Saturday, February 23, 2013

DIY: Building The Oscarmonster a Ramp - Aint Nuthin Holding Me Back






Those dog ramps are really expensive!  Do I really need one of those?

Well, the purpose of everything I have done in my home accommodations section is about making the home safer for your mobility-impaired dog.  In my opinion, if your old dog is having trouble getting up the steps - it IS time to make things easier for him.  

But, it does not have to be expensive!







Home made ramp
after 2 years it still works great!

Home Depot will cut wood for you in whatever size you need.  With some wood, astroturf, and a staple gun or some nails, you can make a long lasting ramp for your dog.  Now, note this is a ramp that is moveable but generally stays in place.   If I needed a ramp for my dog to get in and out of the car, I would change the design a bit.





This was designed for our area of 5 large steps off the porch.  You must take into consideration the grade the ramp will be.  This worked out well for our steps but if there had been more steps, it would have required a different intervention.









Here is the nitty gritty.

Materials:
A) 1 large piece of wood (mine was 2"x10"x?).  The length will be determined by the grade of the steps. Mine was 68 inches.*

 B) 4 smaller pieces (approx 4"x10"x2") You can use molding throwaway pieces for this.  The size can vary.




C) Astroturf (approx 25"x74") to go around both sides of the large piece of wood and a little longer than the large piece of wood.







D) Staple gun and nails or screws

* The length will be determined by measuring where the top of the stairs start and where you want them to end.  The ramp does not have to end at the exact end of the stair.  You can make it slightly longer to decrease the grade.







Steps:



1) Wrap the large piece of wood in astroturf. Tuck the one end so it is wrapped like a present.  Let the bottom end with the extra material fold out like a mermaid tail!  Do not tuck, fold or staple this end!



2) Once the board is completely covered, place it in the approximate place the board will be on the steps with the tucked end at the top and the mermaid tail end at the bottom on the ground.




Tucked end at the top.  Tuck it a little loose and it cushions
the transition from porch to ramp.


Mermaid End creates a soft ending that rests on the ground
(folded a little weird after 2 years of use)


3) Note where the steps' edges meet the Astroturf board -- just above this area is where you will nail in the small pieces to give the board some stability as these pieces rest on each step.  These pieces can actually be a shorter length than the board.



4) Rest the board on the steps again with the tucked end at the top, the mermaid end at the bottom and the extra pieces of wood on the bottom so they rest on each step.  Fold the mermaid end like a mermaid tail.  This gives the bottom part of the ramp a soft end and also the extra astroturf acts as cushioning so that the ramp does not move.



Train your dog with treats!







You're done!


Questions?  Please just ask.  If you make a ramp yourself -- by this means or by another, please email me your photos and details, and I will post!

1 comment:

  1. This project is just my speed, not fancy but gets the job done. I'm doing something very similar and was wondering about what carpet to use. I'll go check out Astroturf tomorrow. I'm not sure my picky prancers will tolerate a rough surface but I'll check it out.

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