The Toolbox and the Lighthouse: A DIY Adventure

As we stepped out to face the elements, our trusty toolbox was by our side, ready to tackle whatever challenges came our way. With the bucket as our faithful companion, we set out to embark on a DIY adventure that would see us whittling, sawing, and hammering our way through the process of restoring a lighthouse.

We began by tackling the task of covering up some furring strips and vinyl, which would eventually serve as a makeshift solution for windows. With the utility knife at the ready, we set to work hacking away at the strips, hoping that they would snap into place. It wasn't ideal, but it was better than nothing, and we were determined to make it work.

As we worked, our conversation turned to the fact that we had forgotten to bring a saw with us on the job. "I don't want to risk cutting the vinyl," I said, "let's just see if we can slide it out." My companion nodded in agreement, and together we carefully measured up the strips, trying to determine how they would fit into place.

We also discussed our lack of power tools, which made the job more challenging. We had brought a few basic hand tools, but nothing that could truly facilitate the task at hand. "I don't know how long it's going to last," I admitted, "but better than nothing, right?" My companion chuckled in response, and we continued on with our makeshift approach.

As the sun began to set, we took a moment to step back and admire our handiwork. We had covered up some windows and doors, installed our trusty solar-powered street lights, and even managed to fix some of the roof. It wasn't perfect, but it was a start.

But as we looked around at the lighthouse's surroundings, we couldn't help but feel a sense of unease. The structure loomed above us, its isolation making it seem almost precarious. We knew that it had been reported that this particular lighthouse was not safe to navigate in poor weather conditions, and our presence here was certainly adding to that concern.

That's why we decided to install some additional lighting to serve as a warning to any passing vessels. We scoured the local hardware store for something suitable, finally settling on these little security lights that would come on at night. They were cheap plastic LED streetlights with solar panels, and we were determined to see how they held up.

As we worked, my companion mentioned the fact that the roof had been done by a company called Extreme Roofing about 10-15 years ago. It was still holding up, but it would need some maintenance to keep it in good condition. We carefully inspected the flashing and secured it with a few screws, hoping that it would hold against the elements.

One of our most pressing concerns was power. Since we weren't going to be able to operate any serious equipment, we needed something reliable to trickle-charge our batteries while we were away. That's why we brought out this tiny solar panel and lithium iron phosphate battery pack, which came equipped with USB ports. We quickly hooked everything up, feeling a sense of excitement at having created what could only be described as the world's smallest, cheapest, and easiest power system.

But just as we were finishing up our work for the day, disaster struck in the form of a broken door. Water was pouring into the lantern room, threatening to cause serious damage to the lighthouse's interior. We quickly came up with a solution – using a hatch cover as an impromptu patch and propping it up with a pole to keep it from collapsing.

Despite the setbacks, we felt a sense of pride at what we had accomplished. It wasn't perfect, but we had managed to make do with what we had, and that was all that mattered. As we packed up our tools and headed back out into the night air, we couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement for what the future held – not just for this lighthouse, but for our own DIY adventures.

The Finished Product: A Lighthouse in Peril

As the sun set on another day at the lighthouse, it was clear that our makeshift repairs would need to be reinforced. The furring strips and vinyl covering were holding their own, but we knew that the real test of endurance lay ahead – when the winds picked up and the storm rolled in.

The street lights, which had been a welcome respite from the darkness, now seemed woefully inadequate against the looming threat of a Category 3 hurricane. We had installed them with solar panels to keep them charged during the day, but we knew that this system was far from foolproof. The lighthouse itself loomed above us, its isolation and vulnerability only accentuated by the howling wind.

Despite our best efforts, we couldn't shake the feeling that we were tampering with fire by keeping this structure operational in such poor weather conditions. But what could we do? We had come too far to turn back now, and besides – it was just a lighthouse, after all. What's the worst that could happen?

The only thing that was certain was that tomorrow would bring its own set of challenges, as we struggled to keep this fragile edifice from coming crashing down around our ears. But for now, at least, we had created something beautiful – a makeshift solution that might just make it through the night.

And so, with a newfound sense of trepidation, we stood watch over the lighthouse, ready to face whatever the storm may bring. It was clear that this wasn't going to be an easy ride – but for now, at least, we were all in this together.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enuh don't lean on the railings at Wolf Trap of course it happened we forgot to bring a saw to cut the furring strip so I'm just going to hack hack at them with the utility knife and see if they snap honestly that's a little sketchy our mission is to save these incredible abandoned lighthouses using new technology while preserving the history and helping the environment of the ches p day we are the lighthouse centers today we're in Virginia at Wolf Trap Lighthouse covering up Windows fixing the roof and installing some temporary lighting so boers can see the Lighthouse at night people often ask us aren't you afraid of a storm coming along and destroying the lighthouse well no these lighthouses have been standing tall for over 100 years and the truth is the greatest threat to an offshore Lighthouse is actually rust and rot from water getting in and lack of Maintenance look at that oh baby be careful wow uh don't lean on the railings at Wolf Trap Yik I wasn't even leaning on there's nothing holding that in just put that down there and this one too so don't want anyone leaning on that but that Wolf Trap Yik I it wasn't even leaning on it I just like don't don't look at the railings I literally touch my elbow like like look this one's about to do it too holy crap look at that look at that go ahead lift up I'm proud of that one so dangerous put the watermelon in the toolbox that's H the bucket then I'm coming up honestly that's a little sketchy what all right we got some furring strips and some vinyl we're going to get these windows covered up we came all the way out here and of course it happened we forgot to bring a saw to cut the furring strip so I'm just going to hack hack at them with with the utility knife and see if they snap okay so let's just see if we can get something going here all right wish me luck he not bad not bad though I don't want to risk cutting the vinyl yeah just see if we can slide it out SL okay so let's measure up 66 66 un I left it out there screws what you got up what size are you cutting them it's a 54 all right all right put some screws in another quality job using fine Craftsman to tools from Lowe's sponsor of the lighthouse centers hopefully someday edit that part out all right you got for I think this is going to work this is going to work all right so let do The Other Side Y all right I'll tap it in all right is no idea use a shorer one all right we got the world's cheapest and easiest window I don't know how long it's going to last out here in the lighthouse when winds hit 70 or 80 M an hour but I guess we'll find out better than nothing there's not another human being for Mile and people just cruise by like I mean maybe they don't want to bother us but I like hey what's going on you need help you know two idiot whittling on the lighthouse cuz we don't have a nice saw what did we think we were going to use last time we probably had one last time he all right second one done not bad Sun's going down let's finish up all right here's a riddle what do you call a lighthouse with no light and obstruction we've been really concerned about that we've heard some people say that it's pretty dangerous to have this structure out here in the middle of the bay at night and there's no light on it the light is uh o over there or something bab Bo I was looking around Walmart and I found these um little security lights this will give us something that will come on at night uh just to give some boers an idea that there's something out here so we're going to install one on either side from the railing all right so this product is by heart and we got it at Walmart for about $57 each so we'll see how they hold up uh if somebody wants to sponsor us and send us some better quality uh lights and things to use at the Lighthouse we'd certainly be willing to to accept but in the meantime let's see how long these things last they are some cheap plastic LED street lights that will come on solar and we'll hopefully run all night so some company called Extreme Roofing you can see it on the sign down there uh did this roof maybe 10 15 years ago and they probably did a really good job but it's uh needs a little maintenance when we came out here this flap was over so at least I'll put a couple screws in the flashing and see if it holds it down I'll try not to get too close to the edge oh look at that that is uh Birdwing I don't think this thing would have lasted another month we have no power system or anything so the first thing we wanted to do since it's not an active light was get a battery and a little solar panel to trickle charge it when we're not here so when we come out it'll be charged up and we have these awesome lithium iron phosphate batteries and they have USB ports we brought some cords because we don't want to get caught out here uh without working phones and without being able to charge some of the lights and some other things we bring out so we'll quick hook this up and we have uh the world's smallest cheapest easiest power system that we could make instantly so we're out here just trying to get things buttoned up with what we have and this uh side door in the lantern room was open and water was just pouring in so we used the hatch the hatch cover and we took it and just shoved a pole up against it to hold it up in there so that will stop a lot of moisture from getting in the lighthouse that was getting in before I'm not particularly proud of this installation but it will have to do until we get out here one more time so what do we get done today we covered up some windows and doors we installed these street light lights so we have light uh out here at the Lighthouse at night and the world's smallest solar power system and we also fixed some of the roof all right we'll see you all next timeuh don't lean on the railings at Wolf Trap of course it happened we forgot to bring a saw to cut the furring strip so I'm just going to hack hack at them with the utility knife and see if they snap honestly that's a little sketchy our mission is to save these incredible abandoned lighthouses using new technology while preserving the history and helping the environment of the ches p day we are the lighthouse centers today we're in Virginia at Wolf Trap Lighthouse covering up Windows fixing the roof and installing some temporary lighting so boers can see the Lighthouse at night people often ask us aren't you afraid of a storm coming along and destroying the lighthouse well no these lighthouses have been standing tall for over 100 years and the truth is the greatest threat to an offshore Lighthouse is actually rust and rot from water getting in and lack of Maintenance look at that oh baby be careful wow uh don't lean on the railings at Wolf Trap Yik I wasn't even leaning on there's nothing holding that in just put that down there and this one too so don't want anyone leaning on that but that Wolf Trap Yik I it wasn't even leaning on it I just like don't don't look at the railings I literally touch my elbow like like look this one's about to do it too holy crap look at that look at that go ahead lift up I'm proud of that one so dangerous put the watermelon in the toolbox that's H the bucket then I'm coming up honestly that's a little sketchy what all right we got some furring strips and some vinyl we're going to get these windows covered up we came all the way out here and of course it happened we forgot to bring a saw to cut the furring strip so I'm just going to hack hack at them with with the utility knife and see if they snap okay so let's just see if we can get something going here all right wish me luck he not bad not bad though I don't want to risk cutting the vinyl yeah just see if we can slide it out SL okay so let's measure up 66 66 un I left it out there screws what you got up what size are you cutting them it's a 54 all right all right put some screws in another quality job using fine Craftsman to tools from Lowe's sponsor of the lighthouse centers hopefully someday edit that part out all right you got for I think this is going to work this is going to work all right so let do The Other Side Y all right I'll tap it in all right is no idea use a shorer one all right we got the world's cheapest and easiest window I don't know how long it's going to last out here in the lighthouse when winds hit 70 or 80 M an hour but I guess we'll find out better than nothing there's not another human being for Mile and people just cruise by like I mean maybe they don't want to bother us but I like hey what's going on you need help you know two idiot whittling on the lighthouse cuz we don't have a nice saw what did we think we were going to use last time we probably had one last time he all right second one done not bad Sun's going down let's finish up all right here's a riddle what do you call a lighthouse with no light and obstruction we've been really concerned about that we've heard some people say that it's pretty dangerous to have this structure out here in the middle of the bay at night and there's no light on it the light is uh o over there or something bab Bo I was looking around Walmart and I found these um little security lights this will give us something that will come on at night uh just to give some boers an idea that there's something out here so we're going to install one on either side from the railing all right so this product is by heart and we got it at Walmart for about $57 each so we'll see how they hold up uh if somebody wants to sponsor us and send us some better quality uh lights and things to use at the Lighthouse we'd certainly be willing to to accept but in the meantime let's see how long these things last they are some cheap plastic LED street lights that will come on solar and we'll hopefully run all night so some company called Extreme Roofing you can see it on the sign down there uh did this roof maybe 10 15 years ago and they probably did a really good job but it's uh needs a little maintenance when we came out here this flap was over so at least I'll put a couple screws in the flashing and see if it holds it down I'll try not to get too close to the edge oh look at that that is uh Birdwing I don't think this thing would have lasted another month we have no power system or anything so the first thing we wanted to do since it's not an active light was get a battery and a little solar panel to trickle charge it when we're not here so when we come out it'll be charged up and we have these awesome lithium iron phosphate batteries and they have USB ports we brought some cords because we don't want to get caught out here uh without working phones and without being able to charge some of the lights and some other things we bring out so we'll quick hook this up and we have uh the world's smallest cheapest easiest power system that we could make instantly so we're out here just trying to get things buttoned up with what we have and this uh side door in the lantern room was open and water was just pouring in so we used the hatch the hatch cover and we took it and just shoved a pole up against it to hold it up in there so that will stop a lot of moisture from getting in the lighthouse that was getting in before I'm not particularly proud of this installation but it will have to do until we get out here one more time so what do we get done today we covered up some windows and doors we installed these street light lights so we have light uh out here at the Lighthouse at night and the world's smallest solar power system and we also fixed some of the roof all right we'll see you all next time\n"