He Recycles Tires Into Works of Art

He Recycles Tires into Works of Art TIRES/WHEELS Miscellaneous 16-6-28 "I've discovered some fantastic new uses for old tires that let you turn them into beautiful works of art instead of worrying about how to get rid of them," says Harvey Beneteau, Vulcan, Alberta, who's become an expert at finding ways to put discarded old tires to use for work or pleasure. Beneteau's new tire inventions include horse-shaped swings, swan planters, bird feeders, and ornamental baskets, as well as compost bins, tire mats, salt block or mineral feeders, horse feeders, feed bunks, water troughs, cold frames, sand boxes, and rubber fence strips. He's been so successful that he formed his own company, Recycled Rubber Products, to market his unusual products. Here's a description of some of his most unusual tire "works of art". Horse swing - From the nose to the tail, it's made entirely in one continuous piece from a single tire except for the reins which are made from rubber strips. The tire is turned inside out and then reshaped and bolted together to look like a horse. "It's strong enough to support an adult," says Beneteau, who originally obtained the horse pattern from Recycling Research Institute, Suffield, Conn., after reading about it in their publication called "Scrap Tire News" which describes what's going on in the business of recycling old tires (Recycling Research Institute, Box 714, Suffield, Conn. 06078). Swan planter - The swan planter is also made in one piece from a single tire. Beneteau uses a snow tire because it provides a wide, flat bottom for the planter to stand on. The tire's bead forms the top part of the body. The wings are formed from a section of sidewall folded in half and bolted to the bead. Bird feeder - It's made from the sidewall of a car tire with three chains fastened to the bead. It can also be used as a bird bath. Compost bin - The 45-gal. compost bin is made from four car tires, with a complete tire on top and bottom. Two tires are cut up into 1/2-in. wide rubber strips that are woven together in mats that form the main body of the bin. Beneteau uses tire cutting equipment made by Ken Winans, Binghamton, N.Y., (featured in FARM SHOW's Vol. 9, No. 3) to cut tires into narrow strips which are then woven into rubber mats, feed bunks, fence strips, etc. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Harvey Beneteau, Re-cycled Rubber Products, 119 1st Ave. N., Vulcan, Alberta Canada TOL 2B0 (ph 403 485-6669).

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