The gazebo that formerly went over our hot tub was the victim of our recent winter storm- the heavy wet snow ended up causing the roof to collapse, which in turn bent the frame and made the whole thing unusable.
So now we have to dispose of the carcass. We can take it down to its smallest pieces-parts, but that will still leave the corner pieces too large for us to transport to be recycled. We have a small butane torch, but are not sure if that’s the smartest way to cut the pieces down. Dremel? Metal saw?
What say ye, Dopers? Obviously the metal isn’t that thick, but we still want to work smarter not harder.
yes a reciprocating saw (sabre saw, not jig saw) is probably best. for occasional use an less expensive import saw will likely be good enough. place the foot of the saw tight against the piece being cut. anyone near should have eye and ear protection.
It depends on what tools you have. The cheapest good solution is probably a hacksaw; a blade with the right number of teeth can make a big difference in how well it does the job. If you have a reciprocating saw (jig saw) that will do the job with a bi-metal blade.
If you have a 4" grinder there are cheap wheels that will go through the metal better than a Dremel.
Hey, that’s the same crappy gazebo that I had that got ruined in the snowstorms of 10/11!
We used a sawzall and cut it down small enough to put in the back of a pickup truck - find those weak, folded over sections and try there. Them that won’t be cut, try folding over (with gloves and well-placed boot kicked and stomps). Oh and hell yes, eye protection to the max.
Tangent - back in my catering days, a co-worker remarked that she had done a wedding for a couple who couldn’t say “gazebo” - they repeatedly referred to how they were going to get married in a gaBEEzo. Which is how I’ll say it for the rest of my life.
All the good ways (and some kinda out-there’s) have been covered.
An angle grinder and recip tie - which do you already have?
A saber saw will get there - if you have one and don’t want to spend the money for a recip, they will get there.
A hack saw is up there with a file - can work, but you’ll hate yourself.
Rental is a possibility.
If you are going ot buy onw good tool, I suggest the recip - more versatile than the angle grinder (YMMV)
A Sazall or angle grinder will do the trick, but if you just drag the big sections out to the curb there’s a good chance a junker (those guys that drive around in pick up trucks on garbage day) will take it…and be happy about it. That’s a lot of metal and it doesn’t need to be sorted, it’ll be a pretty nice score for someone.
Sawzall…but why did you keep the canvas/cloth up during the winter when you live in an area that may get snow? Follks around here take it down to prevent this from happening…???
I’d be willing to bet that those supports are hollow metal tubing and not solid steel. Assuming you don’t have one of the power tools mentioned or don’t wish to buy one, if it were me I’d just use a hacksaw. Might be a little bit more work and take a little longer but for me that would outweigh dropping a bunch of money on a tool I may not have much more use for. On the other hand this might be just the excuse you need for a shiny new tool, so if that is the case, go for it!
You could also just put an ad on craigslist and see if someone wants it for scrap.
Wow, a general consensus!! Recip saw it is. I’m pretty sure we have one of those in the basement… if not, easy enough to make a run to Harbor Freight (thanks ducati!), though I have to admit I’m a little tempted to roll up a fire mage. We’d leave it out front, but our normally very very very tolerant HOA would probably be mildly displeased.
highrollinwooded, this was the first snow we’ve had in two years- leaving the canopy up hasn’t been an issue. We weren’t anticipating it to be a problem. Clearly we were wrong.
Oh, and just to make it clear: A reciprocating saw and a jigsaw are two completely different tools. A reciprocating saw (with the right blade), if you happen to have one, is a reasonable and appropriate tool to use for this job. A jigsaw would be a terrible choice, and attempting to use one would almost certainly damage the tool, and possibly you in the process.
A reciprocating saw is one of those hand-held tools (such as a Sawsall) with a blade (attached at one end) poking out the front, which moves forward and backward. They can cut all sorts of things, but aren’t the most precise tool. A jigsaw is usually a tabletop tool, and has a thin blade held at both ends, under tension. It’s basically the power tool equivalent of a coping saw, and is used for making precise cuts in wood (such as, for instance, cutting out a jigsaw puzzle).
Recip saw it is. I’m pretty sure we have one of those in the basement… if not, easy enough to make a run to Harbor Freight (thanks ducati!), though I have to admit I’m a little tempted to roll up a fire mage. 