IT’s ok, but next time try this…
There’s got to be a hundred ways to move firewood from one
location to another. I think I’ve tried them all at least once. But somehow, I
always come back to the simple method of piling a few logs in my arms as pictured
above. It’s simple, no tools needed, right? You walk to the woodpile, stack a
few logs in your arms and off you go back to your fireplace or woodstove. And
if you’re like me, you usually end up making multiple trips carrying wood this
way. No problem, right?
Well, here’s one problem…
While carrying those logs in your arms, you risk tearing clothing, getting wood splinters stuck in the material or worse, cutting your arm. There’s also dirt and bugs clinging to the wood, ready to be brushed off onto your sleeves. What if you’re wearing your favorite shirt or sweater? Are you changing your clothes every time you fetch a few logs of firewood?
Check this out.
It’s a pretty cool tip that can help keep your clothes clean and free of wood splinters – and the dirt and bugs. The next time you plan to carry firewood in your arms, slip these on first, they offer great protection!
Below is the first pair I bought. You can see the elastic
bands on each end. They work well for me, especially when I’m wearing a coat or
long sleeve shirt. And btw, I do wear gloves too. Need to protect those hands!
My Discovery
As a retired machinist, I’ve experienced my fair share of
welding over the years. Like many other mechanics, I do a lot of ‘garage’
welding at home, where I fix tools and such in my workshop. With welding, I’ve
gone through many a long-sleeved Dickies work-shirt, only because the weld
spatter burnt holes completely through my work clothes! I needed to make a
change.
Enter – the welding sleeves. They were a godsend for protecting my clothing!
Here’s what happened:
Once at home in the midst of a welding project, I needed to add fuel to my woodstove, and voila’, my “discovery”. As I was gathering the firewood (with the welding sleeves on, of course), I realized it was not only more comfortable for my arms, but it protected my clothing from wood splinters too! The rest is history as they say. The ‘welding sleeves’ can also be used for other tasks too.
Here’s how I use them…and you can too!
GARDENING
The sleeves are perfect for protecting your arms from
stickers and thorn bushes. I slip on a pair when I’m trimming and clearing
brush from my property. The sleeves keep your arms protected from bug bites and
poisonous plants too!
BURNING TRASH
At my former property, I used a 55 gallon drum to burn items
I didn’t want in a landfill. While feeding the burning barrel with trash, I
wore the sleeves as protection from the extreme heat and flames as well as the
hot ashes.
WELDING
Of course, exactly what they were designed for… The leather material blocks the heat and welding spatter from damaging your clothing and burning your arms. I also use the sleeves when I am working with a hand or bench grinder. It protects from the hot sparks that fly off the metal.
CARRYING FIREWOOD
I always keep a pair handy for fetching a few logs for the
woodstove or fireplace. But I am sure to wear the sleeves when stacking
firewood too, as I always have a few logs in my arms while securing my
woodpile.
As you can see, the (welding) sleeves have many uses. How
can you use them?
Every household should have at least one pair. I keep one in
the garage for when I split or stack wood and another pair in the house when I
need to bring logs in for burning.
Be smart, protect yourself.