HEATER CARTS
Kerosene heaters are generally moved on level, smooth floors, so four wheeled carts will be level.

This cart was built by removing the bed from a small wagon and replacing it with a sheet of plywood. Molding was used for the edges.  The wagon bed was rusted out and the wagon discarded, but we retrieved it from the recycling bin.  The wheels needed to be removed, the axles polished with emery cloth, then greased.  Now it rolls easily.

A view of the cart from the rear. The bed is 17" by 24" long, and will hold every kerosene heater I have, but the molding trim had to be left off the middle of the sides because the DC-100 is 19" wide, as you can see. Cost of this cart? Nothing.  Scrap wood was used, and the wagon was free from the "Sanitary Landfill."

This cart is the base tank of a shop vac which had been discarded.  I cut off the tank just above the wheel supports, bolted on a piece of thin plywood, and 2 rubber snubbers hold the heater securely to the base.

This cart actually cost some something - $9.99 on sale from a hardware store.  It is a convertible hand truck/cart, with a sheet of 5/8" plywood (19 1/2" x 23 3/4") bolted to the base, with 1" molding on each side. Here it holds a WC-105 type N.  In the summer, this cart is used for moving honey supers from the hives to my pickup.

Here is a Heat Mate HMHR 1101 radiant heater on the wagon.  The wagon was built 24" long to handle any of my radiant heaters.  A Corona SX-2e is only 17" wide, but a Toyostove RCA-87 is 23" wide. The Corona SX-2e is 12" deep, the other radiant heaters 10".

This is the base of a cart I built for the Heat Mate HMHR 1101 and Corona SX-2E radiant heaters - not for the wider Toyotomi radiants. I used an old piece of 3/4" plywood, put on side rails, then caulked them.  Note the block at the end to hold the rear axle assembly. The inside measurements are very minimal at 12 1/2" x 21 1/2".

The parts needed for the rear axle assembly:  long 3/8" threaded rod, connecter nuts, 3/8" to 1/2" bronze sleeve bearings, 3/8" bronze thrust bearings, 1/2" conduit clamps (back), and 4 stove bolts for attaching the front swivel wheel. The wheels (below) were from a lawn mower, and were salvaged from the a recycle bin.  Very low cost cart!

The rear axle assembly ready for fastening to the block on the base. After attachment, the cart can be checked for level, a plywood shim added to the block if necessary, then the axle cleaned and painted.

Bottom of the cart, with wheels attached.  The conduit clamps fit over the connecter nuts and hold the axle securely.  Now it can be removed and painted.  I used a blue "non marking" caster wheel deliberately.

The finished cart, holding a Corona SX-2E radiant heater.  This cart is the absolute minimum size (12 1/2 x 21 1/2") to hold a Corona or Heat Mate radiant with the bails removed. The narrow width make the cart a little tippy, but it will only be used indoors on level floors. The caulked molding edges ensure that any fuel spills will be contained in the cart and can easily be cleaned up.

UTILITY CARTS

Utility carts are often used on uneven ground, so larger wheels make travel much easier, and three wheels, with a caster wheel in front, allows them to maintain a stable platform even if the ground is not level.

This cart for a 3,500 watt generator was made by using a piece of 5/8" plywood, a 7" caster wheel for the front, and recycled spoked wheels from a discarded child's tricycle for the rear.  It will pull easily over rough ground.  Note that the pull cord is on the back end which is stable to lateral movement.  If the pull cord was over the caster wheel it would not work very well!

I needed a cart for carrying heavy loads over a gravel driveway, up and down ramps and through doorways.  The result is a 32" long cart with a width at the rear axle of 24", the maximum width and length for conveniently traversing a hallway and going through doors at an angle.  I used a 5/8" piece of plywood for the base, 1 x 2" stock for the side rails, and 3/8" plywood for the rear "fenders."  The pull handle was salvaged from an old discarded wagon.

Here is the cart upside down.  The front has a 7" swivel caster wheel mounted on a piece of 1 x 6.  The rear wheels are 14" high, so I dropped the axle 3 1/2" with two 2 x 4's and a piece of 1/2" plywood, resulting in a level platform.  I could have placed the 14" rear wheels completely under the cart, but the center of gravity would have been too high and the cart too tippy on hillsides.  

Here is the finished cart.  The UPS driver just came with about a hundred pounds of freight.  The big box easily fit inside the wider rails in the front of the cart, while the heavy boxes of steel EOD Breacher Bars are directly over the rear axle.  The cart easily moved over the gravel driveway and into the house.

Travel over rough ground and gravel made the 7" caster wheel chatter, so I replaced it with a 10" caster wheel.  That meant I had to lower the rear axle by 2" to make the bed level.  Now the cart practically rolls by itself!

Jim McFarland saw this cart page and came up with his own idea (OK, his wife did.).  He bolted 2" caster wheels directly to the base of his Dyna-Glo heater!  Very clever.  It pulls easily over carpets with the inexpensive 2" wide caster wheels.