I have a ton of scrap EMT and a few extra T-connectors...I'm sure it won't be long til I find another trellis or cage to build!

I also introduced an employee at Home Depot to MakerPipe. He was helping me with the EMT (great advice to just use a sawzall to cut...so much easier) and thought I was going to do something crazy like drill holes and zip-tie the rods together. He seemed really interested, so I hope he gives you a try or shares the idea with other customers!" - Laurel

I used 3/4" EMT, 4 90˚ connectors, 2 T-connectors, 4 45˚ connectors, and 4 adjustable angle connectors to build a frame and add bracing. I spray painted everything before assembling, but ended up scratching a lot of the paint during assembly.

The frame is wrapped in 3/4" stainless steel reinforced cat netting from CatNets, which is anchored with a combination of zip ties and paracord (folding the netting around the EMT conduit, then weaving paracord in the mesh to secure the free end to the main panel, making a pocket for the conduit).

I miscalculated the amount of conduit I needed, so I had leftovers to make an elevated bed for my cat to use to look over the balcony railings. I was inspired by the elevated dog bed kit, but didn't use it. I got a replacement cover for that style of bed off Chewy, 4 more 90˚ connectors, and used 2 leftover adjustable angle connectors to make something like the bed kit, but with extra long legs, two of which I threw a brace between. It's plenty sturdy for a 12 pound cat.

All together, I can now let Ranger out on the balcony without worrying about him jumping the railing and still fit a hammock stand out there. 

 Art pedestals that can break down and fit in the back seat of a Camry and do not jiggle when assembled. The main off the shelf versions either swallow my work (Propanels) or jiggle too much (Abstracta and a few others). And, I would be limited as to how many Propanel pedestals would fit.

 I also want something that is fairly quick to set up and take down. 

 I thought Makerpipe would be the perfect solution... A simple square-frame for the top with legs clamped in place. Where the squares remain 'built' and the legs can be easily and quickly taken on and off. And, I could switch around the pipes to create different heights and sizes if needed for a particular piece or event. I could make panels that would attach to the conduit for a "skirt" and be able to change them out as needed as well.

 Try 1: Make the square and just have 4 legs. I figured the conduit was strong enough; it is. But, didn't work, legs jiggle too much in the connectors (assuming I'm using them correctly) - used all 90 degree connectors.

Try 2: Make two squares and run the legs between them - something like an old-fashioned box kite design. Still jiggle and realizing I don't see a way to make this easy to break down - all 90 degree connectors. Cross bracing would likely help stability but then totally eliminate speed of use. And, I realized I couldn't use the quick clamps on the inside join areas - there's simply not enough room to spin them - on the inside of the box.

 Try 3: Make a square with T connectors. On two of the sides have T connectors with quick clamps to attach the legs to. Introduced a new issue, I didn't realize the clamps pretty much required adjusting every time they were used. I can wrestle my way to a tight hold on the pipe but it wiggles in a way that gets progressively worse with each movement. Also, the clamps do not appear to be the speedy on and off mechanism I thought they would be - again, assuming I'm doing everything right.

 After spending the entire day with the connectors, the jiggling makes sense. They connect super tight by the screws but there's a bit of a gap at the end of each connector - again, assuming I'm doing everything right.

 So, now as I write this with over $300 of Makepipe materials, a little over $100 of conduit that I had to cut myself in the parking lot of Home Depot because after cutting pipe for a male customer I was told no cuts for me because the last woman asked for 30 cuts on a single PVC pipe. That part of the story isn't over yet but sharing if anyone's in the Hendersonville, NC area. And, to share that I'm tired, cranky and beyond frustrated; so please bare with me.

 All that to get to the SOS...

 Anyone have any ideas?

 I suspect one of the hinged connectors might allow for easy up and breakdown but likely wouldn't fix the jiggling.

 I have little doubt, with enough connectors and pieces of pipe, I could use Makerpipe components to create pedestals that wouldn't move a millimeter. But, I suspect it would would take more time than I would have to set them up on site and take them back down.

 I'm open to any and all suggestions even if that leads to a conclusion of "you can't do that with conduit."

Thank you in advance.

I have an idea to build a structure sort of like a rectangular table, but the top will be sloped where one long edge (the 8 foot edge) is lower than the other. I want a gutter on the low edge to collect rainwater and feed it into some rain barrels sitting under the roof.

I'll anchor it with shed anchors, and use corrugated metal for the roof.

There will be four EMT conduit posts (2 will be 7 feet tall, 2 will be 6 feet tall), with a beam (again, EMT) across the back high long edge and a beam across the lower long edge. I'll use t-connectors to run "rafters" (EMT conduit) from the high edge down to the low edge. I'll attach wood 1x6 to the rafters with hanger straps and then nail the corrugated metal to the wood.

I'll put a horizontal brace between the high and low posts on each side. I saw some trellis designs that did this.

Questions:

• it seems like i can build all these just with t-connectors. does this sound right?

• how should I attach the gutter? Should I mount another 1x6 with hanger straps to the long beam?

• How many rafters do I need?

• is there a design in the archives that already does this?

• are shed anchors the easiest and cheapest solution to anchor this so it doesn't blow away in the wind, or is there something better?

Any feedback welcome. Especially anything that saves money or simplifies the build I've never worked with EMT conduit or maker pipe.

Plan as I might, I'm not that great on paper or with models, I have to see it in the space. So I created this basic frame. I haven't secured it yet but it seems to be steady enough for now. At first I thought the shade clothe would be secured to the building and wall which would make the orientation north south. I now see that it is better to move this tall structure to the center bed and create a slightly shorter structure for the two outer beds so the shade will also orient east west and the slope of the shade cloth will protect from afternoon sun more than the am sun.

I'm still learning but I'm hooked. I've also painted the emt so they do not overheat. I'm thinking of this as a modular learning project. Glad I found Maker Pipe.

After working with Maker Pipe products, I'm already thinking of other improvements I can make with pipe. There may have been better ways than U-bolts to attach the cattle panel to the brace of 3/4 in conduit. Being new to your company, I wasn't yet aware of what you might offer. I have to admit that using the U-bolts was an afterthought when I discovered that the tension of that heavy gauge panel was greater than Zip-ties could handle." - Boyd