Barrels

[tommy the cat]

I know this may be more relevent to SOTP but had anyone used the blue food barrels (Indian Rest use) for storage or canoing?
Got a good supplier of them but find that where the screw lid clamps down they leak?
Any suggestions for sealing?
I will try to tale a photo tomorrow to show you what I mean. I was thinking of some kind of gasket?
Dave

 

[spamel]

I know that the old shmoolie (sp? never had to spell it, just said it!) barrels were water tight. Old school blokes had them, but i bet they'll come up on the bay. If you want to seal them, a large rubber o ring in the lid may do the trick, or load your stuff in a dry bag inside. I take it the container is more to stop the food stuffs getting damaged?

 

[Jared]

Screw?

Last time I used a blue barrel, they had a metal clamp ring.

 

[bushscout1]

I've got 2 of the screw-top type.

Mine have a ?rubber? seal inside the lid (to line up with where it sits on the barrel rim).

I have had mine leak a small amount of water in although I put this down to not tightening enough - which can be a difficult task, if on your own try 'clamping' the barrel between your legs and then using both hands to tighten the screwed rim down.

I hope this makes sense & helps.

 

[mr dazzler]

Or U could use your trouser belt like an oil filter remover, fit it round the lid, but dont put the buckle spike into any of the belt holes, just pull it up tight, then get a stick and loop the tip of the belt round it, then pull on it to get leverage to tighten the lid up? Just a thought

 

[tommy the cat]

Na no metal ring on these its got tooo dark really now to take a pic but pretty much the same as above blue barrel but where the lip is there are a no of holes in the lip where the barrel lid meets the oh pants hang on.....

Actually this one seems to have an o ring the other one I tried hadn't so when I filled it up with water it leaked.
What sort of material for the gasket o ring??? Rubber?
Could ditch it check when I get another that the gasket is still there.
Ta Dave

 

[Bodge]

I used to use one of the blue ones with the metal sealing ring for transporting my scuba gear in, more importantly for putting the wet stuff in after the dive to keep the car dry.
I still use it to store diving gear in along with a silica gel pouch to keep things dry
Factorys use them around here for the pottery industry for slip or dyes or somthing along these lines.
I use a dry sack for my stuff when I go canoeing so I can shove it in any available nook or cranny.

Bodge

 

[tommy the cat]

Bodge, probably dry bags would be a lot better as you say can be shoved in nooks etc, but these are ahhemm free and dry bags can be ahhhem quite expensive!
I probably should just bin the barrels but I'm a bit of a magpie and cant think what else to do with them other than using them on an up and coming canoe trip.
Ta Dave

 

[spamel]

I used to use the blue barrels with the clamp in Bosnia as a washing machine! We were on Rapid Reaction, 24 Airmobile Brigade which is now 16 Air Assault, and there weren't any facilities at the start of the tour, so washing had to be done by hand. Chuck your clothes and some water in a blue barrel with some washing liquid and some big round stones, clamp the lid down and roll it up and down! You get your clothes clean and a work out at the same time!

 

[Tengu]

Well, last night, I got given another. trouble is, the lids jammed (so I know its watertight)