Burying tin cans??

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Asa Samuel

Native
May 6, 2009
1,450
1
St Austell.
My dad gave me this camping book that is a few years old and it says that for disposing of tin cans you can burn them then bury them about 3 ft down. Now this doesn't sound like a good idea to me, is there any method to this madness??

Asa.
 

JohnC

Full Member
Jun 28, 2005
2,624
82
62
Edinburgh
I would burn the remaining contents and label off in a fire (if I had one) and flatten them and pack them out for recycling. If no fire, wash them out and flatten etc.
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,937
4,570
S. Lanarkshire
That really is an old book Asa, or it's certainly giving very old information.
In the post war period that was considered good practice since it didn't attract rats and the like.

The idea then was that the tins would rust down and cause no littering or pollution.

Nowadays, we do what John does and advise others to do likewise.

cheers,
Toddy
 
not to much of a problem really the tin cans will rust out and dislove back into the soil over time.

however a lot of modern Cans have plastic coatings inside so i wouldnt like to burn them.

a Plus if you packed it in you should pack it out its now lighter and smaller than it was
 

Miyagi

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Aug 6, 2008
2,298
5
South Queensferry
My dad gave me this camping book that is a few years old and it says that for disposing of tin cans you can burn them then bury them about 3 ft down. Now this doesn't sound like a good idea to me, is there any method to this madness??

Asa.

That was the norm before folk recycled or cared about the environment in the way they do now.

I remember when our compo rat packs consited of tinned goods, a lot of folk used to top and tail them and stamp them into the ground.

Army training areas must be littered with the stuff.

Nowadays you take your gash out with you.
 

susi

Nomad
Jul 23, 2008
421
0
Finland
Agree with the others. Also, I think I'd rather carry a can out than go to the trouble of digging a hole 90cm deep.
 

RAPPLEBY2000

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Dec 2, 2003
3,195
14
50
England
easy answer:
Don't take tins!

there are many different means of taking food on trips without using tins.
I did most of an 8 month outdoor ed, course without using tins! and it wasn't expensive!
try looking for dried pasta and foods in sauce in a supermarket!

also you can make your own rations like " measured: porridge oats, milk powder and sugar in a poly bag" much less waste, much less weight and if you mix it and eat it out of the bag...no washing up either!:D

Burying tins is very much a no no nowadays, I would have something to say if I saw someone doing it (nothing personal) ;)

if no other option, after use empty, crush and put in a placy bag to take home.
 
Just chuck it in the hedge like everyone else does, that or a nearby river or stream, if those can't be found just save them up until you have a nice big sack and find a nice glade or unspoilt piece of woodland and chuck them there, along with any old fridges or furniture and glass bottles that you don't want, preferably smash the glass first.
As for cans,no point in burying them, many are made of aluminium, it won't rust. Rabbits foxes and badgers can dig that far down, and could dig them up, as often happens


I think the point has been made enough here. Take it home and dispose of it properly. leave nothing behind except a smile and good memories
 
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wicca

Native
Oct 19, 2008
1,065
34
South Coast
It can be a disheartening world at times. Arriving in the French island of Martinique after a 30 day voyage across the Atlantic I took three large black dustbin size bags ashore. I never ditch anything at sea, except perishables like waste food. I almost got arrested , there are places where people object to visitors arriving with rubbish..:) I eventually found a skip behind a local restaurant but found out later that much of the towns rubbish after 'sorting' by locals, was loaded into a barge...and dumped at sea..
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,937
4,570
S. Lanarkshire
They say that there's an entire sea of plastic in the sargasso these days :sigh:

We really do need to do more about making plastics and wrappings biodegradeable.
Even if it only happened in specific sunlight, moisture and temperature fluctuations.

cheers,
Toddy
 

Asa Samuel

Native
May 6, 2009
1,450
1
St Austell.
I think there is a bit of confusion here; I never intended to bury any tins, this was pure curiosity.

As for the book, I'm not sure what year it was published but it's called A Practical Manual to Camping, Hiking and Wilderness Techniques by Peter G. Drake.
 
Probably a bit of the old victorian practices kicking around in the book, Asa
They were notorious dumpers and buried everything.

You are quite right it is madness,nice to see how times have changed.... yeah right.

I don't have a problem with properly managed land fill, but the book really is telling you to just bury rubbish, and that of course is wrong
 

wicca

Native
Oct 19, 2008
1,065
34
South Coast
Asa, I think the age of the book is the clue, as FGYT says the tins these days are made under a different process. In days gone by, getting the tin really hot until it changed colour would destroy any rusting resistance and it would decay quickly. But not so these days. I know sailing folk who still hold a tin in the flame of the galley stove until it's red hot then throw it overboard. But like you and others, I still wouldn't feel happy doing it..:)
 

Angus Og

Full Member
Nov 6, 2004
1,035
3
Glasgow
My dad gave me this camping book that is a few years old and it says that for disposing of tin cans you can burn them then bury them about 3 ft down. Now this doesn't sound like a good idea to me, is there any method to this madness??

Asa.

That's a lot of work to do, I'd take them out with me.
 

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