To Glass....or not to Glass

[+ramsesjcr]

This here mail is concerning the usage of glass for a cache...me and my friends are looking into making our first...and have come across many containers....which is best?

Thanks

ramsesjcr

 

P.S I am also interested in the cookiest caches people have found...and how cookie they were

[+O'Clan]

IMO, glass would be a very bad container; prone to breakage! I think you would want to use metal or plastic instead.

 

And *NO FOOD* in containers! (cookie, get it!)

 

Anyways, I have not hid any caches yet, but that is my $.05 (Inflation you know)

[+Harrald]

Ammo cans are the best.

 

They are cheap (around $4-$6 a piece), watertight and strong enough to last in the elements for years.

 

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Nobody can be so amusingly arrogant as a young man who has just discovered an old idea and thinks it is his own.

Sydney J. Harris

 

The fool who knows he is a fool is for that reason very wise. The fool who thinks himself wise is the greatest fool of all.

Shakyamuni

[+robert]

just go easy on where to put the ammo cans. near bridges and overpasses, etc., are no-no's. but glass is definitely a bad idea, sorry!

 

~robert

Driver carries less than $20 cache.

[+briansnat]

I'd stay away from glass. All you need is one butterfingered geocacher, or just a shifting rock and its gone. Then another cacher comes along and starts poking around with shards of glass all over and you get the rest of the picture.

 

I'll second Harrald on the ammo boxes. Cheaperthandirt.com sells a 6 pack of .30 cal boxes for $19. They are waterproof, practically indestructable and can be painted in a camo pattern to match its hiding place (it's a good idea to paint over the military markings anyway).

 

Other good containers are the Rubbermaid Sean-n-Savers (with the blue rim), Lock-n-Lock containers and real Tupperware (the latter is a bit expensive though). Make sure they are new, or never contained food, because otherwise the animals will sniff them out and trash them...no matter how well you washed it.

 

Also, stay away from Gladware, cheap dollar store plastic containers and Chinese food/deli containers.

 

P.S., what's a cookie cache? Food isn't allowed in caches!

 

"Give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, he'll sit in a boat and drink beer all day" - Dave Barry

[+Renegade Knight]

Glass like everything else that has a rule attached can be used in the right circumstance. But generally it's frowned upon.

 

Ammo cans have become generally acklowedged as the best containers to use. They do have their detractors since you can't see inside.

 

Tupperware works but needs more maintance as it gets brittle and isn't watertight.

[+Mark 42]

I went to one that was a half gallon insulated water jug (see picture below) It seemed well suited to the task.

 

You could probably get cheap containers at garage sales & thrift stores.

 

The clear plastic containers that mixed nuts come in from Costco look good. Was with dtergent & bleach, spray with a scent mask (like DEET mosquito repellant or even WD-40)

& wipe out (but leave just a miniscule film of the de-scent). Most carnivores won't be attracted by the scent of nuts anyway (which may save geocachers from animal attacks).

 

If you do ammo cans (or even other items) alot, you could make up a stencil and put lettering on the outside which gives info on what it is so that it won't be mistaken for a bomb. Could even give contact information on the lid so they can call you or email you for more info.

 

You can buy empty 1 Gal paint cans at home depot, and an opener, and solder a piece of chain to the can (so you don't drill a hole) to tie the opener to the can. Coffee cans would be viable if there were a way to keep the lid on.

 

Anyway, I'll keep thinking & come back here with more ideas. Probably will just go to hardware stores & department stores & thrift stores and meander through the isles with my creative thinking cap on to see what jumps off the shelf at me as a good candidate container.

 

 

Hukt un fonix werkt fur mee

[+robert]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Mark 42:

If you do ammo cans (or even other items) alot, you could make up a stencil and put lettering on the outside which gives info on what it is so that it won't be mistaken for a bomb. Could even give contact information on the lid so they can call you or email you for more info.

---

 

 

Available here

 

~robert

Driver carries less than $20 cache.

[+Mark 42]

When you hover your mouse pointer over the "My Cache Page" button

on the mainpage, the picture that comes up is of a kid with

a big glass jar. Maybe that sends the wrong message about

glass containers (I was going to comment before I saw this message thread)

 

Someone good at Photoshop could change the container to

a more appropriate one but still leave the

same kid in the picture

so no one's feelings

get hurt.

 

If the label were available as a waterproof sticker it'd be cool.

 

Maybe I'll make up a jpeg and post it for all to use.

 

I'd like a bumper sticker like this:

That way if another cacher sees my car, he can

say hi & possibly we can work together to find

the cache (if that's why we're there).

 

BTW... nice tagline.

 

Hukt un fonix werkt fur mee

 

[This message was edited by Mark 42 on August 03, 2003 at 11:51 AM.]

 

[This message was edited by Mark 42 on August 03, 2003 at 11:53 AM.]

[+GIDEON-X]

quote:

---

P.S I am also interested in the cookiest caches people have found...and how cookie they were

---

 

"NO GLASS"

 

Surly he's refering to "wearied", "strange" ,"peculiar" caches (kooky) ~~~ or what ever

 

Mzee ~~~ "And now where"

 

[This message was edited by Mzee & Associates on August 04, 2003 at 05:56 AM.]

[+Mark 42]

Kooky or Kookie

 

Hukt un fonix werkt fur mee

[+SearchRescueDog]

While I am a big fan of the ammo box I will caution you about using it just as others have. They hold up very well and tend to do a very good job keeping things dry but they are also very suspicious. I think that you will find that in many areas land managers prohibit their use. One of the first exposures Maryland DNR had with Geocaching was blowing up an ammo can placed in Susquhanna State Park. It can have all of the stickers in the world plastered on it and the responding law enforcment officer or fire marshal will not know what it is for. But like I said, I really am a big fan of the ammo can at heart.

[+emike]

My son and I recently visited the Castle Falls Cache in Indianapolis. It had been under water several days shortly before we visited it. The container was a clear rubbermaid jar with a screw on lid. Tissues inside the container were dry as were the rest of the contents. We were quite impressed. The Cache was weighted down under many rocks, elsewise it would would have surely floated away.

 

EMike

"It's what you learn after you know it all, that counts."

[+briansnat]

quote:

---

I think that you will find that in many areas land managers prohibit their use. One of the first exposures Maryland DNR had with Geocaching was blowing up an ammo can placed in Susquhanna State Park. It can have all of the stickers in the world plastered on it and the responding law enforcment officer or fire marshal will not know what it is for. But like I said, I really am a big fan of the ammo can at heart.

---

 

There have also been instances of the authorities blowing up geocaches in Tupperware and tackle boxes.

 

Whether its an ammo box, Tupperware, or whatever, make sure you label it as a geocache and provide contact info on the OUTDSIDE.

 

"Give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, he'll sit in a boat and drink beer all day" - Dave Barry

[+BullDogBob&Double00]

Also, you dont want it to look like a piece of trash. I dont care for tupperware containers wrapped in black trash bags. It looks like litter. I found one in a cemetary once and the grounds people had been trimming the trees it was hidden in. I'm sure when they found it, it looked like a bag of trash. Ammo cans clearly marked seems the best to myself and hide well under fallen trees with leaves and branches covering it, they become almost invisible.

 

"WITHOUT GEOGRAPHY YOU'RE NOWHERE....Jimmy Buffett

[The Cuthberts]

We had this debate a couple of months' ago after approval for a UK cache was not given as it was made from glass. I think the GAGB guidelines now suggest that glass is not used for new UK caches. (I don't think we reached any decision on cache contents being made from glass though.)

 

Glass containers UK debate

 

Andy

[+Tim & June]

quote:

---

Originally posted by The Cuthberts:

We had this debate a couple of months' ago after approval for a UK cache was not given as it was made from glass. I think the GAGB guidelines now suggest that glass is not used for new UK caches. (I don't think we reached any decision on cache contents being made from glass though.)

 

http://ubbx.Groundspeak.com/6/ubb.x?a=tpc&s=5726007311&f=6616058331&m=70860586

 

Andy

---

 

Hi Andy,

 

I think you are mistaken. The GAGB guidelines do NOT exclude the use of glass containers. To read the GAGB guidelines, please clickhere

 

The decision to reject a cache because it was in glass container was made by an approver based on his own feelings on safety etc and the GAGB took no part in that decision.

 

Tim & June (Winchester)

 

See June, I told you that sign which said 'Unsuitable for Motor Vehicles' was wrong !

[+GOT GPS?]

Why not use a ClayJar??

That would probably look more natural.

 

--------------------------------------------------

My Old posts as Geoffrey

My Current Post as GOT GPS?

My profile

My Home Page about what is GPS

[+Criminal]

From now on I will demand that all finders of my caches wear a helmet to protect their stupid heads. I cannot trust someone to be able to operate a glass jar without maiming or injuring themselves either. No helmet = no find. Moron inept geocachers, they are a danger to themselves and others.

 

Sheesh

 

http://fp1.centurytel.net/Criminal_Page/

[Swagger]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Mark 42:

 

If the label were available as a waterproof sticker it'd be cool.

---

Those stickers use "Rite in the Rain" paper and are waterproof.

 

--

Pehmva!

 

Random quote:

[The Cuthberts]

I apologise for my error above. Tim and June have correctly pointed out that the decision on glass was not connected to the GAGB guidelines. I have been reading too many forum posts recently and will go back outside on caching therapy immediately.

 

Andy

[+Planet]

Glass bad, big rubbermaid jars good, and easy to camouflage. No no no glass. Someone could get cut. Freezing and thawing could cause breakage. So could butter fingers.

 

Cache you later,

Planet

 

So many caches, so little time.

[+sbell111]

Of course, there are many locations where freezing and thawing are not an issue. As with any container, consider the hide location when deciding whether it is appropriate.

[+Lothar69]

Another potentially good cache container would be a short (12") piece of 3" or 4" PVC pipe. One end is sealed with a cap and the other has a threaded cap. They can be painted, or you can write your identifying info on the outside. They are water-tite and plenty large for a good cache and reasonably inexpensive. I just bought a 4' length of 4" PVC for under $5 (good for at least 4 caches) and the fittings cost less than $4 (per cache). I already had PVC primer & cement.

 

I have definately had a concern about these containers looking like a pipe bomb of some sort. Labeling it as a geocache would probably help but all it would take is for someone to label an actual pipe bomb as a geocache to put an end to our fun. There will always be a chance that a cache may be detonated as a precaution and in my opinion rightly so.

 

Another precaution one can take is to show the land manager the cache in case someone does accidentally stumble across it, they can put an end to any undue fear.

[+Mark 42]

Here's an interesting idea (another msg thd)

 

http://ubbx.Groundspeak.com/6/ubb.x?a=tpc&s=5726007311&f=4016058331&m=14760747&r=49960057

 

Hukt un fonix werkt fur mee

[+timberlane74 & pumpkin]

Has anyone used CLEAR PVC pipe? That would seem to take care of anyone thinking it was a bomb? I've always liked the idea of a "pipe-like" container with caps, but just realized they DO make clear PVC...any thoughts? We are planning on hiding our first cache soon...

 

Never say Never...Never say Always!

[+Stunod]

quote:

---

Originally posted by timberlane74 & pumpkin:

Has anyone used CLEAR PVC pipe? That would seem to take care of anyone thinking it was a bomb? I've always liked the idea of a "pipe-like" container with caps, but just realized they DO make clear PVC...any thoughts? We are planning on hiding our first cache soon...

 

Never say Never...Never say Always!

---

 

Clear PVC is VERY expensive! A 3" cap (which you can buy in standard white PVC for about 50 cents) will run you over $30. An 8' length of 3" diameter pipe is over $80. (Prices taken from McMaster-Carr's online catalog.)

 

"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

[+timberlane74 & pumpkin]

Two points...when I looked at the price list online I didn't see the price as being "per foot"...I just saw that it was sold in 5 ft. sections! But according to the specs you can use standard white fittings...but you are still looking North of $15 for each cache...thanks for pointing it out Stunod!

 

Never say Never...Never say Always!

[+Criminal]

 August 4 by Criminal (1,244,549 found)

 

Found it! But boy am I ever angry. After stumbling over a protruding root the cache owner negligently forgot to chop out, I landed face first in a patch of thorns and stinging nettles. I hobbled up to the cache and was more angry to discover it was in a glass jar! It could break and give me a nasty cut! Well, it could if I do something monumentally stupid like open it with a rock or drop it and then fall on the shards. I have removed all glass jars and dishes from my home. I drink beer in a can because it's slightly safer. (Tastes like crap though) Using my Kevlar© gloves, I very carefully opened the container by turning the steel lid in a leftwardly fashion. I closed it by reversing the opening procedure. Signed logbook, took gold nugget, where's Andrew 20, and new mctoy, left a golf ball I made from a pinecone. Thanks TravisL for the idea!

[+Criminal]

Oh yeah, and driving to the cache was life threatening as well.

 

http://fp1.centurytel.net/Criminal_Page/