Building Archives - Backwoods Home Magazine

Shelves and benches

By David Lee Issue #107 • September/October, 2007 Money doesn't buy happiness but it sure does buy a lot of stuff. If it is nice stuff then you need a place to display it. If it...

By Allen Easterly Issue #98 • March/April, 2006 In just a few minutes your completed snare is ready to put an end to your groundhog woes. A snare set vertically is very effective catching groundhogs with...

Installing a steel roof

By Norman Bennett Issue #126 • November/December, 2010 One of the reasons steel roofs have become so popular is the simplicity and economy with which they can be placed over an old shingle roof. Still, despite...

For large quantity food dehydration try this homemade gem from the past

By Rev. J.D. Hooker Issue #41 • September/October, 1996 The thing I like the most about Backwoods Home is that, unlike a lot of other magazines, the articles are written by folks who are actually doing...

Building David’s Cabin, Part One

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #172 • July/August, 2018 Like most young folks today, our son David graduated high school, got a job, and went to college (accumulating student loans in the process). After that, he worked...

For summertime baking needs, build yourself an outdoor horno

By Rev. J.D. Hooker Issue #57 • May/June, 1999 My family has always been big on birthdays and holidaysincluding Thanksgiving, Christmas, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, New Years, and so on. Every holiday is a major...

Dorothy Ainsworth update: Out of the ashes

By Dorothy Ainsworth Issue #38 • March/April, 1996 I got the dreadful call from my son Eric at 2 p.m. on June 29th, 1995, an hour after I'd gone to work at the restaurant. "Your house...

A house a tornado helped build

By Robert L. Williams Issue #16 • July/August, 1992 On May 5, 1989, tornadoes ripped through parts of three western North Carolina counties, including ours, and left piles of debris where houses, also including ours, once...

Build your own log home in the woods

By Jackie Clay (Photos by Bill Spaulding and Jackie Clay) Issue #72 • November/December, 2001 This is the third part of a three-part series. The first two parts appeared in issues 70 and 71. In the last two issues...

The Forever Floor

By David Lee Issue #92 • March/April, 2005 It is pretty devious starting off an article with an exaggeration but now that I have your attention let me tell you about a floor surfacing method I...

Build A Hybrid Go-Kart For Kids For $150

By Dorothy Ainsworth Website Exclusive • May, 2010 Grandma Clara used to delight in telling us the story of our Dad's first complete sentence at age 2 when he received a toy car for Christmas: "It's...

Making and using a solar cooker

By Joe Radabaugh Issue #30 • November/December, 2004 Solar cooking is a delightful alternative to conventional cooking methods. The solar cookers available today really work and they deserve serious evaluation by a much larger audience. For...

Build a Trapper’s Tilt

By Robert Van Putten Issue #177 • July/August/September, 2019 For as long as I can remember, I’ve always wanted a rustic log cabin deep in the forest. I believe there is something unique about this simple,...

Gabion walls for form and function

By Joe Mooney Issue #153 • May/June, 2015 I think there has to be something ingrained in the human brain that loves things built of stone. Maybe it's our desire for strength and safety or the...

Build an inexpensive but durable jackleg fence

By Dynah Geissal Issue #45 • May/June, 1997 When we moved to our land in the summer of 1994, we were fortunate that open grazing exists where we live because we had to build shelters for...

Build a poultry killing cone

By Allen Easterly Issue #135 • May/June, 2012 You've worked hard and spent many hours raising your pretty flock of meat chickens from eggs or chicks to nice fat fryers, roasters, or stewing birds. They've provided...