Remind Me Again

2k · February 17, 2005

I was taking a hike today and happened to be going right by a cache I had logged back in July of '03. Knowing it was in a rupperwaremaid container and that we have had an extreme snow event I thought I'd take a peek inside and see how things had faired.

Dry as a bone and full of broken McToys, stickers, spare change and a rock . The cache note isn't even laminated and it was in fine shape. I know the container came from the dollar store, I use the same type to store stuff in the shop.

So remind me why every cache has to be in a $5 ammo box instead of a $1 plastic snap tight container?

1.6k · February 17, 2005

I was taking a hike today and happened to be going right by a cache I had logged back in July of '03. Knowing it was in a rupperwaremaid container and that we have had an extreme snow event I thought I'd take a peek inside and see how things had faired.

Dry as a bone and full of broken McToys, stickers, spare change and a rock . The cache note isn't even laminated and it was in fine shape. I know the container came from the dollar store, I use the same type to store stuff in the shop.

So remind me why every cache has to be in a $5 ammo box instead of a $1 plastic snap tight container?

Jeez rusty, don't tell them that...

Anyway, I'm trying to work Lock 'n Lock containers into my hiding. Right now, I'm waiting for it to warm up a bit...

1.5k · February 17, 2005

* plastic containers don't always get snapped shut properly; with an ammo can, its pretty much foolproof.
* plastic containers crack and warp with time and heat, compromising the seal.

That said, ammo cans don't last forever. I'll soon be replacing an ammo can cache that I placed three years ago - the hinge got stressed from 100+ visits and getting banged around on rocks, so all but one hinge pin has fallen out.

9.1k · February 17, 2005

Mr. Snazz, I thought you believed that ammo cans should be banned.

Forum regulars have long memories. Hypocrites suck, and you have been caught in the act.

Oh, and welcome back to the forums!

Edited February 17, 2005 by The Leprechauns

2k · February 17, 2005

* plastic containers don't always get snapped shut properly; with an ammo can, its pretty much foolproof.
* plastic containers crack and warp with time and heat, compromising the seal.

That said, ammo cans don't last forever. I'll soon be replacing an ammo can cache that I placed three years ago - the hinge got stressed from 100+ visits and getting banged around on rocks, so all but one hinge pin has fallen out.

March '03 to Feb '05 and still in good shape, yeah I guess they don't hold up very well.

Lets do the math

ammocan $5/3 years=$1.67/year

Plastic box $1/2 years=$0.50/ year or one third the cost.

This would be assuming the plastic box is trashed which it isn't.

Edit: Link to the cache page.

Edited February 17, 2005 by rusty_tlc

18.9k · February 17, 2005

I have 1 cache out for almost 3 years in a cheap plastic container that later testing showed to be not so water-proof. It is fine and the contents have stayed dry the whole time. It has probably never actually sat in pooled water of any real depth for any length of time - but it hangs in there very well. Seems to be no stress from temperature or UV damage. Worst problem was a few chew marks from some critter on the very edge of the lid. I've been impressed but have an ammo can standing by for it someday.

February 17, 2005

I see you live in Nevada. Things are a bit more damp and soggy on the rest of the continent, especially along the coasts. I have seen a couple of rubba-made containers here that had cracked corners and spongy contents...like this one.

1.5k · February 17, 2005

March '03 to Feb '05 and still in good shape, yeah I guess they don't hold up very well.

Wow, you're right, you totally disproved my statement with your one shining example. I bow before your ninja skills!

Forum regulars have long memories. Hypocrites suck, and you have been caught in the act.

Actually, I contradicted myself on the second page of postings. Part of the fun for me was flip-flopping back and forth and seeing if anybody would notice.

2k · February 17, 2005

_Intrepid' date='Feb 17 2005, 04:46 PM'] I see you live in Nevada. Things are a bit more damp and soggy on the rest of the continent, especially along the coasts. I have seen a couple of rubba-made containers here that had cracked corners and spongy contents...like this one.

That's what I'm talking about. Inevitably when the subject of plastic comes up many condemn it as completely inappropriate for caches without respect to where the cache will be hidden.

As a side note the western deserts account for about a third of North America.

2k · February 17, 2005

March '03 to Feb '05 and still in good shape, yeah I guess they don't hold up very well.

Wow, you're right, you totally disproved my statement with your one shining example. I bow before your ninja skills!

Forum regulars have long memories. Hypocrites suck, and you have been caught in the act.

Actually, I contradicted myself on the second page of postings. Part of the fun for me was flip-flopping back and forth and seeing if anybody would notice.

I made a factual statement, backed up with a reference to the cache in question.

You stated opinions.

* plastic containers don't always get snapped shut properly; with an ammo can, its pretty much foolproof.
* plastic containers crack and warp with time and heat, compromising the seal.

The sarcasm was intentional and in keeping with the OP.

1.5k · February 17, 2005

As a side note the western deserts account for about a third of North America.

I've never been to the desert. Don't much care for it.

In my own limited personal experience, tupperware and ammo boxes are about tied:

Out of my meager 113 cache finds:

Tupperware 38%

Ammo box 37%

Jar or Bucket 17%

Other 4%

Altoids box 3%

Unknown 2%

Quite often I see tupperware which has been banged up and cracked from being hidden under volcanic rock. I also see tupperware which has a compromised seal from being hidden in a forest and getting duff along the rim.

The only time I've pulled a soggy bag from an ammo can was when the can's rubber seal was entirely disintegrated. Also, the can was burried under snow at the time.

February 18, 2005

I prefer the ammo can, myself. I have seen ammo can caches survive a forrest fire (controlled burn), a tree falling on them, and I saw one ALMOST survive a log skidder, didn't quite make it, tho I have seen tupperware (and my dreaded least favorite...cool whip tub) crack, warp, leak, (very possible here in the much too humid/hot/freezing/rainy/dry NE part of Mississippi) get crushed, not seal properly, and otherwise become a mess. Besides ammo cans have a psycological effect...No matter how lame the cache, it always seems to be a little less sucky if there's a nice sturdy ammo can waiting for you at the end. Ammo cans are usually a bit bigger, as well.

Im not knocking tupperware, I have a few out myself that are of the plastic variety. I do enjoy finding those ammo cans, tho.

2k · February 18, 2005

As a side note the western deserts account for about a third of North America.

I've never been to the desert. Don't much care for it.

In my own limited personal experience, tupperware and ammo boxes are about tied:

Out of my meager 113 cache finds:

Tupperware 38%

Ammo box 37%

Jar or Bucket 17%

Other 4%

Altoids box 3%

Unknown 2%

Quite often I see tupperware which has been banged up and cracked from being hidden under volcanic rock. I also see tupperware which has a compromised seal from being hidden in a forest and getting duff along the rim.

The only time I've pulled a soggy bag from an ammo can was when the can's rubber seal was entirely disintegrated. Also, the can was burried under snow at the time.

If you've never been to the desert how do you know you don't care for it? That kind of logic could be devastating in a debate.

This is the only full sized cache I have ever found that was water damaged, an ammo can with a bad seal.

2k · February 18, 2005

I prefer the ammo can, myself. I have seen ammo can caches survive a forrest fire (controlled burn), a tree falling on them, and I saw one ALMOST survive a log skidder, didn't quite make it, tho I have seen tupperware (and my dreaded least favorite...cool whip tub) crack, warp, leak, (very possible here in the much too humid/hot/freezing/rainy/dry NE part of Mississippi) get crushed, not seal properly, and otherwise become a mess. Besides ammo cans have a psycological effect...No matter how lame the cache, it always seems to be a little less sucky if there's a nice sturdy ammo can waiting for you at the end. Ammo cans are usually a bit bigger, as well.

Im not knocking tupperware, I have a few out myself that are of the plastic variety. I do enjoy finding those ammo cans, tho.

Based on that I would say plastic is a bad choice in Mississippi. Why is it bad everywhere?

1.5k · February 18, 2005

If you've never been to the desert how do you know you don't care for it? That kind of logic could be devastating in a debate.

Are you serious?

Did you notice my custom title?

2k · February 18, 2005

If you've never been to the desert how do you know you don't care for it? That kind of logic could be devastating in a debate.

Are you serious?

Did you notice my custom title?

No.

7.3k · February 18, 2005

You know, Rusty, I think it entirely depends on what kind of container you buy.

You'd think this was obvious, but apparently not. I've gone to caches that were brand new, but they used containers that were obviously not meant to be permanant, even for food. They already don't close right, right off the bat.

I just replaced a container that had warped so much that it would not close.

But then, if you choose the right container, they could last for years.

When I go to the store, I open and close them several times, and eyeball them to see if they are structural enough to look like they may never warp.

I get my favorite brands going. I like lock n lock, though after a while of being opened and closed, the locking flaps will eventually fall off. I found this out the hard way. I also like the generic clear rubbermaids with blue outlines that they sell at Wal-mart. They seem to open and close easily and are structural.

Also, Wal-Mart sells some clear screw-top containers that are for cookies or something. They come in small or large with a white lid. These are exellent, although they only seem to carrey the round ones and not the square ones anymore. I liked the square ones, better. Anyway, the lids on those last, where other screw top lids might eventually crack.

I spend too much time thinking about this, don't I?

2k · February 18, 2005

You know, Rusty, I think it entirely depends on what kind of container you buy.

You'd think this was obvious, but apparently not. I've gone to caches that were brand new, but they used containers that were obviously not meant to be permanant, even for food. They already don't close right, right off the bat.

I just replaced a container that had warped so much that it would not close.

But then, if you choose the right container, they could last for years.

When I go to the store, I open and close them several times, and eyeball them to see if they are structural enough to look like they may never warp.

I get my favorite brands going. I like lock n lock, though after a while of being opened and closed, the locking flaps will eventually fall off. I found this out the hard way. I also like the generic clear rubbermaids with blue outlines that they sell at Wal-mart. They seem to open and close easily and are structural.

Also, Wal-Mart sells some clear screw-top containers that are for cookies or something. They come in small or large with a white lid. These are exellent, although they only seem to carrey the round ones and not the square ones anymore. I liked the square ones, better. Anyway, the lids on those last, where other screw top lids might eventually crack.

I spend too much time thinking about this, don't I?

I'm suprised you would like plastic living in Washington. I wouldn't guess it would do well in a damp climate.

The containers I've seen that hold up the best aren't the most expensive ones. I even have a Gladloc type one down by the slough that has been there a year. It is in a kind of natural cave.

To much time is a relative thing.

1.8k · February 18, 2005

I don't like to see used lemon Sherbet containers and such, but I used mostly tupperware for the first year. I feel better, though, with $3 ammo cans. I only have 1 tw still out, and it's in a wooden box, but lately I saw a $1.50 tw that I was considering for a couple. It's a wide-mouth gallon flat-side jar with a screw-on lid (quite wide).

7.3k · February 18, 2005

I'm suprised you would like plastic living in Washington. I wouldn't guess it would do well in a damp climate.

I'm suprised that you wouldn't know that half of Washington is water-logged, and the other half is a desert.

Guess which side I live on?

February 18, 2005

Can we please have another regular-free week?

It's pretty clear that the location has a great deal to do with the success of the container. Ammo cans are tougher and more versatile in that they'll survive most conditions, but in a protected hidey-hole plastic food containers do just fine. On the other hand, an ammo can, particularly a large one, is a pain to carry to a distant mountaintop. I should know--I've carried an ammo can _plus_ furniture to a mountaintop.

3.9k · February 18, 2005

The truth is that ammo boxes and Tupperware are BOTH bad. Ammo boxes for the reasons stated by Mr. Snazz, Freelens/Mosie and others and Tupperware because it's a non-biodegradable, petroleum based product that is bad for the environment.

The perfect cache container is one that is naturally camoflaged, can be made to fit in almost any hiding spot, can expand as the cache grows (or contract as it shrinks), is made from renewable resources and is cheap. The paper grocery bag.

All other cache containers are inherently evil.

7.3k · February 18, 2005

20.7k · February 18, 2005

This thread reminds me of one just last week that discussed micros. I don't recall whether it was about key holders, film cans, or what. The point of it was that if you don't choose the right container for your location, you will not be satisfied. My ammo can caches have lasted through several floods, but probably would not ok for that cache in the bush outside the police station.

7.3k · February 18, 2005

I like geocaching.

20.7k · February 18, 2005

Geocaching is good.

7.3k · February 18, 2005

9.1k · February 18, 2005

March '03 to Feb '05 and still in good shape, yeah I guess they don't hold up very well.

Wow, you're right, you totally disproved my statement with your one shining example. I bow before your ninja skills!

Forum regulars have long memories. Hypocrites suck, and you have been caught in the act.

Actually, I contradicted myself on the second page of postings. Part of the fun for me was flip-flopping back and forth and seeing if anybody would notice.

I truly, truly enjoyed the "Ammo Cans Should be Banned" thread. It was trolling done to perfection. I am very glad to see Mr. Snazz back in the forums.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Mr. Snazz, please read everything he says ten times, so that you fully comprehend it, before you form an opinion about it. Then, change your mind.

1.5k · February 18, 2005

I truly, truly enjoyed the "Ammo Cans Should be Banned" thread. It was trolling done to perfection. I am very glad to see Mr. Snazz back in the forums.

Dang it, you made me cry just as I was putting together my first-ever tupperware cache. Now the logbook is all soggy!

Oh wait, that means its good to go, right?

9.1k · February 18, 2005

Tupperware with cracked lid? Check.

Soggy logbook? Check.

Dirty golfballs, broken McToys and expired coupons?

Snazz? Hello? I guess you're not quite finished.

2.3k · February 18, 2005

Tupperware with cracked lid? Check.
Soggy logbook? Check.

Dirty golfballs, broken McToys and expired coupons?

Snazz? Hello? I guess you're not quite finished.

Why waste good money on a logbook when you can just use part of a post it's pad you borrowed from work?

2k · February 18, 2005

I'm suprised you would like plastic living in Washington. I wouldn't guess it would do well in a damp climate.

I'm suprised that you wouldn't know that half of Washington is water-logged, and the other half is a desert.

Guess which side I live on?

The side where the good apples are?

2k · February 18, 2005

Here's an idea, it's wild and it's crazy, but maybe just crazy enough to work.

How about when the topic of what makes a good cache container comes up the usual suspects, instead of condeming rubberware out of hand, suggest that the poster try finding a few caches where they cache and see what works there?

The same purist that insist on ammo cans seem to also hate film canisters and altoid tins. Perhaps there is a middle ground that isn't quit as intimidating as an ammo can. Face it tuppermaid is friendly, we use it every day, ammo cans harken of special forces and Tom Clancy novels. Let folks ease into the sport/hobby/recreation/whatever else we want to refer to it as.

7.3k · February 18, 2005

I'm suprised you would like plastic living in Washington. I wouldn't guess it would do well in a damp climate.

I'm suprised that you wouldn't know that half of Washington is water-logged, and the other half is a desert.

Guess which side I live on?

The side where the good apples are?

Riiighhhhht. :lol: :laughing:

3.8k · February 18, 2005

I like micros. Especially lame ones.

If micros came in ammo cans or Tupperware,

I wouldn't care.

I like the lame ones,

Like film cans and Altoid tins

And cowpies. :laughing:

1.5k · February 18, 2005

I have a cache near a river bank. It is stuffed under a very large rock (about the size of a small volkswagen) This year the river had a major flood.

After the flood waters went down, I headed out to the area with a replacement box full of goodies, knowing that there was no way that the old cache would ever be seen again.

I was wrong. There the ammo box was, stuffed under the rock. Not where it use to be, since the river had moved this volkswagen sized rook a good 25 feet.

I retreived the ammo-can, opened it up and discovered the contents still in great shape. The contents were dry, including the log book. I stuffed a few of the goodies from the replacement box into the cache, returned it to it's hiding spot and headed home to re-activate the cache.

24.7k · February 18, 2005

...The perfect cache container is one that is naturally camoflaged, can be made to fit in almost any hiding spot, can expand as the cache grows (or contract as it shrinks), is made from renewable resources and is cheap. The paper grocery bag.
All other cache containers are inherently evil....

Boy when you put it that way I think you are on to something.

24.7k · February 18, 2005

...How about when the topic of what makes a good cache container comes up the usual suspects, instead of condeming rubberware out of hand, suggest that the poster try finding a few caches where they cache and see what works there? ...

Location, Location Location. Magnetic Key rings don't work where they can be rained on. Fake Sprinklers hold water really well. Ammo cans have all been good. Tupperware in it's variations varies.

So I have seen on the rare occasion I make it out caching.

Altoids tins are normally ok, but only because they are normally hiden where they stay dry. Atoids tins on the bottom side of a rock 4' above the ground are not ok. They get wet from water flowing over the rock and dripping off the tin (I haven't solved that problem).

Baggies in the glove box of a junked car that went on a one way trip down an embankment stayed dry.

Ammo cans were the only true universal good container. Any container will work if you hide it where it will stay dry.

38.2k · February 18, 2005

So remind me why every cache has to be in a $5 ammo box instead of a $1 plastic snap tight container?

First of all, Rubbermaid containers aren't the same thing as $1 plastic snap tight containers. Rubbermaid Seal n Savers are pretty much the cream of plastic containers and the primary kind of plastic containers I use. But they cost about the same as an ammo box.

I've found many a soaked cache and every one of them was in a plastic container of some sort. I've yet to encounter a wet ammo box cache. Tupperware (the real thing) seems to fail after about a year in the outdoors. Cheap dollar store containers fail pretty soon after you put them out.

Sure there are exceptions. I'm sure many plastic containers have stayed dry for a long time but if you want a guarantee it will stay dry, you need an ammo box.

Edited February 18, 2005 by briansnat

1.1k · February 18, 2005

Well this is very interesting so I guess I'll chime in. The worst container if it is bad was a simple ziplock sandwich bag had been there about a year nice and dry under a pile of leaves. Then there was the ammo can on the side of a cliff in a crevice that I was about the third person to find that ahd been there for a year the contents was damp to wet was kind of weird thing. It hissed when we opened it. You had to make sure you didnt let go sa you were on a free rappel 50feet above the ground. So after that ammocans are not the be all end all. I think where you place the container plays a big part in how it will far. O'well just a few thoughts.

cheers

2.5k · February 18, 2005

Can we please have another regular-free week?

Seeing as though the problem with this thread isn't a regular, I think we need a troll free week instead.

1.8k · February 18, 2005

Tupperwares: Stay-Fresh Convenience, or Tool of Satan?

9.1k · February 18, 2005

I have a cache near a river bank. It is stuffed under a very large rock (about the size of a small volkswagen) This year the river had a major flood.

After the flood waters went down, I headed out to the area with a replacement box full of goodies, knowing that there was no way that the old cache would ever be seen again.

I was wrong. There the ammo box was, stuffed under the rock. Not where it use to be, since the river had moved this volkswagen sized rook a good 25 feet.

I retreived the ammo-can, opened it up and discovered the contents still in great shape. The contents were dry, including the log book. I stuffed a few of the goodies from the replacement box into the cache, returned it to it's hiding spot and headed home to re-activate the cache.

I can report a similar experience, but for a Lock 'n Lock container. A few months ago, NevaP and CarleenP and I went out to rescue/replace one of Neva's creekside caches that had "surely" been lost when there was a tornado and flash flooding. The cache was hidden in a huge fallen tree next to the stream. When we got to the area, there was no ground cover and no trees where the GPS zeroed out. We look downstream about 50 feet and there is a huge pile of deadfall that had jammed up against some standing trees during the flood. We walk over there and sure enough, I find the Lock 'n Lock, still sitting in its hidey spot.

There was some water damage inside the container and the metal trade items rusted. But, the logbook was dry and a stuffed animal travel bug survived. I took the bug so it could move from Nebraska to Pittsburgh. Neva put a new container in the same spot and adjusted the coordinates. When I did my travel bug pickup log, it was very cool to see that the site recorded a 50-foot leap in the bug's mileage history!

Lock 'n Lock's rock. I am using them in a lot of my recent placements, including replacements for rubbermaid containers that have given out.

February 18, 2005

I have just recently come across two different caches that used Lock-n-Locks, and in both cases one of the two locking tabs were broken, preventing the container from sealing. While the container itself seems very sturdy, the tabs are made of a more brittle plastic. So maybe the Lock-n-Lock containers are not quite as "good" as they seem? :mad:

February 19, 2005

I think ammo cans are the best thing since sliced bread, but you can't eat them.

I find that the tupperware with the screw tops tend to stay better then the regular kind.

But nothing can compare to the feeling of pulling out a nice ammo can.

I think forum chat is comical! I love it!

-KolarBear :mad:

Remind Me Again

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