that I had to have one. There was only one problem. They're heavy as hell.
Hydrants are made of cast iron. I guess that's a safety issue; perhaps it's so that they don't break when someone backs into them with a car, or maybe it's becuase they have to be really solid to handle the high water pressure coursing thru them at times (or both), but I kid you not: That thing weighs at least 200 pounds.
When I first spotted the discarded hydrants, I figured I'd just take the nicest-looking one, which also happened to be the smallest. I gave it a push with my foot, and the thing didn't budge. I pushed harder, and it tipped back about a centimeter. That's when I realized that I might not be able to get the thing home on my own. I spent a few minutes at it before resigning. I was sad: I knew I couldn't make it back for at least two weeks and guessed that it would be gone by then. I didn't even check back a few days ago when we returned from our trip, and I wasn't going to check today, either, but I decided to take a peek just in case.
Again I was faced with the prospect of getting the damn thing into the back of my car. Luckily mine's a hatch-back with a fold-down door, so I knew I only had to raise the hydrant about 2.5 feet, but still, I hadn't had any luck two weeks ago, how could I possibly.... And then I spotted some metal poles in the rummage pile. I propped them from the ground to the car, positioned the hydrant, and rolled. It wasn't easy (and it kept threatening to roll back onto me or worse, to fall suddenly onto my foot!) but I finally managed to get the thing into the trunk. Then, knowing I'd have the same struggle to get it back out of the car, I took the metal poles with me. Back at home, I used the poles to help roll the thing out of the car (jumping to the side to avoid a broken foot when it finally slipped) and placed it in the garden.
The hydrant is in sad shape. The many layers of paint are peeling and some of the metal has rusted a bit. Worse yet, the peeling paint might be lead-based. I'll have to remove the paint (carefully!) and give it a fresh coat. Then I have to dig a small trench for it so that I can bury it a foot deep in the garden so that it won't tip over onto a foot (or a kid!). It'll make an excellent garden gnome.
_____________________________
* Dom DeLillo, in White Noise
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3 comments:
Hey there, another fairly-new NP resident here. I'm enjoying reading through your posts, and I know exactly what you're talking about with the big metal scrap pile.
The only other stuff we've dropped off at the dump has been a Christmas tree, so maybe you can help me figure this out. We've got a basement full of stuff that needs to be thrown out. Old cement blocks, doors, windows... stuff too big to sneak into the garbage can. How does the dump... work? There's no how-to on that kind of thing, so do I just show up with everything in my car and the guy will tell me how much it'll cost to drop it off? Do they charge by the pound or just eyeball it? I don't even have any idea as to how much cash to bring. So as someone who lives here who HAS gone to the dump... what's the deal?
Hey, Jeffrey! Thanks for writing.
As for the dump, there is actually a sheet o' paper from the dump detailing the cost of expunging the detritus of your life. If my cat weren't a-lap at this very mo, I'd give you some examples, but I do recall recently hearing someone find out that his large bulky item was going to cost about $35. I have a feeling that you may be in for a nasty surprise. Go see Phil at the dump for that price list, and good luck! Bring your trash and lots of cash!
Welcome to New Paltz!
OK, the cat's off. Here are some prices. Not as bad as I feared:
convertible couch: 25
roofing tiles, per yard: 30
mattress: $5/$10 (single/double)
I'm not sure if there is a cost for the metal recyclables that end up in the center heap -- they may be free. Good luck!
PS: Check out my other blogs.
Thanks so much, David. The website I found (http://www.ucrra.org/wastedisposal/fees.htm) looks to say about the same thing, so at least I won't be in for a shock. Besides, it's a small price to pay for more space in the house. We need all of it we can.
Best of luck with your wife's knitting store, too. She's got the benefit of foot traffic during the warmer months, and the draw of people thinking about caps and scarves when it gets cold.
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