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https://www.lowes.com/pd/Style-Selections-18-Gallon-Gray-Tote-with-Standard-Snap-Lid/1000183145
Not a bad deal is this size works for you. I bought some already and like them better than the Cheap Walmart totes-bins.. I may go back for more. they also come in a very bright green color.
Happy New Year all.
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Be careful with the “Snap on LIDS”. I have had numerous lids pop off or up on the ones that I had stored up over chest height. We only use the hing-swivel “snap over latch” tight lids now and converted all of the snap on lids to that style also. The lids stay locked on even if you have to use your palm pushing up on tub handles for the ones stored over your head.
We have had a couple of bins with those snap on lids pop off and get dropped years ago and we broke a bunch of stuff when it hit the cement floor in the garage. We often get 66 qt. Sterilite bins with the “latch” tops at a local dollar type store for $4 each. Our preference by far.
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These are clearly cheap “discount” totes. If you’re not too picky about strength or quality. but are looking for quantity I think they’re a good deal.
I use them for light to medium items.. clothing, shoes, games etc. They’re not so big you have to dig forever to find something.
If I had a source for those Sterilite totes Mike, I’d be all over it. They sound like a great deal.
I’ve got such a hodge podge of bins now it’s a bit of a joke. At this point, I’m eliminating the ones without lids.. I don’t think I’ll ever have them all match.
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I hear you. It took a long time for us to get all matching. Once done though it allowed us to have our shelves all set up on the same level and spacing. Standardization helps.
On another note it also is an investment cost. We have approx. 250 bins at this point and room for about another 150. In the end that will be about 400 bins at $4 +/- ea or about $1,600 invested in bins.
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At a local closeout discount house in the local area. They buy the final close outs from the “Dollar General” type stores. They stack them in groups of3 and 4 bins and zip tie them together and then sell for $12. Sometimes we get the 4 packs and that is $3 each. Other times the 3 pack for $12 which is the $4 ea. The difference is usually on the 4 pack one of the handles is missing or there is a crack in one of the bins so they throw that one in for the $12. We usually buy these and save the odd bin until we find another good lid for it or get another handle from a really cracked up one.
Unfortunately they do not do online sales and are just a local railway type salvage company. They get them on an irregular schedule so we always stop in there everytime we go past them and check. It is first come first serve. Sometimes we just miss them and they tell us they thought we would be coming by but unfortunately someone just came in that morning and bought them out. When we find them, we buy all that they have. Been doing this for over two years to accumulate about 200 or more of them. We also get shoebox size ones for $1 each and have a fairly large stockpile of those.
By the way they have a ton of other types of stuff. Shoes, clothes, electronic items, luggage, household items but most is in fairly rough shape. Remember they buy what Dollar Stores can’t sell or take back for some reason. If a dollar store can’t sell it or is a return, then beware of buying from these guys.
We did buy 5 toaster ovens from them a few years back at $15 each and gave them as gifts to family members. The only draw back was the timer and other knobs were twist and turn for the settings and then they ticked down, counting backwards and a bell went off. Clumsy to set the timers, but ours still works fine.
They have great deals on napkins, paper plates, plastic goods that have the packaging busted open and usually are missing some pcs. but at dollar prices not bad.-
The one big advange we find to using the clear totes is that we can see into them and know which ones are low and have room for more items to be placed in them.
We use an inventory control number system and any item can go into any bin, any place as long as there is room in it. We use a metal rolling cart that holds all the new items that need to go into inventory after uploading the listing. We place the items on the cart and roll up and down our inventory isles. We can see which bins are low and have “air space” in them. When we see bins only half, or three quarters emoty we stop and put a few items in that bin and then write down the item number and bin number on our clipboard, which we later enter into our WonderLister program.
Using the clear bins allows us to try to always keep the bins topped off and mostly full thus utilizing our available cubic square footage to the best advantage. This keeps all of the inventory “tight”, “compact” and we are not spread out all over the place. Opaque [non-see thru] bins do not lend themselves to this. One has to either lift – feel each box and or take it down off the shelf, open it to look and see how much space is unused in it. A huge time waster in our opinion.
Guess the same would apply to the steel file cabinet drawers. 50 cabinets with 4 or 5 drawers each. Let’s say 2 cubic feet of storage space in each drawer for a total of 500 cubic feet of storage space [if my math is correct]. So at any one time, how much “vacant” – “empty” space do you have without pulling out each drawer and looking into each separately? Now if you only keep like items in each drawer, then you don’t need to look, but that can also waste space.
mike at MDC Galleries
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Between the clear (see through) aspect and the locking tops Mike, those bins you’re buying, sound like a real score..
When I notice a bin is 1/3 empty or more I put a small piece of masking tape on it, so I’ll know it has room for new items. It gets the job done, but not near as convenient as a clear tub.
I’m constantly reorganizing and rebuilding storage. Every time I do, I become more efficient and find make room for more stuff.
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After finding the crappy piece of steel 4-drawer filing cabinet that my husband renovated for me, I’m now totally sold on them. They store more than the plastic totes, are much easier to get into, and everything is so neat. Of course, the hassle is finding them suckers! LOL
While I search, I’m gonna grab these Lowe’s specials. What a find! Thanks for posting, So Cal Joe!
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