Packing - Tubs or boxes

[CompactTractorFan]

I could be on that show "Burried Alive" or "Hoarders" if it weren't for storage tubs. :laughing:
I have about 135 of them currently. All numbered and all in a database so I can find what's in them. T

I don't know about that...I once saw an episode of Hoarders where everything was in containers. There was no junk on the floor, but every room was stacked to the ceiling with plastic totes. :laughing:

 

[JDgreen227]

I don't know about that...I once saw an episode of Hoarders where everything was in containers. There was no junk on the floor, but every room was stacked to the ceiling with plastic totes. :laughing:

CTF, are you thinking about that episode of "CSI" that dealt with hoarders who kept their daughter handcuffed to her bed, I recall that one showed huge stacks of totes piled high in one area of the house.

 

[MossRoad]

I don't know about that...I once saw an episode of Hoarders where everything was in containers. There was no junk on the floor, but every room was stacked to the ceiling with plastic totes. :laughing:

That pretty much describes my basement. Its a Michigan basement with cement floors in the crawl spaces, so its nice a dry. The side walls are bout 4' up then go back about three rubbermaids deep by two rubbermaids high. :laughing: So, I can put six containers back to the foundation wall. I've got about 48 containers on each of the three Michigan shelves around three sides of the basement. The space would be used for storage anyway, so by putting everything in containers, it stays clean and dust free, ready to use when I need it. The fourth side is a "normal" wall towards an addition, so it had cupboard for storing canned goods, tools, etc... The nice thing about rubbermaid totes is that you can just grab them and go. So, for instance, at Christmas I grab containers 1-6 and have all my lights, ornaments, etc.... Holloween has two containers. Easter has a couple. Camping equipment is in four containers. Just grab them and go. We have lots of childrens' clothing that eventually is making it to hand-me-downs to friends' kids as our last grows up. I have my old Tonka Trucks in a couple. Matchbox cars, seasonal fishing stuff. Arts and crafts. Kids' projects. Old children's books in case we ever get grand kids. Electrical supplies. Computer software. It goes on and on. But if you number each box and keep a database or spreadsheet of the contents, its just a matter of a double click on the computer, CTRL+f to find, type in what you're looking for and hit enter and it tells you which box to grab. :thumbsup:

I do hate to see what will happen if we ever move. Even carrying two at a time it will take about 70 trips out of the basement! :cool2:

 

[dmccarty]

We started using plastic boxes years ago but they are expensive and they seem to get brittle with age. Mostly we use them for clothes. Course why are we storing clothes that we do not wear?

We still have quite a few cardboard boxes storing stuff. The 12x12x12 or 15x15x15 boxes are good for storing/moving books. Big enough to get a good load of books but not too heavy a load. Office Depot and Stables have/used to have boxes pretty reasonably priced. I have noticed boxes at Lowes but the office stores had better selection.

Later,
Dan

 

[meburdick]

We started using plastic boxes years ago but they are expensive and they seem to get brittle with age. Mostly we use them for clothes. Course why are we storing clothes that we do not wear?

We still have quite a few cardboard boxes storing stuff. The 12x12x12 or 15x15x15 boxes are good for storing/moving books. Big enough to get a good load of books but not too heavy a load. Office Depot and Stables have/used to have boxes pretty reasonably priced. I have noticed boxes at Lowes but the office stores had better selection.

Later,
Dan

The office stores have good boxes, but they're very expensive and come with piles of 8.5x11 paper in them that you have to empty out.

 

[Danno1]

.



Mostly plastic but some cardboard in a dry cellar w a painted floor. But I still stack them on pallets to let the air circulate.


.

 

[Tollster]

Banana Boxes are the best cardboard ones, banana's are typically the cheapest fruit in the market, they also require a lot of packing space, so there are plenty to be had, (Call ahead and have them save ya some) the lid doubles as a handle, so you can put 35 hard back books in them without degradation. I know,I just packed 1500 books from my mothers. and they are stackable.
Asothers have said,long term, plastic clear,use labels on the sides,so you can identify whats in them easly. Keep the labels general, ie yards sale items,bike parts,ect... you'll be glad ya did.

 

[Pete Judd]

I forgot to add that I use the small Rubbermaid grey tubs on the boat, to store things in the bilge as some times it gets a little wet down there. I can fit two high and about 4 wide and 4 long under the inside cabin sole. That is a lot of dry storage. And it helps to keep the center of gravity low, as this is on a sailboat.

 

[The kid]

Plastic boxes are the only way to go. Make sure the tops lock with the side folding handles to secure the lid. Make sure the lid is a tight fit. You can put moth balls or cedar blocks inside or even a box of baking soda, like the ones you put in your fridge. Easy to label, easy to stack, water resistant, rodent resistant. And later reusable and if stored inside will last for many years. Living in the country, I've had mice problems with paper boxes. This is non existant with a good grade plastic containter.

 

[newbury]

Yeah... Where can I get some?

Craigslist


11@ 8' uprights and 40@ 9' beams- $590.

Could had gotten a lot of 16' uprights but needed 8'.

 

[Cat_Driver]

Sell it. I had a lot of stuff I was going to store and had the same problem you have. I put it all on E-bay and picked up 25K. I'd rather have the money that the stuff I was going to store.

Funny how time flies. Some of the stuff I swear I purchased 5 years ago. Wife pointed out how most of the stuff I haven't even looked at in nearly 20 years. WOW, and the stuff that I was about to toss, sold like crazy. You never know.

 

[BrianDT]

Thanks guys. I guess we are going to start looking for tubs on sale. We are also starting to get garage sale items separated out from the rest. Crazy how much stuff you accumulate with kids.

 

[CompactTractorFan]

CTF, are you thinking about that episode of "CSI" that dealt with hoarders who kept their daughter handcuffed to her bed, I recall that one showed huge stacks of totes piled high in one area of the house.

No, it really was on Hoarders.

 

[CompactTractorFan]

That pretty much describes my basement. Its a Michigan basement with cement floors in the crawl spaces, so its nice a dry. The side walls are bout 4' up then go back about three rubbermaids deep by two rubbermaids high. :laughing: So, I can put six containers back to the foundation wall. I've got about 48 containers on each of the three Michigan shelves around three sides of the basement. The space would be used for storage anyway, so by putting everything in containers, it stays clean and dust free, ready to use when I need it. The fourth side is a "normal" wall towards an addition, so it had cupboard for storing canned goods, tools, etc... The nice thing about rubbermaid totes is that you can just grab them and go. So, for instance, at Christmas I grab containers 1-6 and have all my lights, ornaments, etc.... Holloween has two containers. Easter has a couple. Camping equipment is in four containers. Just grab them and go. We have lots of childrens' clothing that eventually is making it to hand-me-downs to friends' kids as our last grows up. I have my old Tonka Trucks in a couple. Matchbox cars, seasonal fishing stuff. Arts and crafts. Kids' projects. Old children's books in case we ever get grand kids. Electrical supplies. Computer software. It goes on and on. But if you number each box and keep a database or spreadsheet of the contents, its just a matter of a double click on the computer, CTRL+f to find, type in what you're looking for and hit enter and it tells you which box to grab. :thumbsup:

I do hate to see what will happen if we ever move. Even carrying two at a time it will take about 70 trips out of the basement! :cool2:

You sound like a pack-rat, but a very organized one at that.

:laughing:

 

[MossRoad]

You sound like a pack-rat, but a very organized one at that.

:laughing:

Yeah. I save way too much stuff. The real problem comes if people start saving paper.... bills, receipts, etc... that stuff piles up quickly and then it takes days to go through it. I had saved all of my pay stubs, utility bills, credit card statements, bank statements, tax returns, etc... pretty much everything since I had started working as a teen ager. I had 12 file cabinet drawers full of that stuff. I finally realized enough is enough. I bought 16 expandable pocket folders and labeled them by year, two for each year. I now only save seven years of stuff and work on year 8. Around tax time, I shred the contents of the oldest folder and relable it for the next year. Makes life a lot easier. The only papers I tend to keep now outside of those yearly folders are owners' manuals and warranty reciepts... stuff that shouldn't be filed by year. Works good.

 

[radioman]

Banana Boxes are the best cardboard ones, banana's are typically the cheapest fruit in the market, they also require a lot of packing space, so there are plenty to be had, (Call ahead and have them save ya some) the lid doubles as a handle, so you can put 35 hard back books in them without degradation. I know,I just packed 1500 books from my mothers. and they are stackable.
Asothers have said,long term, plastic clear,use labels on the sides,so you can identify whats in them easly. Keep the labels general, ie yards sale items,bike parts,ect... you'll be glad ya did.

I also used those banana boxes when I was in college and moved to my current home. I love them since my local grocery store has tons of them for free. They stack great and they are sturdy. I used plastic tubs for big stuff on bottom row and banana boxes for rest of stuff. I like jdgreen idea of lawn bags for clothing or stuffed toys.

 

[MossRoad]

Our grocery store won't give away banana boxes anymore. They said they send them back to the banana company now or they get charged. Its too bad. I liked to use them to store cana lilly bulbs. The waxy boxes held just the right amount of moisture over the winter in the basement.