underground tiki

yup - I'm new at this and am just doing my homework for my first tiki. I apologize in advance if tis has been covered, but I searched these (massive) archives and cannot find what I'm looking for. I live in Florida (USA) and picked up a couple of palm tree trunks a while back, planning on carving them into tikis. I hope to begin work very soon and I want to "plant" them in the ground - so, do I need to treat the bottom part of the palm (that's going into the ground) with anything in particular to help preserve it? Thanks in advance! John

Where in Fl.?

DeLand, FL (between Orlando and Daytona Beach). I was thinking about using roofing tar - but I could be way off baase with that . . .

[ Edited by: johnrussellcox 2013-02-23 05:15 ]

Na, tar won't work.
Palms don't do well in the ground for long.
I wana see the carving first,
Then we'll figure out displaying it.
What are you going to carve?

Hey Will Carve, I've wanted to "carve my own" for a while, since I toured Mai Tiki's shop several years back in Cocoa Beach, FL. So I managed to salvage a couple of palm trunks (sabal I think) last summer and have been staring at them ever since. I'm not even sure these palms will work out - they're thin - about a foot across and 8 feet long . . . I wanted to carve them and stick 'em in the ground in the garden, but then again, not knowing anyting about this that may just be a dumb idea (concrete?). Another question: do I need to remove the "bark" before the actual carving? I'm glad I discovered this BB - great resource - thanks!

well, there's really no need to stick them IN the ground unless you're worried about 'em gettin' jacked. They don't exactly blow over easily...lol...

and as far as the bark thing goes, you can do either. I like to cut the bark off first with a chainsaw, whereas some people just carve right through it & then take off what's left over with a draw knife or something...

be safe (unlike me) & go deep bro...

Thanks - the reason I thought I'd stick 'em IN the ground is that they're long and thin - really just a support issue

I recently carved a tiki that I'm planning on sticking in the ground. Its got a sizable root ball that is the top of the head - and the tiki tapers to a rather narrow base. Because its so top heavy, I'm planning on drilling some hole in the bottom, then getting some half inch rebar (bent into 90s) and then epoxying the rebar into the tiki - also spreading some of the epoxy around the base for a waterproofing membrane. Then, pouring it into concrete - with the sides of the concrete tapering down & away from the tiki (so that rain will fall away).
The epoxy that I use (Simpson Epoxy), comes in two parts. You'll need a specialty caulking gun that will automatically mix the two parts as it comes out of the nozzle (which you'll also need)- or squeeze it out from the end by using a stick - then the two parts can then be mixed together with a putty knife. Its rather expensive (around $30)- but its good stuff.... On occasion, I'll find it at the swap meet at a greatly reduced price. Note: there are expiration dates on the tubes - and on construction projects they can't be used if they go expired. I have also been putting a coat of this on the tops of my tikis - in case people want to put them outside. I'm sure this will help protect the tikis for at least a couple of years - perhaps more? - but eventually, the sun and the elements dol take its toll.

That's some good info - thanks! I'm about half way done with my first (ever) tiki. I got some ideas from photos I've seen on this board. I'll post a photo if I can figure out how to do that . . .

Well, here's my first attempt, about 1/2 baked I'd say. Not real sure where to go from here

That looks great for your first shot.
Just dig a hole & stick him in.
He'll be fine.
Start another.

Arrrrrgggghhh!

Arrrrrgggghhh!

yep. what Will said....

and here's a little tutorial on removing palm bark if you wanna carve clean logs....I skin like 90% of mine before I draw them out...

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=42819&forum=7&12

Thanks to you all!

made some more progress today. Added (or tried to) a grass skirt and legs. Tried to clean up the rest a bit. Not sure when to call it done, or where to go from here . . . . more smoothing out of the rough bits, burn, stain, varnish . . . ?

Another question I have is about the strength of the wood. This is sabal palm. I'd like to remove completely the wood behind his legs (see below), but I'm not sure if that would weaken it too much. Any advice would be great - thanks!