New ideas not a problem for Plains inventor

By CHUCK BANDEL

Valley Press

Leonardo da Vinci would probably have liked Derek VonHeeder.

Both men took ideas and created working expressions of those thoughts.

And, by all accounts, da Vinci was a tireless thinker and doer, much like Plains resident VonHeeder.

A visit to his shop and “enterprise” facility near the fairgrounds provides testimony to ideas that have been turned into useful tools to improve the quality of an individual’s life.

“I’ve always been like this,” Von Heeder said. “I was mowing my yard one day and for two hours I was thinking of the stump grill. When I got done mowing, I went to my shop and made one.”

VonHeeder was referring to his idea to build a series of small grills to go with a round piece of wood for use by hikers, campers and other outdoor adventurers.

The result was the creation of the Stump Grill, which in turn created Stump Grill Enterprises. The innovative idea has become a popular item among those who needed a compact way to warm a cup of coffee or other items while enjoying the great outdoors.

That product was just the latest in a series of thoughts turned to working products that VonHeeder has developed.

The latest invention is a multi-use cart that can be used for everything from hauling wood, packing elk or deer out of the back country, or…relaxing in comfort at a spectator event.

His creation was on display at a recent Plains High football game. There, in the corner of one end zone, VonHeeder sat in a comfortable recliner placed in the cart. A large beach-like umbrella was added with this model of the cart, keeping the night’s steady rain at bay while VonHeeder cheered on the Horsemen football team.

“I’m always doing something, always thinking about how to make things easier and life more simple,” he said from his enterprise headquarters. “I like to make things that make life better for folks.”

A life-long metal fabricator, VonHeeder took his idea for a multi-use cart and built a working model. The cart is constructed of sturdy, channel steel and supports a metal grate platform.

Two large bicycle wheels give the cart its mobility and a hitch in front can be hooked to anything from a mountain bike to an ATV.

And the cart can be built to match the specific needs of the buyers.

“I can make these in a wide range of sizes, including the size of the wheels,” he said. “And they can be used for a lot of different things that I think can make life easier in a very simple way.”

An early model of the cart gives testimony to the design flexibility and endless tinkering that consumes VonHeeder as he works. That cart featured a fold-out ladder-like device with a small platform at the end.

When extended and placed against a tree, it becomes a portable hunter’s tree stand. When folded back down the cart can be used to haul away what was hopefully a successful hunt.

Another creative idea is his portable, outdoor shower which can be loaded onto a pickup truck and easily transported to a campsite or off-grid site.

“You can have a working shower in the back of a truck in 30 seconds to take it camping,” he said. “I thought of this idea after tearing down my home here on the property a few years ago. Suddenly I was without a shower out here.”

Not for long.

After acquiring a shower stall, he built an outhouse-like structure around it. Then he took an empty beer keg, mounted it near the compact structure’s roofline, and installed a small box for wood burning purposes.

Piping was hooked up and a sink was added to an outside wall (with a mirror for shaving, of course) and yet another idea had come to life.

Heat is generated by dropping pieces of wood down a short smokestack, then lighting it through a hole near the bottom of the burn box.

The keg, which at that time is filled with water via a garden hose or other source, is heated by the burning wood and within minutes 16 gallons of hot water is ready for use.

The water temperature can be adjusted by adding cold water to the keg. VonHeeder is currently pondering ideas for a more automatic water temperature regulation device.

“This kind of shower can not only be used for camping, but it could be a great addition to an off-the-grid homesite,” he said. “I will probably keep this first model until the day I die.”

VonHeeder says he hopes to one day soon rebuild the house he took down, this time perhaps in the form of a tree house type structure. And he also hopes to install a pond on his property, which is partially surrounded by a large, rock slab fence.

All of these ideas and more to come circulate on a non-stop basis through the mind of this creative thinker and doer.

And as soon as he can figure out how to finance a dream project, all products will be available to the public on a much larger scale and hopefully at a price everyone can afford. The carts currently sell for between $450 and $1,600, depending on the complexity of the model.

“It has always been my dream to build a large steel building here on the property,” he said. “Then I could have five or six people working with me and we could produce these things much cheaper. Maybe some of them like the stump grills could be $19.99 like the stuff they sell on TV.”

It would take five or six people to keep up with VonHeeder’s creatively busy mind.