yard cart

Yard Cart Wagons For Homesteading and Preparedness

Yard carts and wagons of various types, sizes, capacities, weight ratings, dump carts, or regular utility carts.. I sure do get a lot of use out of those that I have around here! They’re pretty much necessary equipment for a functional homestead.

I take advantage of wheels as much as possible. More and more, the older I get :-)

Yard carts make it much easier to transport heavy ‘stuff’ (or any stuff) from point A to point B. Or simply making fewer trips back-and-forth by hand.

I like the Gorilla yard cart / wagon

Just yesterday I used my Gorilla Cart to haul bags of garden soil from my storage area over to a few new garden beds that I’m building. And it reminded me of this article originally published back in 2018. It’s a timeless subject, so I’m going to update and republish it..

As a prepper and/or homesteader, don’t overlook the utility of yard carts, wagons, and wheelbarrows that will assist you in many ways – moving ‘stuff’ around.

A yard cart or wagon that can be pulled, pushed, rolled. Some of my yard carts / wagons can be pulled behind my 4-wheeler, mower, or my golf cart with it’s attached hitch – while others require human-power. There are so many use-cases for each!

Some things are just too heavy or cumbersome to carry. Why not take advantage of the wheel? The heavier the task, the more I appreciate our yard carts!

I have one particular yard cart wagon that we use quite often (pictured below). I’ve had it for many years and it has performed very well, given all the transport it has done during that time. What a work horse..

I’m thinking about getting another one of these too (the next model up – a little bigger and no-flat tires) (this one on their amzn storefront) which is supposed to be easier to assemble too – though my original pictured below wasn’t difficult – just sayin.

My gorilla yard cart has held up very well over time.

My Gorilla Cart gets the most use around here for light to medium duty. The dump functionality has been a tremendous convenience. Assembly required, but it was easy enough..

Gorilla Cart, 600 lb capacity
(amzn)

I’m ordering the following no-flat tire/wheel upgrade for my gorilla cart, It works for others too – but check tire diameter and axle specs before replacement.

10″ flat-free tire set 5/8 axle bore
(amzn)

Gorilla Carts – All Models
(Gorilla storefront amzn)

So many uses for my yard cart

this yard cart can dump
  • We use it during garden weeding / maintenance.
  • Hauling those rocks that keep coming up out of the ground every spring – a common thing here in New Hampshire, the Granite state.
  • It’s great for simply loading up with tools and ‘stuff’ for working on any given project out on the homestead.
  • Hauling bags of wood pellets from the shop to the house when needed.
  • Harvesting from the gardens.
  • Hauling firewood.
  • Getting a chainsaw and associated supplies out to that fallen tree from yet another wind storm.
  • Rolling a fresh battery over to my tractor storage area to jump start my ATV (guess I need a new battery).
  • And so much more.. of course

From a preparedness standpoint, there may be plenty of uses too. Think about how you might move ‘things’ from here to there during a time if-and-when other means of transportation are not so available (e.g. SHTF?). Are you planning to carry everything?

Here’s just one potential use as it pertains to a top priority concern for survival.. hauling water. In case you ever have to source it externally.. Transporting water from it’s source to your home. Water weighs 8 pounds per gallon! An ordinary yard cart or wagon would be a tremendous asset in this regard. What better way to haul 5 gallon jugs of water weighing 40 pounds each?

[ Read: Aqua-Tainer 7 Gallon Water Container ]

From the river, stream, pond, spring, lake, or your neighbors pool – transporting water from here to there would be no easy task, without a yard cart.

Tips:

Yard carts with larger diameter wheels are lots easier to roll around in the field. Larger wheels decrease the rolling resistance.

Skinny tires will ‘sink’ more in soft or muddy terrain versus fat tires (more surface area in contact with the ground).

A yard cart with 4 wheels will distribute weight much better than a wheelbarrow with one or two wheels.

You might modify a yard cart and build up the sides (DIY project) to hold more. Add tie-downs.

Keep tires inflated. It makes a big difference in hauling effort!

Not exactly a yard cart tip, but thought I would mention the difference between using a 1-wheel wheelbarrow versus a 2-wheel wheelbarrow. Love the 2-wheel version!

Another thing I’ve used a good bit around here is an ordinary medium duty 2-wheel hand truck. Another invaluable ‘tool’ on wheels in my opinion.

[ Read: Best Bicycle for Preparedness? ]

36 Comments

  1. Large one-wheeled carts where how the Chinese handled trade for millennia. Google ‘Chinese Wheelbarrow’ and take a look. Amazing how they could transport goods and people over long distances with just one big wheel.

    For me around the farm, have a number of carts I use with the ATV in the vineyard, carrying posts and wire. Also, I have found that the ‘two-wheeled’ variety of wheelbarrow to be much easier to handle now that I am getting a bit older, especially when moving heavy rocks and concrete.

  2. I too, have a gorilla cart. Mine has a handle that can be attached to riding lawn mower to atv.

    My wheelbarrow has two front wheels which are close together. No more tipping.

    Did you know that the Egyptians didn’t have the wheel when they built the pyramids? Imagine the work to bring all those rocks over and then do the building?

  3. We have replaced all of our wheelbarrows with the 2-wheel versions — they are MUCH easier to steer and ‘cart’ heavy/bulky items! We have 3 of them and one is reserved for horse manure. lol

    We rely heavily on a metal gated trailer that we attach to our lawn tractors when we’re doing small jobs around here. We’ve hauled all sorts of things in it, from harvested veggies to multi-cases of canned foods being moved from upstairs to the basement door, to hauling a few bales of straw, to several hundred pounds of feed. It’s noisy as it bounces along, but it’s a work horse of a little trailer.

    We also have a large flat bed trailer that we use for hauling with one of the trucks. Right now, it has about a cord of wood on it. Usually, the flat bed is our hay hauler, but we’ve used it many times to move large equipment, our Kuboda, furniture, propane tanks, etc. We’ve even built temporary screwed-in goat sheds to haul goats. That trailer has been well worth the $$ spent!!

    Our 2-stall horse trailer has been put to use hauling and storing a cord of wood that my husband cut and brought here last weekend. We have no need for the trailer at this time and it’s a perfect ‘shed’ for the wood, keeping it fairly dry. We’ll take the wood out when we get around to it (or when we need that trailer).

  4. Last year read an article on a Hipporoller. It holds up to 5 gallons of water which makes it easier for you to move due to the weight. It is designed to be used in 3rd world countries enabling the children to gather the water freeing up their parents for other chores, especially women.
    Simple design yet rugged construction material, an item one could add to their preparedness supplies.

    1. I hadn’t heard of the Hippo Roller, so I looked it up. How ingenious! As you said, it’s meant to help out third-world countries, so to buy it in the U.S., it’s $290, at least from the original company–I don’t know if there are any knock-offs.

  5. I’m an old man with a bad back. I rely heavily on a wheel barrel, a dolly and a shopping cart to carry my heavy loads. After some of the comments I will consider getting a wagon as well.

  6. That gorilla cart looks good. I have been looking for something to haul things in, such as potting soil for now, and water if I ever have to haul water from the river.

    The ones I found are too expensive, but the one above looks good and is within [next month’s] budget. Already blew the budget this month.

    I added it to my Amazon cart and then noticed you have to assemble it. Oh no. But I have until next month to decide if I will get it anyway. Maybe my lawn boy can put it together.

      1. – DaisyK – a nine-year-old boy and I put one together with a socket set, a screwdriver and a pair of pliers in just over an hour. They’re not that hard. At the moment, It’s loaded with pine cones the boys picked up from the back yard while they were gathering pecans.
        – Papa S.

  7. I also keep a fold-up wagon in my truck. While I hope I’ll never need to get home without my vehicle, if I do happen to be at work (or elsewhere), it would help me bring more stuff home. Yes, I have a backpack as my GHB, but I could carry more with the wagon. What if I’m on my way home from the grocery store, and just a mile or two from home? I would think that the wagon wouldn’t slow me down too much from getting home, and I’d be able to bring a bunch of food with me.

    I must say, I’d prefer to have a fold-up bike in my truck, but the wagon was much cheaper!

  8. Late to the conversation, but I will make an observation. I have several yard carts/trailers and will offer this as advice. Most all come with tubeless tires that are made in China or Taiwan. Exposure to sunlight/UV rays make them crack fairly quickly. I have put the Slime brand pre-filled inner-tubes in all of mine over the years and this has eliminated the irritation of constantly having to air the tires up every time you use them. Costs around $10 per tire but I’ve never had to replace a tire or fix a flat on any of them.

  9. I’m a little thing, not quite five feet tall. I rely on a wagon to help me do lots of things! They are so handy for so many things! Hauling groceries up to the house, moving whatever needs to be moved in the garden, and tons of other stuff! Without a wagon and my step stool, I’d be lost. ( oh plus the tongs I have to use to reach the bottom of the washer!)

    1. That’s why I bought a front loader last time I had to have a washer.

  10. As we age we need more helpers so we have a variety of wheeled devices. The one we use the most in the winter is the nose truck we haul our wood from the woodshed to the basement. It is great on stairs. DH took an ordinary nose cart & welded on some bars to keep the wood in place. One cart full heats our house for a day in cold weather. We also have 2 wheelbarrows, 1 & 2 wheelers, a wagon, an ordinary nose cart & a one wheeled nose cart that DH developed for moving bee hives around, plus a small trailer to pull behind a car.

  11. In winter we use various plastic sleds.
    The woodpile is between the outhouse & the cabin. On the way back to the cabin, grab a piece or two of firewood… it adds up.

    1. Thanks for bringing that up – plastic sleds. Perfect for winter!

      We’ve also used a rectangular plastic tub of sorts, about 5′ x 2′ or thereabouts with 1′ depth (sides) (called a Jet Sled). Purposed towards ice fishing or hauling game..

      We also use it for fun – sliding down the hill in the winter :-)

    2. When we lived on the farm we use the kid’s plastic sleds to move the hogs from the pen where they were slaughtered down hill to to the farm slaughter truck. Only had to have the ground solid and those sleds would go like a bullet. Really saved the back and made the job much quicker.

  12. I also have a selection of one, two, four wheeled haulers that seem to get used every weekend, life would be much more difficult without them for sure.

    I guess I’m old school, I still like the one wheeled Wheelbarrow. although I might upgrade to a two-wheeler, if/when this one finally craters, it’s probably a good 30 years old, one of the older construction concrete Barrows.

    1. NRP,
      Yeah, those older concrete barrows are great . Moved a lot of concrete around in one of those back in the day. Since I passed 60 a few years back, I find the two wheeled versions are easier to push and maneuver.

      1. If your old barrow is like mine its a layer of concrete holding the rusted pieces together

    2. We still have the old steel wheel from my father’s wheelbarrow. You certainly knew when you hit a rock!

  13. Wife bought a cheap wheel barrow from Lowes a few years ago. Made in the land of the big red star so you know how good the steel was. It lasted two years before the hand tubes were rusted out. Solution was a 10 ft piece of 1 1/4″ galvanized conduit. Handles are now indestructable and the wheel barrow should outlast us. I do have another old aluminum barrow that needs a new frame and wheel but it is aluminum and just to nice to scrap it out.

    On the boat we had a folding 2 wheel dolly called a Rux cart but I have found better ones recently. Folding tray, wheels fold flat and the handle telescopes into itself. They will fit in a car trunk easily and you could use one to carry a plastic tote/bin for many miles if needed. Capacity is 150 lbs. They are available on Amazon.

    Folding Hand Truck

  14. Just noticed my Gorilla yard cart wagon tires were low on air again. Maybe I will buy those no-flat poly tire replacements that I just listed.. Makes a big difference pulling it when loaded – when the tires aren’t low on air!

  15. Thanks for the re-post on the essential Gardening item/s.
    Hitting 70 this year and I’ll tell ya, Two things,
    One. transporting bags of Garden “stuff” AND a truckload of Cow Poop from the drive to Garden sure is a LOT easier with a borrow.
    Second. Ya know, “Life really is good here on ‘Lightning Point'”

    1. Yup,
      Aint it inneresting how no matter how screwed up the rest o the world is our little corners are pretty sweet.
      😎🤙🏻

  16. Wow so many great ideas, I use the following, 2 wheel hand truck, 2 wheel garden cart, 4 wheel metal cart with fold down wire mesh sides, flat 4 wheel movers dolly with a rope handle. Each has its merits, and faults…..but for a given situation they fit the need. At mid 70s I try to work smarter, as I clearly understand job one is not to abuse the “machine”…that being myself.

  17. I have an older gorilla cart that has dry rot tires. Almost all the tires listed on Amazon have plenty of negative feedback. So much so that I hesitate to purchase. Even the solid tires that don’t require air have problems with flat spots developing. Has anyone had first hand experience with a quality 4.10/3.50 x 4 tire? If so, please give me the maker info. Thanks.

    1. To chiefster, I ordered a new set of tires for my gorilla cart (those that I linked in the article). When I get them and run them for awhile, I’ll circle back to this comment and let you (and others who happen to read this) if they’re any good..

      1. As promised, here’s my initial report on the replacement tires for my gorilla cart. They’re the solid ‘no flat’ tires that I linked in the article above. So far they’re great! What a difference from the original tires, which were beginning to rot and never seemed to hold air very long (because I’ve had it for so long).

        Solid tires (and the fact that these are slightly wider than the original tires), makes a big difference pulling the gorilla cart. It’s a lot easier. I cannot imagine that they would develop flat spots (some were concerned of this potential issue) because they’re pretty darn solid, and I’m not going to load it with 600 pounds of freight! With that said, I don’t load it with more than say, ~ 200 pounds max (usually less), because I don’t want to pull more than that. I have other carts better suited to pull behind my 4-wheeler, golf cart, tractor, etc..

        Here’s a picture of my happy gorilla cart with it’s new shiny wheels..

        solid tire replacement for gorilla cart

        1. Nice,,
          I would imagine rotting is less of an issue with solid tires, with inflatables its definitely a problem, tiny holes are never good,
          Maybe treat with a good tire dressing from time to time?

    2. chiefster, Tires on mine rotted away after a few years. Local TSC had replacements. They’re doing fine after a year. Figure this will need doing every few years given the environment here.

    3. I always end up just installing those flat free solids on everything, just less of a frustration, especially with small stuff

  18. I went to my local tire guy (where I buy car tires). Told him I wanted high quality tires but seems most or all are Chinese in these small sizes. Anyway, ordered Carlisle tires at $43 each. Very expensive!!! But I’ve had good luck with this brand on my trailers and wheel barrows. Tires come tomorrow. Guess we shall see.

  19. – Thought I would add a little bit here. DFIL had a ‘Gorilla-type’ cart. I found where the boys left it the other day. (They’ve been back with their mother for about a year now). Sitting out in the sun the thing will still serve as an “Ames Garden Cart” but it is in the throes of falling apart. It now has no tongue, and the sides are falling apart. I didn’t use it, but it was in the garage (or was).

    To be fair, it’s about 20 years old, but I will be finishing up breaking it up and discarding the rest of the broken remains. Plastic and the west Texas sun are not a good match.
    – Papa S.

    1. 20 years in the sun… not bad! Sounds like he got his money’s worth, although apparently would have lasted longer if treated a bit better.

  20. Update! I received the Carlisle tires yesterday. Expensive, but much higher quality than the OEM tires supplied with the cart. Of course these new tires are made in China too. Seems all these smaller tires are Chinese. Unfortunately, we don’t make much of anything here in the USA anymore. I don’t use this cart as of now, but I anticipate it will receive heavy use if/when things go to hell around here. There is a water spring a few hundred yards up the hill that runs 365 days a year. This cart would be used for transport of water containers.

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