We might have different definitions of heavy-duty then. And it’s no longer protected from moisture after the container cracked, right?
My girlfriend makes fun of me for going on and on about those HDX containers (FYI- Lowes has the same ones with their own branding), but they are definitely the best. I buy a couple more every time I go to the store, the 27 gallon size is usually on sale for under $10.
Also, it was a magical day when I realized that 4 of them fit precisely underneath the bed in my camper van.
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My main qualification is what percentage of the space is wasted when lots of them are stacked together. Basically how rectangular are they.
Many have much bigger lids than bottoms leading to the space under the lid being wasted. Slightly slanting sides make it easy to get stuff out but some just have weird shapes that can’t stack together well.
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I’m not Rob but I think that’s why he said “The container just needs to be replaced.”
I bought like 20 of the Sterilite’s about 15 years ago for a move and they have mostly all survived through multiple moves. Probably paid about $3 apiece. Don’t stack them more than 2-3 high, depending on weight. I’m also in a warm climate so I don’t have to worry about cold weather cracking.
Yeah. You’ve got (cue rollout of tons of sphericoid or whatever those wobbly objects of continuous rotation are,) box bugs/mice/rats/snakes/lizards. Happens in places with so much wind half a bug gets turned 90 degrees.
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2 points:
(1) From the linked Wirecutter article:
A note about labeling
We recommend investing in a label maker. Labels are easy to remove and replace if you decide to repurpose a box. If you still prefer writing on the bins, we suggest dry-erase markers instead of Sharpies, particularly on clear storage containers. A quick pass with a wet wipe or magic eraser will take off the marker so you can reuse the box. Penn also suggests keeping an index inside the closet so you’ll never forget what you’re storing.
THIS.
(2) My personal go-to for storage bins, especially in small-to-medium sizes are Really Useful Boxes by http://reallyusefulproducts.co.uk/ . I’m not affiliated with them in any way, I just buy them. Because they really are really useful. What I like best about them is that they are not conical. I don’t want to store empty boxes stacked into each other. I want to use boxes to store my stuff inside them.
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Rubbermaid Brute is either a splendid band name, or someone’s favourite sexytime roleplay character. It is utterly wasted as a name for a brand of storage boxes.
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But how do they sound?
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I have a stack of Homedepot crates and they seem fine. but when you stack them 8 height with probably around 500 lbs of books in them, they slowly collapse over several months.
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The clear HDX totes are subject to cracking, especially in cold weather. The black totes with the yellow lids are the shizzle, however.
I’ve had some Rubbermaid containers for 10+ years and I’ve found that they’re very durable and crack resistant, but it comes at a cost as the plastic has slowly destabilized and became sticky and gummy.
Some of the items I’ve stored, such as movie box-sets with paperboard boxes, get discolored/sticky as the plastic absorbs into the paperboard. I don’t mind so much, but if you’ve got collectibles it’s something to be mindful about.
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Or, you know, just throw all your crap down the stairs without a box. #minimalism
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I’ve got several of the Home Depot ones, I’ve noticed a very annoying issue–a high stack of them will lean.
I’ve tried IRIS containers but not the ones listed, crack city for very minor provocations–indoor, not cold embrittlement. My Ziploc branded ones have suffered multiple handle breaks for minor provocations.
As for the Rubbermaids becoming sticky over time–spray with some 409, hose them down, good as new. I’ve never seen the Brutes, the regular ones need to be loaded pretty lightly and absolutely not subject to anything but vertical pressure (say, an object inside that doesn’t lay flat) or they slowly deform and break.
The ordinary Sterlite’s are pretty wimpy (I own a bunch of very small ones, I wouldn’t buy anything bigger), I have one industrial one in the garage (it gets pretty warm out there in the summer, it is insulated and has only two outside faces so it doesn’t get too bad in the winter and we are zone 8b anyway) that holds potting soil (unless I’m going to dump a whole bag of it in a pot it goes in the tote and gets used from there) and has stood up well for several years now.
The ordinary Sterlite’s are pretty wimpy (I own a bunch of very small ones, I wouldn’t buy anything bigger),
The secret is not to overload them. They’re cheap, just buy some more and stack when not in use. I love them for temporary storage (i.e. moving, instead of using cardboard). For permanent storage I’d buy something better.
A note on labeling–I couldn’t get my labels to stick to the Home Depot boxes reliably. I stuck a strip of black gorilla tape (basically invisible on the box) where I wanted a label, then stuck the label to the tape. All those labels are still holding fine.
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