+ByronForestPreserve Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 (edited) I'm looking to create a large cache that looks like a pirate chest. The Rubbermaid Action Packers have great reviews on Amazon, yet the description itself just says "weather resistant" which doesn't inspire confidence. Has anyone used something like this for a cache? I'd like it to open like a chest rather than having locking tabs, if at all possible. The one I'm considering is 8 gallons, to give you an idea of size (but has the tabs, unfortunately). I'm running out of search terms to try, as well. Boat boxes, dry boxes, waterproof storage, and watertight boxes all bring up the same few items, or else a slew of things much smaller than I'd like. I always have a separate smaller watertight container inside for the log and trackables, but I'd like the swag to stay decent, as well. I don't have an army surplus store anywhere nearby, or I'd try there first. Thoughts and suggestions appreciated! Edited June 4, 2015 by ByronForestPreserve Quote Link to comment
+Uncle Alaska Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 Will it be exposed to direct sunlight? Undergo extreme temperatures (cold or heat)? Those are the obvious things breaking down plastics. A good couple coatings of paint can help with the sunlight (refreshing the paint annually). I have seen one cache that is simillar to a rubbermaid type chest, it was under the eaves and covered in someones backyard (with a combo lock gate built into the fence). It seemed to be fine, though it had a lot of protection. Quote Link to comment
+ByronForestPreserve Posted June 4, 2015 Author Share Posted June 4, 2015 It will be painted to look like wood with several coats of acrylic clearcoat over that. Otherwise, it will be sitting in a shallow sinkhole under some trees (no standing water). I'm mostly worried about the seal...one review claims they've been watertight in a truckbed for 13+ years, but we all know that normal use somehow doesn't apply to geocaches. To add, now that I've been looking for even longer: I love the look of some of the Plano shooter's cases, but they don't seem to be intended to be waterproof. Surely there's something out there... Quote Link to comment
+Uncle Alaska Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 Does it have a rubber seal? Maybe you can check one out at a home depot? See if the seal is replaceable, something that can be replaced over time? Quote Link to comment
+cerberus1 Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 What about a poly truck box? Similar price-wise to the action packers, but most truck boxes have a seal to keep tools dry. Quote Link to comment
+wmpastor Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 Two tips, the first suggested by this statement: Otherwise, it will be sitting in a shallow sinkhole under some trees (no standing water). Make sure the sinkhole does not lead any zealous types to think the box is "buried." In fact, i'd keep a photo of the original condition so you can prove your point to a reviewer after the first cache cop emails a NA report. Secondly, the toolboxes are expensive. Your modification will probably discourage theft. However, if you can chain it to a tree, that would help. Quote Link to comment
+ByronForestPreserve Posted June 5, 2015 Author Share Posted June 5, 2015 What about a poly truck box? Similar price-wise to the action packers, but most truck boxes have a seal to keep tools dry. I did look for some of those, but couldn't find one with a hinge type lid...unless I just didn't try the right search terms. I looked for a long time. Ended up ordering a deck box with several reviews claiming it stayed bone dry through thunderstorms. I'll just double box the log and trackables. The starting swag will just be plastic coins and fake gems, so that stuff can get wet if things get wet. Quote Link to comment
+ByronForestPreserve Posted June 5, 2015 Author Share Posted June 5, 2015 Two tips, the first suggested by this statement: Otherwise, it will be sitting in a shallow sinkhole under some trees (no standing water). Make sure the sinkhole does not lead any zealous types to think the box is "buried." In fact, i'd keep a photo of the original condition so you can prove your point to a reviewer after the first cache cop emails a NA report. Secondly, the toolboxes are expensive. Your modification will probably discourage theft. However, if you can chain it to a tree, that would help. $40 for the deck box I ordered, and anyone who wants to steal it will have to hike it out of our preserve. It's off trail and out of sight enough that muggles won't end up anywhere near it. Ended up being 22 gallon storage (so it says, but that seems an overestimate from the dimensions given). Either way, it's not small. None of the things I looked at were 100% watertight until about the $150 large camping drybox range, so I went with the best of the less expensive options, and the one with the best "treasure chest" look. As for the sinkhole, think shallow bowl...it's about 30' in diameter and maybe 5' deep at the center. (This is much smaller and shallower than some of the ones we have around here.) It's not obvious; the tree cover hides the whole thing until you're actually in it, and it's surrounded by prairie. No fear of anyone thinking I dug that hole. I've been wanting to put a cache out there for a long time, but the farmer that used to own the land used it as a dump. Now I have enough help to clean it out, so I'm going for it. We're decorating with semi-cheap skulls and sabers and a few wooden signs with "keep out" and such. It certainly won't be a difficult find, but I'm going for a fun family cache rather than a challenge (our summer camp kids are making all of the decorations). Now I just have to convince them that all of the shinies need to go in the box and not their pockets.... I might still try an Action Packer for a future cache. Guess I'll see how this one works out. Quote Link to comment
+ByronForestPreserve Posted June 5, 2015 Author Share Posted June 5, 2015 How about a cooler? I did consider that! The only issue I thought of would be the hinges...with all of the coolers I've had or used for camp (they get rough use probably equivalent to what cachers would throw at one), those have cracked or given out in some way that makes the lid close poorly. That, and the rubber seal always ends up moldy or musty after one season. Maybe there's a brand that would work, but I haven't come across one I'd trust yet. Quote Link to comment
+ByronForestPreserve Posted June 5, 2015 Author Share Posted June 5, 2015 Does it have a rubber seal? Maybe you can check one out at a home depot? See if the seal is replaceable, something that can be replaced over time? Just took a quick look...not bad, but sadly above my budget. I'm doing this one out of pocket, but if I set up a geotrail for work, I'll get some nicer containers...and things that can be bolted down or locked will possibly be a bonus. Quote Link to comment
+TomToad Posted June 5, 2015 Share Posted June 5, 2015 Get yourself a chest with an upper tray. Like this http://www.attrezzieutensili.it/4255-thickbox_default/small-cantilever-tool-case-with-detachable-lid-organizer-and-internal-tray.jpg but more treasure chest looking. Don't worry about being water tight. Put a water tight container in the box below the tray for the log book and swag. Put in the tray some cheap plastic jewelry and coins so the treasure aspect will remain when someone opens the chest. Quote Link to comment
+cerberus1 Posted June 5, 2015 Share Posted June 5, 2015 What about a poly truck box? Similar price-wise to the action packers, but most truck boxes have a seal to keep tools dry. I did look for some of those, but couldn't find one with a hinge type lid...unless I just didn't try the right search terms. I looked for a long time. Ended up ordering a deck box with several reviews claiming it stayed bone dry through thunderstorms. I'll just double box the log and trackables. The starting swag will just be plastic coins and fake gems, so that stuff can get wet if things get wet. That was my next guess. We have one by Suncast that CJ picked up for pool toys (they can get wet, but the Sun kills 'em...) and everything inside stays dry, even with no seal. Quote Link to comment
+narcissa Posted June 5, 2015 Share Posted June 5, 2015 Get yourself a chest with an upper tray. Like this http://www.attrezzieutensili.it/4255-thickbox_default/small-cantilever-tool-case-with-detachable-lid-organizer-and-internal-tray.jpg but more treasure chest looking. Don't worry about being water tight. Put a water tight container in the box below the tray for the log book and swag. Put in the tray some cheap plastic jewelry and coins so the treasure aspect will remain when someone opens the chest. I like this idea. I was going to suggest something similar - a treasure chest box that looks great, with a waterproof container inside that. Quote Link to comment
+ByronForestPreserve Posted June 7, 2015 Author Share Posted June 7, 2015 What about a poly truck box? Similar price-wise to the action packers, but most truck boxes have a seal to keep tools dry. I did look for some of those, but couldn't find one with a hinge type lid...unless I just didn't try the right search terms. I looked for a long time. Ended up ordering a deck box with several reviews claiming it stayed bone dry through thunderstorms. I'll just double box the log and trackables. The starting swag will just be plastic coins and fake gems, so that stuff can get wet if things get wet. That was my next guess. We have one by Suncast that CJ picked up for pool toys (they can get wet, but the Sun kills 'em...) and everything inside stays dry, even with no seal. Suncast is exactly what I ended up getting! I was afraid that with no seal it wouldn't stay dry, but every review said they were excellent. I'm putting in a smaller container for the log and trackables regardless, but the plastic coins and things can stay in the bottom. The outside will be painted and have acrylic clear coat over that, plus it will be in the shade. Should be fine. Quote Link to comment
+ByronForestPreserve Posted June 7, 2015 Author Share Posted June 7, 2015 Get yourself a chest with an upper tray. Like this http://www.attrezzieutensili.it/4255-thickbox_default/small-cantilever-tool-case-with-detachable-lid-organizer-and-internal-tray.jpg but more treasure chest looking. Don't worry about being water tight. Put a water tight container in the box below the tray for the log book and swag. Put in the tray some cheap plastic jewelry and coins so the treasure aspect will remain when someone opens the chest. I like this idea. I was going to suggest something similar - a treasure chest box that looks great, with a waterproof container inside that. I checked out some toolboxes and thought about that, too. The larger sizes tend to have a strange shape, from what I can tell, and I wanted something fairly large. What I got is resin molded to already look like wood. The only problem is that it's light tan, so we're going to darken and weather it, then throw some acrylic clear coat over it. I'll post a photo after the camp kids are done decorating it (should be hilarious). Quote Link to comment
+wmpastor Posted June 7, 2015 Share Posted June 7, 2015 Now I have a new fear about cache cops based on this: We're decorating with semi-cheap skulls and sabers and a few wooden signs with "keep out" and such. When they see the "keep out," they'll post a NA, assuming that it's trespassing! (Really, they're ever-vigilant, and every now & then with good reason.) Quote Link to comment
+ByronForestPreserve Posted June 9, 2015 Author Share Posted June 9, 2015 Now I have a new fear about cache cops based on this: We're decorating with semi-cheap skulls and sabers and a few wooden signs with "keep out" and such. When they see the "keep out," they'll post a NA, assuming that it's trespassing! (Really, they're ever-vigilant, and every now & then with good reason.) It will be super obvious, I hope! They are some pretty cheesy decorations. I'll make sure the second sign says "Bluebeard's Cache" or whatever. I hid a cache a while ago in a picnic shelter constructed from a donated house (it's cool) and there were still real "No Trespassing" signs along the drive when it was published. Everyone ignored them. Quote Link to comment
+briansnat Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 How about a cooler? Not waterproof. I've left them on my deck and had to drain out water when I went to use them. Still not sure how water gets in, but it does Quote Link to comment
+ByronForestPreserve Posted June 11, 2015 Author Share Posted June 11, 2015 For science, here's the Suncast deck box with paint (the latest coat of acrylic spray still drying, and it will need several more). At a whopping 22 gallons, it's definitely a large. Those signs look like something painted by children, and will hopefully add to the atmosphere rather than cause concern, though if I saw them near private property I'd be worried. The other photo is the sinkhole...you can't see a thing into it from the trail, and I'd be surprised if even our most regular visitors know it's there. I will put one of the signs barely visible to show the way in, because there's a really nice but hidden deer trail to the interior, but if you miss it, you'd be walking through head-high sunflowers for 20' in any other direction. Thankfully it's shaded enough inside (and deeper than I remembered, maybe 8') that the ground is clear once you get past the barrier of prairie grass. Anyway...back on topic, I'll try to remember to post an update on how this container does. I really like the look of it--perfect treasure chest! Quote Link to comment
+Uncle Alaska Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 Probably too far away from me to make the find ...looks pretty cool Quote Link to comment
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