# Actual prepping related question



## Smokin04 (Jan 29, 2014)

So I realized that I throw away a ton of milk cartons (gallon milk jugs) and thought to myself, these have to be useful. So I thought it would be an interesting discussion for the community. How do you use your empty milk cartons? In the past I;ve used them to store old motor oil and dispose of it. I've thought about cutting the tops off and using them as a planter box of some kind. But other than that...there got to be something creative we can use them for. So how about PF, any ideas?


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## Camel923 (Aug 13, 2014)

I use them around the base of smaller fruit trees to keep the weed wacker and critters that chew away.


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## ntxwheels (Oct 25, 2014)

Make sure they are completely clean and dry inside, the use it to store uncooked rice. Once filled, you can use waterproof packing tape to further seal them. Can be used this way for other food stuffs also.


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## Mish (Nov 5, 2013)

Good stuff...
Home and Garden: 35 Uses for Plastic Milk Jugs


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## Boss Dog (Feb 8, 2013)

Be careful about using them for water or food. They must be completely clean and it's hard to do. If you don't get them clean, the milk residue will become a bacterial growth. 

Cut the bottom out and it makes a good scoop with handle attached and the screw cap spout makes a funnel for controlled dispensing. 
We use about 30 of them filled with water, as weights to hold a swimming pool cover in place. 
I guess you could use them as planters too. That's all I got.


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## AquaHull (Jun 10, 2012)

I fill them with water to use for watering plants or flushing toilets when the power goes out.
When the water gets stale or I get bored I shoot them to watch the splash or to test my current bullet expansion and penetration


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## Kahlan (Sep 16, 2014)

I use them as a cone to hold the roosters when I kill them.


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## thepeartree (Aug 25, 2014)

I do use them for temporary water storage. They get cleaned out, then filled with a bleach solution and left to sit overnight. We have never had any issue with anything left on or in the jug. There is a tendency for some brands to develope small leaks. You get to recognize these jugs and just pitch/recycle them.


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## Salt-N-Pepper (Aug 18, 2014)

They blow up REALLY good. I use them for targets, fill them with water then BOOM. Works great you can put them at various distances, then work back & forth between long & short. Instant feedback that you hit.


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## Mad Trapper (Feb 12, 2014)

Nearly fill with water and use them to take up extra freezer space. You have clean water (ice) and if power goes down freezer stays cold many days.

Cut a window in the side and dill two holes to to squwer the jug with a stick. Now you have a bird feeder you don't care if the bears run away with.

I have used them to store water but prefer something more durable and/or bigger.


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## Seneca (Nov 16, 2012)

I fill them with water and use them for target practice. Add a little food coloring to the water and it makes for colorful fountains and splashes.


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## MI.oldguy (Apr 18, 2013)

Target practice,using the tops for funnels when I change oil,starting our produce in the spring,and cutting them towards the top and using the top to keep the squirrels and chipmunks off the bird feeders.
We dont have a freezer big enough to fill any with water and wont use them for water storage.it seem like the milk smell/taste is always there.


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## Maine-Marine (Mar 7, 2014)

*Do not use them for water or food for long term storage*... the plastic will off gas over time...yes I know milk came in them but that food only stays in them a short time and it is cold... once the plastic gets warmer...

use them for outside stuff or other non-food stuff


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## CWOLDOJAX (Sep 5, 2013)

Back in the day when I lived in Iowa, I used to fill them with sand and line them up along my pick-up truck tailgate.
The added weight kept my back wheels with good traction in the snow and also serve as a bit extra grip on the ice in the parking lot by pouring some out along my way until I could get to the street. (if you've ever gone to work/school and the snow melts during the day and ices at night you know what I mean.)


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

They make great slop jars to keep beside the bed at night probably. My Grandpa used a 2 lb coffee can. Big milk jug should be better.


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## OctopusPrime (Dec 2, 2014)

Here are a few ideas. 

1. You could fill them full of dirt and gravel and make a little bunker with them piled around a dug in lookout. cover the milk carton "sandbags" with tree branches and brush to camouflage.

2. You can create piping for irrigation with them if you melt the ends together. start a fire and do the process carefully with a red hot tool of some sort or flame. once the tip is melted and viscous attach the two jugs together. a good way to make sure it is sealed is to take extra light weight plastic and melt it around the attached parts.. plastic wrap you use for refrigerated goods would work well here. 

3. Roofing for a chicken coop. cut the plastic into workable squares and send a needle through so that you can sew the squares together. 

These are just some naked thoughts unedited. Great post, I will be thinking about this all day.


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## tirednurse (Oct 2, 2013)

I don't have any. all my milk comes fresh from the goats twice a day


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## MrsInor (Apr 15, 2013)

tirednurse said:


> I don't have any. all my milk comes fresh from the goats twice a day


I. Am. Jealous.


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## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

Planters, disposable jugs for nasty plant foods, give away containers I don't care about, cut top off for funnel t9 5 gal bottles


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## GutBag (Dec 5, 2014)

Fill them with water and shoot with a large caliber rifle. Booyah! That is the best use for milk jugs. Milk cartons can be used for seedling planters and such. Gamma used to keep little trees in cut off milk cartons. Poke a hole or two in the bottom, then plant the tree when it matures. Burn the old carton in the fire to stay warm.

Better yet, fill jugs with water, add 2 drops of food coloring, and have a merry fourth of july in December. Sometimes I shoot frozen jugs with my 45-70. Those 400gr slugs make slushies at 1200fps.


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## Go2ndAmend (Apr 5, 2013)

I fill them a quarter of the way full with gasoline, three quarters of the way full with diesel and then heave them up on top of our stump piles. I then get back and shoot them with a rifle, then throw a road flare like a grenade to get the piles going and run. It is a lot of fun. P.S. Not recommended for young children, those without children or those who wish to have children.


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## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

Any container is useful. I have cut mil jugs for planters for smaller things like spices.


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

They are just kidding. Gasoline will eat up plastic milk jug.


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