Oil Can, Oil Can!

  

I built these storage units many years ago. The bins are old quart sized oil containers. I just cut out the tops, cleaned them out and "voila" instant parts bins. I'd like to say that I thought of the idea but I vaguely remember seeing the idea in a magazine, Popular Mechanics perhaps. I store everything in these, nuts bolts, nails hinges, candy bars, aspirin, you know, all the important stuff. I did, however, design the storage units that hold the bins. The outer case is 3/4" plywood and the inner egg crate structure is 1/4" luan plywood. I wanted to get as many bins as possible into a reasonably small space. Each unit holds 54 bins and is only 28"W X 31"L X 7.5"D. They're not fancy but they are very functional. The bins are rugged and chemical proof. I sometimes clean parts in them, like bearings and bike chains. Also, unlike open storage bins, sawdust doesn't fill up in them. 

However, because you can't see what's in them, you need a labeling system. I used to be absolutely terrible at labeling the bins. Sometimes I did and sometimes I didn't. At times it was comical watching me try to find something. Is it here, nope. Is it here, nope, on and on. My current system is relatively recent and works great. I numbered each bin and have a master list on a clip board. 

The oil containers themselves tell a story. The white ones are Amalie Oil which I used back in the eighties. They ran into some production problems and I switched to Havoline (black containers). Somewhere along the line Havoline switched from a copper cap to a red one. Finally, I switched to Havoline synthetic oil (top row, big cap). I finished just in time too because I seldom buy quart containers nowadays. I opt for the 5 quart containers.  Hmmm, maybe I could make a huge storage unit with 5 quart containers....nope I don't have the need or the room.

dsr