Camo options for 5gal buckets

[mtbikernate]

I currently have a puzzle cache in my front yard that has received some good feedback from the few folks who have done it, but I've got a quandary.

 

I've been trying to find a place nearby where I can place a large TB motel since trackables don't do well here, and I want to improve that situation somewhat since my wife and I like trackables. I've been trying to find a location right off the highway for the past several months with no luck. There's plenty of open area, but those open areas, IMO, are hardly suitable for a big bucket cache. My house is close enough to it that it might work, so I've thought about archiving my puzzle in favor of the TB motel, which then leaves me with the difficult question of trying to camo a bucket in my front yard.

 

I've read some previous discussions where folks mentioned hanging the bucket in a tree. That one would be one heck of a challenge to place because the only tree in my front yard big enough to hold a 5gal bucket is a VERY large pine where the lowest branch might be close to 75ft up. I could make it one heck of a challenge for folks to figure out how to get from there, but that's not quite what I'm after.

 

I've read about folks using expanding foam insulation to create a fake tree stump. That's more of an option. However, I want to try to hide the bucket in the landscaping up front and an old stump doesn't quite fit in there.

 

I've tilled up about 3/4 of the sod/weeds up there and have planted rootstocks of a bunch of native bunchgrasses and wildflowers and I want the cache to hide in that when everything has grown up. Right now, however, nothing is more than a couple inches tall. However, once everything is up, it should provide a lot of cover. I have some big bluestem grasses in there that can get upwards of 10ft tall. I have a short little path through the planted area and I plan to make the cache accessible from the path.

 

I have plenty of camo spraypaint, but I have had quite a hard time trying to mimic a grass pattern with the stuff.

 

Any ideas?

[knowschad]

If camo paint is the route that you want to go, try using field grass itself as your "stencil". Start with a yellowish base coat, then lay some grasses on it, oriented from bottom to top, then spray a light tan, add some more grasses, then a slightly darker tan, etc, layering with more grass and darker colors. (the order may work better going from dark to light... I'm no expert on that type of camo)

[mtbikernate]

If camo paint is the route that you want to go, try using field grass itself as your "stencil". Start with a yellowish base coat, then lay some grasses on it, oriented from bottom to top, then spray a light tan, add some more grasses, then a slightly darker tan, etc, layering with more grass and darker colors. (the order may work better going from dark to light... I'm no expert on that type of camo)

 

This is the sort of stencil technique that has not worked that well for me in the past. At least with thinner materials like grass and pine needles. Works great for leaves.

 

Maybe I wasn't doing it just right.

[knowschad]

If camo paint is the route that you want to go, try using field grass itself as your "stencil". Start with a yellowish base coat, then lay some grasses on it, oriented from bottom to top, then spray a light tan, add some more grasses, then a slightly darker tan, etc, layering with more grass and darker colors. (the order may work better going from dark to light... I'm no expert on that type of camo)

 

This is the sort of stencil technique that has not worked that well for me in the past. At least with thinner materials like grass and pine needles. Works great for leaves.

 

Maybe I wasn't doing it just right.

I can understand that, I think. The key is going to be hitting the grass stems straight-on, but as you roll the bucket, the overspray from that part of the bucket is probably going under the adjacent stems that you just sprayed. Only the areas that are actually in physical contact with the plastic would be well-masked.

 

What about 1) flattening round grass stems by wetting and pressing so you have more contact area, and 2) attaching the stems using a light-tack spray adhesive so you get maximum contact.

[mtbikernate]

I can understand that, I think. The key is going to be hitting the grass stems straight-on, but as you roll the bucket, the overspray from that part of the bucket is probably going under the adjacent stems that you just sprayed. Only the areas that are actually in physical contact with the plastic would be well-masked.

Yep, that's the problem. Underspray.

 

What about 1) flattening round grass stems by wetting and pressing so you have more contact area, and 2) attaching the stems using a light-tack spray adhesive so you get maximum contact.

 

That's an idea. I have some spray adhesive from another cache-camo project I could use for this.

 

But, part of the problem with using the spraypaint method for camouflaging the bucket is that the grass will be shades of tan for part of the year, but will put on new growth at other times.

 

Ideally, my "camo" would be more of a structural camo that would physically obscure the container.

 

There's a lot of kids in the neighborhood and I'm sure they'd love to raid a big bucket full of trackable goodies if it was too easy to see when it's nice out and they're playing on the dead-end street. I've already come up with a way to anchor the cache in place to make the whole container theft-resistant.

[wilkesfun]

Since it is in your yard have you thought about digging a hole and burying all but the top two or three inches?

[+ocklawahaboy]

Since it is in your yard have you thought about digging a hole and burying all but the top two or three inches?

 

I was thinking a little deeper and glueing a stepping stone on top of the lid. Then it would just blend right in. pick up the stone and explore the cache. You'd want to have it a little above the dirt for dryness but you could fill around it with some mulch or stones.

Edited March 26, 2011 by ocklawahaboy

[+niraD]

From the guidelines:

Geocaches are never buried. If a shovel, trowel or other pointy object is used to dig or break ground, whether in order to hide or to find the cache, then it is not permitted.

[+WRASTRO]

I have a large sprinkler box alongside my driveway. Since I couldn't think of anything else to do with it once it was in the ground I decided to put a cache in it. It has been pretty popular.

[knowschad]

Since it is in your yard have you thought about digging a hole and burying all but the top two or three inches?

Even on your own property, that is setting a very bad example. It can also frustrate cachers that have been taught that caches are never buried, so they don't even think to check for that.

[knowschad]

I can understand that, I think. The key is going to be hitting the grass stems straight-on, but as you roll the bucket, the overspray from that part of the bucket is probably going under the adjacent stems that you just sprayed. Only the areas that are actually in physical contact with the plastic would be well-masked.

Yep, that's the problem. Underspray.

 

What about 1) flattening round grass stems by wetting and pressing so you have more contact area, and 2) attaching the stems using a light-tack spray adhesive so you get maximum contact.

 

That's an idea. I have some spray adhesive from another cache-camo project I could use for this.

 

But, part of the problem with using the spraypaint method for camouflaging the bucket is that the grass will be shades of tan for part of the year, but will put on new growth at other times.

 

Ideally, my "camo" would be more of a structural camo that would physically obscure the container.

 

There's a lot of kids in the neighborhood and I'm sure they'd love to raid a big bucket full of trackable goodies if it was too easy to see when it's nice out and they're playing on the dead-end street. I've already come up with a way to anchor the cache in place to make the whole container theft-resistant.

 

The seasonal thing is a problem with just about any camo, but having it right there on your property is a huge advantage. Paint it differently on the front and back for both seasons. Check it after every find to make sure it has been put back properly (I'm assuming that most hunters will be approaching from the same direction)

[+shadowmib]

If it's in your yard, why not get some wood and build something to put the bucket in.

 

You could make something like this and put a door on it that you could open and get to the cache.

[+IBcrashen]

Dont know why I think of this post

[mtbikernate]

This is the area of my yard where I plan on placing the bucket.

 

2011 Spring Gardens by mtbikernate, on Flickr

 

Folks won't necessarily be approaching from the same side all the time, as there's plenty of room for them to go all the way around it.

 

Everything in the mulched area is part of the new landscaping that will contain tall prairie bunchgrasses. When they're mature, they will provide some thick cover. But it's going to take awhile for it to get there.

 

Looking at things more closely, two of the trees are in my yard and could potentially hide the bucket with a rope system, but the lowest branches are just SO high, I don't think there's a practical way for me to get up there to do it (I lack the equipment and experience necessary to climb trees of that sort).

 

Yeah, burying is out of the question. Even though it's my yard, I don't want to set any dangerous precedents. Paving stones won't work in this landscape. The path is going to be marked off by a different color/type of mulch (possibly a synthetic mulch for long-term durability). I don't really do big lawn decorations. The plants I've started in this area are all natives.

 

This sort of thing is the inspiration

2011 Spring Gardens by mtbikernate, on Flickr

But mine will have more tall, thick stuff.

[knowschad]

If it's in your yard, why not get some wood and build something to put the bucket in.

 

You could make something like this and put a door on it that you could open and get to the cache.

 

I am starting to think that something like this would be your best option, considering all that you've said.

[mtbikernate]

the wife just saw that windmill and vetoed ANY construction projects.

[knowschad]

the wife just saw that windmill and vetoed ANY construction projects.

Oh. You're married. Got it. Nevermind.

[+DazeDnFamily]

One of the best hides we have found was a gray 5 gallon bucket. It had tree bark glued around it, and a sawed off to of a tree stump on the lid. The only reason we got the find was my wife accidentally kicked it, and the hollow thump gave it away. But, even knowing where it was, it looked like any other tree stump.

 

Later!

[+wv-yen]

Could you make a bench along the path and camo the bucket as one of the wooden log legs of the stump?

 

Edited because photo wouldn't show up.

Edited March 26, 2011 by wv-yen

[+dneuwir]

From the guidelines:

Geocaches are never buried. If a shovel, trowel or other pointy object is used to dig or break ground, whether in order to hide or to find the cache, then it is not permitted.

 

Not to argue, but I know of several specific examples where a cache was buried under ground level (i.e. in a submerged "bucket" with the opening being capped at ground level) with the permission of the property owner or park department. In the latter example (parks department) what appeared to be a sprinkler control valve cover actually was the cap on the bucket holding a fairly-decent sized peanut butter jar at below-ground-level. Again, I'm not trying to start a debate, but it appears the reviewers seem to grant some leeway on that rule under the right circumstances (i.e. a cache buried in the CO's yard, but "accessible" to a seeker with no tools).

Edited March 26, 2011 by dneuwir

[+kunarion]

I have plenty of camo spraypaint, but I have had quite a hard time trying to mimic a grass pattern with the stuff.

 

Any ideas?

People make great camo hides using just a few broad strokes of 2 or 3 colors, enough to break up the shape, and produce a kind of blend of light and shadow. And it's not just dull colors either.

 

You could paint it like tree bark, and set your new "stump" next to a tree. But if it's in the yard, why not make it part of the garden? You could paint leaves and flowers using a fine brush, as creatively as you like. Or if you have no artistic ability (just like I don't), glue plastic grass & leaves to the bucket so it fits in with other plants. It doesn't have to be invisible, but it also doesn't have to be a windmill. Something between those extremes maybe?

Edited March 26, 2011 by kunarion

[+niraD]

From the guidelines:

Geocaches are never buried. If a shovel, trowel or other pointy object is used to dig or break ground, whether in order to hide or to find the cache, then it is not permitted.

Not to argue, but I know of several specific examples where a cache was buried under ground level (i.e. in a submerged "bucket" with the opening being capped at ground level) with the permission of the property owner or park department. In the latter example (parks department) what appeared to be a sprinkler control valve cover actually was the cap on the bucket holding a fairly-decent sized peanut butter jar at below-ground-level. Again, I'm not trying to start a debate, but it appears the reviewers seem to grant some leeway on that rule under the right circumstances (i.e. a cache buried in the CO's yard, but "accessible" to a seeker with no tools).

Those who hide caches that violate the guidelines don't always explain the nature of the hide to the reviewers, and the reviewers don't actually visit caches before publishing them.

[+msrubble]

How about in a planter? Barrel-sized but not full height. Or a smaller circumference planter like people use for mailboxes. You could stick artificial plants to the lid, and have it surrounded by real plants.

[Clan Riffster]

Nate, are you committed to using a 5 gallon bucket? While I am a fan of using the largest container that an area will reasonably support, I can't help but think you'll end up with a few more gallons of volume than you need for a TB hotel. If you downsized your hotel to a 50 calibre ammo can, that would make your camouflage job a lot easier, and the container wouldn't look so empty when it was opened. Also, I'd be nervous owning a TB hotel that large. The bigger it is, the easier it is to be muggled if the camo fails.

[+kunarion]

ideas?

These are two cache buckets I made. They have screw-on lids with o-rings, rims sealed with RTV. One bucket has hunter's camo cloth on it. I'd touch them up in the field to blend better at their cache spots. And I'm beginning to realize that I'll never make a cache out of either one. There are a lot of maintenance issues with these things, and camouflage is only a minor one.

 

[+DragonsWest]

ideas?

These are two cache buckets I made. They have screw-on lids with o-rings, rims sealed with RTV. One bucket has hunter's camo cloth on it. I'd touch them up in the field to blend better at their cache spots. And I'm beginning to realize that I'll never make a cache out of either one. There are a lot of maintenance issues with these things, and camouflage is only a minor one.

 

 

Y'know, that's really nice camo ... but it looks just like a bucket shaped object with camo. Not fooling anyone.

 

Perhaps you could try making it look like a stump.

[+southeastalaska]

A few items from Home Depot and your imagination and you can turn a 5 gallon bucket into a pretty fair phony fire hydrant. Mine is painted red with a mist of red primer to age it and it has fooled a few folks. It has never been "muggled" either. Mine is close enough to the street to look like it's real but far enough back to be in my yard. Good luck.

[+succotash]

I'm with Clan Riffster that perhaps the 5-gallon bucket is not the best option here. Your garden plan looks great. You want cachers to find the cache and trade trackables, not damage the rest of your garden, and you want to protect the trackables from neighborhood kids. What about installing a mailbox on a cedar post - a mailbox that is either already great-looking or can be painted AND can be closed with a cipher lock, which would be part of the information on the cache page? Mailboxes are waterproof, durable, lockable (and hopefully it would be far enough from the street not to confuse the USPS).

 

We typically avoid caches in front yards but yours we might go visit just to see the garden!

[+kunarion]

phony fire hydrant

That would be fun to make. The fake hollow boulders for hiding utility fixtures would also be good. That would look great in landscape, and keep water off the bucket (standing water is part of the reason these buckets get so wet inside). But around here, the space under the boulder would also be attractive to animals such as snakes. Which is nice.

 

If you went with Clan Riffster's big honkin ammo can, you could make that look like a rock by covering one side with shaped plastic foam, and painting it.

Edited March 26, 2011 by kunarion

[Clan Riffster]

These are two cache buckets I made.

Kunarion, I was looking at using a screw on lid/5 gallon bucket for a cache that will be on an island in a salt water environment, so I'm glad you posted this. I see where the water would stand on those lids. Never even considered that. Have you come with a fix? I'm wondering if there would be any moisture intrusion issues if the bucket stayed on its side? Or possibly filling those wedge shaped voids with something? Caulk, maybe? Initially, my plan was to place a couple small bricks in the bucket, and rest an ammo can on the bricks. I was thinking the thickness of the bucket would help prevent short term UV cracking, and because it was waterproof, it would keep the salt water mist off my can. Looks like I need to rethink that plan.

[+Isonzo Karst]

Getting a cache hanging in a tree doesn't necessarily involve climbing it.

here's link to a Coyote Red post for a no-climb technique.

 

http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=135909&st=0&p=2291519entry2291519

[+kunarion]

These are two cache buckets I made.

Kunarion, I was looking at using a screw on lid/5 gallon bucket for a cache that will be on an island in a salt water environment, so I'm glad you posted this. I see where the water would stand on those lids. Never even considered that. Have you come with a fix? I'm wondering if there would be any moisture intrusion issues if the bucket stayed on its side? Or possibly filling those wedge shaped voids with something? Caulk, maybe?

The X shape on top is the handle to twist the lid on & off. This forms those voids that pool to the brim with water, which tends to land inside the bucket as the lid's removed. Setting the bucket on its side might be just the trick, and that offers more fun camo design possibilities anyway.

 

For the OP:

Sure a windmill may just not do. But how about a corroding dinosaur or iron rooster on the front lawn? Round these parts, that about doubles the propery value.

 

 

Edited March 26, 2011 by kunarion

[+Dgwphotos]

For the OP:

Sure a windmill may just not do. But how about a corroding dinosaur or iron rooster on the front lawn? Round these parts, that about doubles the propery value.

 

The OP's Mrs denied the OP permission to build anything.

the wife just saw that windmill and vetoed ANY construction projects.

Oh. You're married. Got it. Nevermind.

Edited March 27, 2011 by Dgwphotos

[+Dgwphotos]

Getting a cache hanging in a tree doesn't necessarily involve climbing it.

here's link to a Coyote Red post for a no-climb technique.

 

http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=135909&st=0&p=2291519entry2291519

 

Interesting thread, but why is it locked? I did not see any logical reason for it to be locked.

[+gmsnrich]

 

This is one of my favorite finds, and it's a TB hotel, too. The largest "stone" is a fiberglass shell with an ammo can inside. I presume it's one of the things kunarion referred to in an earlier post for hiding utility pedestals.

Edited March 27, 2011 by gmsnrich

[knowschad]

 

This is one of my favorite finds, and it's a TB hotel, too. The largest "stone" is a fiberglass shell with an ammo can inside. I presume it's one of the things kunarion referred to in an earlier post for hiding utility pedestals.

That is extremely expensive. I had a bought a much smaller one to use as camo on one of my first hides (it wouldn't quite hold an ammo can) and that set me back about $50. One that size has got to be at least $200.

[knowschad]

Getting a cache hanging in a tree doesn't necessarily involve climbing it.

here's link to a Coyote Red post for a no-climb technique.

 

http://forums.Ground...9

 

YOU FOUND IT!! I've tried many times to find that thread! Thanks... I think I'll bookmark it this time.

[+Har_D]

Have you thought about setting up a multi? The initial micro cache or two would reveal the location of the bucket. That would allow you to hide it better. Perhaps under your foundation or in a shed or a dog house. You could also disguise it as a pedestal for a raised planter. This would look like a standard part of your garden.

[mtbikernate]

I have been thinking of a hoist cache somewhere else, and that method is similar to what I had planned. It would be a right challenge to get the rope into the hoist tree onto the branch I'd want it on (not just the lowest branch) in any of the trees in my front yard.

 

Those fiberglass utility box covers are a great idea, but the cost can be pretty prohibitive. I hadn't thought of them.

 

I am pretty well set on a large container for my TB motel. I specifically want something that can hold large TB's. I intend to release the occasional large TB into this container.

 

I have some ammo cans here already that I could use if I wanted to use them. I just want a big container.

 

I have read about the challenges with keeping moisture out of the 5gal buckets with the screw-top lids. I have some ideas that might resolve that, and tipping it on its side is one of them. Another would be filling the depressions in the lid and making some other sort of handle that's not going to collect water. Making it part of the camo would work.

 

I would like it to look like part of the landscaping. My best choice would probably be to make it look like a boulder in one way or another by building around the bucket. I've been trying to think of acceptable landscaping item choices, and the wife would NOT appreciate any sort of statuary or anything like that. Something that looked like a boulder might fly.

[mtbikernate]

Have you thought about setting up a multi? The initial micro cache or two would reveal the location of the bucket. That would allow you to hide it better. Perhaps under your foundation or in a shed or a dog house. You could also disguise it as a pedestal for a raised planter. This would look like a standard part of your garden.

 

Thought about it. You can see the hiding place of my current puzzle cache in the picture above, and I had considered using it as part of said multi. But nah. The garden area is the only place I'd want cachers to go. My lot is very narrow and sending anyone into the backyard (even though I've got a TON of great hiding places back there in the half acre of woods I have) would send them too close to the house itself.

[Clan Riffster]

My best choice would probably be to make it look like a boulder

Have you considered hypertufia?

http://www.the-artistic-garden.com/hypertufa-sculptures.html

I have no personal experience with it, but I've seen folks post in here that the end result looks a whole lot more like a real boulder than those fiberglass things. Apparently, once your boulder is done, you can toss some moss and some yogurt in a blender, smearing the mix over your boulder. This causes moss to grow like wild all over your boulder. Because hypertufia is moldable, you could shape it to fit over your bucket, then sculpt in rock like faces.

[mtbikernate]

My best choice would probably be to make it look like a boulder

Have you considered hypertufia?

http://www.the-artistic-garden.com/hypertufa-sculptures.html

I have no personal experience with it, but I've seen folks post in here that the end result looks a whole lot more like a real boulder than those fiberglass things. Apparently, once your boulder is done, you can toss some moss and some yogurt in a blender, smearing the mix over your boulder. This causes moss to grow like wild all over your boulder. Because hypertufia is moldable, you could shape it to fit over your bucket, then sculpt in rock like faces.

 

I've never heard of that before...now that's the kind of thing I was hoping to find! Dude, I have part of a bag of portland cement and some hardware cloth in my garage already. And my backyard is FULL of sand...although it's very fine sand.

 

At any rate, it appears to be a pretty labor-intensive project but the results might very well be worth it if I come up with a very nice-looking "garden rock" that happens to contain a cleverly hidden geocache.

 

And a note on the garden - I found a nursery (a few hours away, but still doable) that sells native bunchgrasses in 1gal pots that might help me to get a little quicker start on the garden. They also have a nice variety of species that should really look great. I'm going to try to plan a trip in the next couple weeks.

 

Thanks for that link. I might try going that route.

[mtbikernate]

after thinking on this some more, I am certain the hypertufa camo is going to be perfect. I think I'm going to build the bucket INTO the camo on its side (eliminating the pooling water issue on the lid), maybe at a slight upward angle so the stuff inside will tend to stay in the bottom of the bucket rather than falling out when it's opened. Our local rocks have a brownish hue to them when weathered, and I may try to dye the hypertufa or try to grind some local rocks up and either integrate them into the hypertufa or sprinkle it on the outer layer.

 

I don't think I'll be able to get moss to grow on it, but I suppose I could try. You can see how sunny the area gets, and I think any moss would just bake off. I could try putting some on the north shady side of it once it's placed, but I don't have high hopes. I mentioned the idea to my wife and she approved of placing it in front of the house. I had hoped to release the cache April 16th (the date of my 2yr remission party), but it appears the hypertufa won't quite be ready by then. That's okay, because it's more important to me to have a high quality cache.

 

Now...how to match the bucket color to that of the hypertufa. I'm thinking a coating of glue on the exposed portion of the bucket and then coating it with more crumbled local rock (or maybe sand so it has a sandstone look). On second thought, I'd be better off coating it with sand and making it look like sandstone instead of crumbling local rock. Our local rock (Weches Formation) is high in arsenic and I wouldn't want to inhale that while smashing it up.