home made soil sifter mesh size?

Hi
after digging a few holes around the border (clay soil) i have found out this garden is full of bricks and stones as well as tree roots. i have decided i need some excercise so i will dig the whole lot over. i am going to build a soil sifter but was wondering what size mesh i need to buy is 10mm to big should i go for half that size.
also as there are lots of stones and bricks what shall i do with these? do spread them around at the bottom of the holes and fill the soil back on top or take them to the dump. i intend to reseed the whole lawn at some time over the next year but want to concentrate on getting rid of the stones and roots and getting my borders ready for fruit and veg. so much to do and i don't really have a clue on gardening

 

If your digging the garden it makes sense to remove all the large debris and stones from thee garden whilst your doing it. you want to get a lot of organic matter into the soil aswell i.e compost and manure whilst your digging it over. Do a google search for free manure in your area or ask at some local stables if there are any local, as sometimes they want to get rid of it.

 

i was going to sift the whole garden and i think you mean take the rubble and stones to the dump and not bury them so i wil do that. i will get some manure and mix that in and i already see a few posts on here about newspapers etc to mix in as well. how far shoud i dig down? i have dug a few holes about 14 inches deep and its so full of rubble its hard work, and is 10mm to big for a soil sifter the smallest one b and q do is 9mm but i could double layer 2 x 10mm. i am just off to my work to nick a few pallets!

 

You could advertise the rubble on freecycle as hardcore.

I'd stick to 10mm, esp. with clay soil as a 5mm will be hard work to do the whole garden, it will clog up too much.

 

I would agree, slightly larger would be better, my home-made sieve has 1/2" (13mm) mesh.

a-a

 

How I made a large riddle to sieve lots of soil.

All measurements are in Imperial because I have not yet mastered metric. And they are approximate since I used what was at hand.
Using 1.5 in by 1in roofing lath timber I constructed a rectangle of 5 feet by 3 feet. The corners were butt jointed and strengthened with corner brackets. (This size was made because that was the size of piece of chicken wire I had available.)
I stapled a sheet of 1/2 in chicken wire stretched tightly to the frame. To give more stability and to stop the mesh sagging I also stretched straining wire every foot across and down, woven through the mesh.
Then I fastened legs of same size timber to the top of the frame so that it sloped about 60 degrees. (Need to experiment to find best angle). When in use I also used a couple of tent pegs to stop the frame moving backwards when soil was thrown at it.
Dry (and it needs to be dry) soil is thrown (not too hard) at the top third of the frame. As it trickles down larger than wanted pieces stay on one side and smaller pieces go through.
If you wanted a more robust and longer lasting gadget than you could use the wire mesh sold for outside aviaries.
The angle of the legs should be such that the soil trickles down and breaks up as it goes, too shallow and it sticks, too steep and it falls off.
This does not work on wet or clay soil. Sorry, but then neither does the old fashioned garden sieve. Either way it is stii hard work, But at least you do not have the weight of the soil to lift as in a conventional system.
Now watch the experts come up with a better idea.
Photos not available, this film was lost be developers, before digital too.

 

I will try with 10mm if it gets to tough then i will make another sifter. i need practice with my tools as i have had them yrs and hardly touched them! couldn't get a pallet as they ran out. can't believe it most days they have trouble getting rid of them the day i want one they haven't! wil try today or tomorrow and will even take pics!

 

It sounds like you might need a job lot of Bath Soak as well!:WINK1:

 

I had terrible stony soil and was shocked at the price of sifters in general. I was going to make one until a chance sighting at Wilkinson's. They had a tough plastic one with 13m/m holes for £2.68. I got one and its doing a grand job!