# What should I do with these?



## BrandonW (Apr 27, 2010)

I have a been saving these plastic baby formula canisters because they look useful and are stackable, but I'm not sure what I should use them for. Any ideas?


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## AnthonyReed (Sep 20, 2011)

Keep one if they are airtight for your camellia oil / jojoba oil / tallow rag, throw the rest in the recycle bin, then make small dovetail boxes for anything else you would have stored in them?

That is just a guess though. Did i win?


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## redSLED (Mar 21, 2013)

For saving different kinds of sawdust for making your own 'perfect match' wood filler. Big wads of rolled up cash would fit it there nicely too.


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## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

Use them for safely trowing away your oily rags. Put some water in there, the oily rag, then throw it away.


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## Buckethead (Apr 14, 2013)

There are many uses. Paint, cleaning, fasteners, hardware, etc… Especially if you work as a carpenter or handyman. You can never have enough disposable containers. If you're an accountant, and do woodworking as a hobby, I agree with the first response… Throw them out and make some boxes. But then again, you might want to stain those boxes so those contaners might come in handy yet.


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## AnthonyReed (Sep 20, 2011)

That is a nice miter gauge you have there…


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## pintodeluxe (Sep 12, 2010)

I have used containers of Dewalt biscuits for storing peg and dowel stock. I tried an Almond Rocha container once, but that just made me hungry.


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## redSLED (Mar 21, 2013)

I'd be tempted to make my own butter and put it in those, not sure why.


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## AnthonyReed (Sep 20, 2011)

^ I like your thinking.


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## EPJartisan (Nov 4, 2009)

DUDE.. DO NOT GO DOWN THAT ROAD… saving things turns into a habit… a good portion of my studio is filled with me hoarding stuff like that starts as.. "Oh look these are cool!!!".. or "Hi Eric, I have 300 national geographics to give you" OR I have thousands of corks from all my friends..I worked at a cigar shop one summer for the fun of it.. and came home with a good 40 old wooden boxes… I have no resistance for wine bottles and old light fixtures….and if I have no tight schedule and I drive past a dumpster… god save the supports of my car. I will take anything.

I have often pondered if there would be a market for raw art materials.. I get doors, cans of screws… anything people clean out of the attic or basement… I am addicted to second hand and thrift shops… I have to "Purge" and "Break Down" my studio 3 times a year or I get drowned in old screens, windows, buckets… old bed frames and chairs

I spend at least one day a month sorting crap and being diligent to say.. well I only have 5 or 10 of these.. so i should toss them out… and then a week later I find the perfect application and I kick myself for tossing it…. I recycle and re-use everything.. but it is a difficult thing to keep control of.. my studio mate.. lost that battle about a year ago. and I can't even walk into his 1,000 sf studio.

Whew.. that warning given… LOL… the containers would be awesome for: small safety items, ear plugs and glasses.. or home-made tack cloths. ... Plastic, latex, or vinyl glove holders… or maybe even for colored pencil or markers.
That snap lid looks useful.


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## SnowyRiver (Nov 14, 2008)

I usually keep small canisters like that for cleaning brushes.


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## Bullet (Apr 14, 2009)

I find that they're perfect for taking up that last little bit of space I might have used for something useful. They're also great for getting my wife to yell at me. It's a good thing she hasn't poked her head up into the access area above the garage!


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## redSLED (Mar 21, 2013)

"DUDE.. DO NOT GO DOWN THAT ROAD…"

^ awesome reply.


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## JustJoe (Oct 26, 2012)

Plastic baby food jars? Bah Humbug. What happened to the good-old days when they were made of glass with metal lids and every other magazine issue had some reader's tip showing how to turn a few empty jars and a piece of 2×4 into a hanging, standing, rotating, or levitating small parts bin that could be opened with one hand, or just a finger, or by looking at it cross-eyed? They'd all win the tip-of-the-month and get some free tool or a hat and just when you thought the insanity was over, the next issue would come out and someone had doubled the number of jars, or found a new way to label them and the baby food jar wars had started all over.


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## Smitty_Cabinetshop (Mar 26, 2011)

If you do lots of summer activities that involve beverage coolers, use these to make your own "block ice." Fill, freeze, dump into cooler for long lasting cold. Throw away after use if it breaks apart, because you've got plenty more where that came from.


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## redSLED (Mar 21, 2013)

Put a coat of shellac on those containers, scuff sand, then 3 coats of polyurethane - they will last longer. By then you will know what to put in them.


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## chrisstef (Mar 3, 2010)

Funny how ive got basically the same jugs and every time I pitch one in the recycle bin im like "I know I can use these in the shop somewhere". So far ive resisted the urge to hoard but im starting to get the shakes. I guess you could fill them with spare change.


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## kdc68 (Mar 2, 2012)

*Brandon*
I have saved similar containers for a couple of uses…not formula containers though. Fairly thick plastic containers with tight closing lids

1) Fill with an approximate correct amount of finish I need so I'm not tempted to use straight out of the can….i.e. stain, poly, paint. I can close the lid and go back and apply additional coats later on. I clean them afterwards so I can use over and over again
2.) Hardware for a project so I don't lose anything… i.e. - hinges, pulls, screws
3.) Overflow when buying bulk … i.e. - screws, nails


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## Willeh (Dec 30, 2011)

Keep em to store different sized biscuits !


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## firefighterontheside (Apr 26, 2013)

You paid a lot for those. I know. Now throw them away.


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## ShaneA (Apr 15, 2011)

Pitch them buddy, it will make you feel better.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

Make some home made ice cream, put them in the baby formula containers and stick 'em in the freezer. I would probably use them as ice blocks for the ice chest to keep your beer cold for your weekend barbeque (like Smitty said). Or just throw them in the trash. There are always options, Brandon.


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## jeffswildwood (Dec 26, 2012)

I have the same problem with nestles quick containers. And they come in two sizes and labels were easy to remove. I saved, horded them like crazy. They may come in handy someday. During a shop clean-up I used them to hold screws. Couldn't tell the size so I taped a sample to the outside of each so I would know what was in each. Then upgraded to let them hold finishing nails of assorted sizes. Then one labeled "asst screws" that need sorted. Probably never will. One has small jars, one picture frame parts, one has knobs, the list goes on. Though handy, they sure take up space. A large yellow container with an inch of screws or nails in it. I even have one that holds the wooden dowel handles off the foam brushes I use. Which I also thought would come in handy. Good luck with them, I found uses but have way too many extras. Not to mention the maxwell house coffee containers.


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