||>CV' 





PLANS FOR BUILDING 



CONCRETE BENCHES 



The perennial interest in concrete benches is stronger than ever in these 

 times of high prices of lumber and other materials. The simplicity of the 

 plans employed by the grower who explains them below made a quick appeal 

 when presented in brief by him in The Review a short time ago. 



ENEWED interest has been 



R shown of late by the trade 

 in the practicability of 

 concrete benches, which 

 has been the subject of a 

 good deal of discussion 

 from time to time before. 

 I have been growing car- 

 nations, chrysanthemums, 

 violets, etc., in benches of 

 concrete for five years. The stock pro- 

 duced has been excellent in quality and 

 there has been absolutely no expense 

 for repairs. The expense of construc- 

 tion, after the forms have been made, 

 is less per running foot than for cypress 

 benches and the forms themselves may 

 be used repeatedly. 



One Cast in Six Hours. 



In casting my benches, I use a form 

 of simple construction and set it with- 

 out the aid of a single stake or sup- 

 port. Three men can take the form from 

 one bench, 5x150 feet, and erect it for 

 another in one day, after digging out 

 for the feet of the bench, and five men 

 and a m^xer can cast the bench in one 

 day; we cast one in six hours. In 

 order that others may have as little 

 trouble as possible in constructing con- 

 crete benches for themselves, T am de- 

 scribing in detail the method which I 

 have found most successful, giving 

 figures for a bench twenty-four inches 

 high, five feet wide and fifty feet long. 

 The dimensions can easily be clianged 

 to fit any size of bench. 



For every 4-foot section of bench. 



By FRED W. ARNOLD. 



procure from the lumber mill the fol- 

 lowing: 



Eight pieces, %x6xl8 inches, for legs. 



Two pieces, %x6x60 inches, for sides 

 of crossbeam. 



One piece, %x5x38 inches, for bottom 

 of crossbeam'. 



Two pieces, %x8iX> inches, ten inches 

 wide at the top and seven inches wide 

 at the bottom, for ends of crossbeam. 



Six pieces, %xl0x39i/> inches, and two 

 pieces, 2x2x62 inches; these eight pieces 

 for the bottom form. 



A 50-foot bench will require thirteen 

 sets of legs and crossbeams and twelve 

 full sections of bottom forms. Also 

 procure from the lumber mill: 



Two pieces, %xl2x60 inches, for the 

 sections at the two ends of the bench. 



110 lineal feet, %x9i/o inches, for out- 

 side forms for sides. 



110 lineal feet, %x6% inches, for in- 

 side forms for sides. 



Six pieces, %xliX!xr)0 inches, to be 

 used as ^tay braces across top of side 

 forms every eight feet. 



Nailing Together. 



Now nail firmly together two o>^ the 

 leg pieces, side to edge, using three 8- 

 penny nails, and half nail two of these 

 pairs together, making a box 5x5x18 

 inches and open at both ends. To half 

 nail, leave about three-eighths of the 

 nail exposed, so that it can be withdrawn 

 with a claw hammer or bar. Cut the 



ends of the crossbeams at an angle of 

 forty-five degrees, so that when the 

 legs are placed they will be six inches 

 under the bench, safe from the toes of 

 anyone later^ working at the bench. A 

 glance at the drawing presented on this 

 page will make this and similar points 

 clear. 



The fact that the end pieces for the 

 crossbeam form are ten inches at the 

 top and seven inches at the bottom will 

 make the sides of the crossbeam beveled 

 downward one and one-half inches in 

 six inches. Nail the bottom of the 

 crossbeam form to one side, centers cor- 

 responding; nail the end pieces to 

 this side; half nail the other side to 

 the bottom, and half nail the ends to 

 the last side. Ten inches from either 

 end of the bottom boards nail the 2x2 

 pieces and see that this bottom sheet 

 is square; the bottom squares will come 

 loose more easily if beveled to corre- 

 spond to the sides of the crossbeam 

 forms. 



Base on Solid Ground. 



When all the forms are ready, stretch 

 a line along where one side of the 

 bench is to come, but seven-eighths of 

 an inch lower than the under side is 

 to be when completed. Allowing one 

 foot for the overhang of the end of 

 the bench, fix the location of the feet 

 and dig down until* solid ground is 

 renched, whether four inches or four 

 feet. Fill these holes with concrete 

 made of one part cement, three parts 

 sand and five j)arts cinders. Tamp well 



o 





Wo solid earth. 



"or 



-^ End Tiece 



-38'- 



^1." 



fe=fz=^ 



45' 



Leg 



Cros^bcatri 



Botto m 



Drainage Tlixg 



Diagrams Showing Details of Forms for Building Concrete Benches by Fred W. Arnold's Plans. 



