Workshop waste bin ideas

blaszcsj

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Feb 21, 2015
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I’m in a two car garage. What does everyone do for trash bins in a small space? I’m tired of having a trash bag on the floor.
 
I just have a trash can in the shop. I also use the garden/plant trash recycle bin. then I roll it out every Tuesday for the trash man. Oh I empty the trash can in it to that is the wood chips etc, I sort the paper and stuff to put in its proper bin
 
Two benches with a rectangular bin between them. The idea is to saw stuff the dust extraction doesn't catch too well (e.g. jigsaw where you also need clearance underneath) over the gap. You can also brush dust off either table into the general bin area and *most* of it will hit the target ;) FWIW, this is in somewhere you wouldn't fit one car, never mind two :/
 
You might laugh, but dedicating floor space for a garbage pale isn’t desirable to me.  Wall space is a little more plentiful, so I have a wooden hand screw clamp anchored to a stud and a 13 gal bag hangs off the handle.  But it’s not ideal because it’s at least 2 steps from anything (where dragging a bucket right to where I’m working is convenient).  Dust doesn’t get swept, it get vacuumed, so that’s not an issue (for me), but if you sweep, the narrow opening of the bag when the weight partially pulls the drawstring might be a nuisance.  It’s an option, but probably one few would adopt.
 
rvieceli said:
Take a look at this one from Lowes. It is in between a 13 gallon kitchen bag and a big 33 gallon can at 23 gallon. Probably still use the bigger bag.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Blue-Hawk-23-Gallon-Black-Plastic-Touchless-Trash-Can/999994730

Ron

one more vote: we have had a narrow format RUBBERMAID trash bin in our shop for a long time and has really worked out well. This rectangular format in the LOWE's catalog page is a functional equivalent, Also fits next to a bench to sweep debris into. Do empty it regularly so it's easy to find stuff you accidentally drop in the bin  [wink].
This could also be hung in a shop-made wide fork-like receptacle to get it off the floor.

Post here what you finally chose to do.

Hans
 
I have 4 of the Rubbermaid Brute trash cans all with the 5 wheel dollies under them. With the castors and all being the same height, the also work as painting stands, saw horses, lumber carts and if ya add a piece of plywood to the top roll around work benches in a pinch.
 
I use a 7 gallon pail with a plastic bag for garbage type trash.

For everything else I use a metal trash can which I keep the lid on and it's where anything else goes except for large pieces of cardboard packaging (I seem to be getting a lot of it with Woodpeckers shipping tape on it lately) which are broken down and taken outside so as to reduce the amount of combustible material in the shop.

I know that may seem futile in a wood shop, but cardboard ignites easier and burns hotter and much faster than wood, so I try to keep it out of the shop as much as possible.

For items like oil-soaked rags and those with BLO or similar items than can spontaneously combust, I have an empty metal (some new ones are part plastic) one gallon paint can with a lid and about 3 inches of water. That's where I place those items until I can dispose of them.

You can get a regulation oily waste can for about $60. Sounds expensive but if you have more than a home/hobby shop it might be a good choice. Ask your insurance agent what he thinks. :-)
 
I was on a kick a while back making tortoise planters, and wound up making a lot of scrap cutting out the various components on the bandsaw.  I think that there is a total of 54 pieces per assembly; the most assemblies I made at one time, because of space limitations, was 3. 

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Showing a couple of the completed units, less the deck stain finish used.

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Laying out some the parts on a treated 2x6.

View attachment 3

Collecting the scrap in joint compound buckets.

I'd have 2 - 3 buckets sitting next to the bandsaw and drop the trimmed pieces in them until they were full, then carry them out and dump in a regular trash can with liner bag (heavy duty ones, they get heavy quickly so I have to be aware of that) - I don't keep a big trash can in the shop because of the space that it takes up, not that big of a deal to take the 5 gal. buckets out once in a while and dump them. If I open a package, I break down the packaging - the cardboard box gets flattened and put in the recycling bin along with any usable paper, and any plastic wrap, styrofoam, etc. gets put in the trash (non-recyclable) can.

Working on other projects, medium-size scraps of plywood are saved for making smaller pieces, finally dropped in the trash can when they get that small. Depending on how quickly "scrap" piles up - bigger pieces get stacked beside the trash cans - I'll take a load down to the landfill, about 3 miles away, when the pile gets big enough, or I have other stuff to add to it.
 

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I actually continue to use a modest 5 gallon bucket for my trash bin, as it forces me to empty out often rather than follow my natural tendency to let stuff pile up.
 
While not small, I've used the tub on wheels that were the bottoms to my old craftsman vacs as trash cans.
 
"While not small, I've used the tub on wheels that were the bottoms to my old craftsman vacs as trash cans."

I'm waiting for my 16 gallon vac to die so I can repurpose the tub to be a dust bin for a Dust Deputy.
 
Bob, I've had so many Craftsman vacs over the years that I have three, bu am only using one at the moment.
 
Well mine has lasted for over 25 years. But I think it's on its last legs. I used it yesterday to suck up some nasty stuff that I wouldn't wish on my CT36 and the brushes sound like they are about gone. I can't complain, it's been great all these years. Back then Craftsman shop vacs they were made by Emerson, parent company of Ridge Tools that makes all the plumbing tools and few dozen other companies.
 
Craftsman vacs worked great and lasted, but they were incredibly loud.  Despite my Fein, Festool and Metabo vacs, I still have two wall mounted Craftsman vacs, one for my Makita slider and one for the over head table saw collector.  I used plumbing pipe and the Craftsman muffler extended three feet above the vac to reduce noise.
 
blaszcsj said:
I think I’m going to go with the Lowe’s bucket. I am going to try and make a systainer adapter plate to mount it to my sys cart. That way I can roll it around.

rvieceli said:
Take a look at this one from Lowes. It is in between a 13 gallon kitchen bag and a big 33 gallon can at 23 gallon. Probably still use the bigger bag.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Blue-Hawk-23-Gallon-Black-Plastic-Touchless-Trash-Can/999994730

Ron

I think I would go to HF and get a cheap dolly (on sale they are
 
I use a 30 gallon oil drum, formerly filled with grease. I don't need to dump it that often!  [big grin]
 
I use a Rubbermaid Defender step-on trash can. While it's made by Rubbermaid, it's all metal, made in USA. You see them a fair bit in healthcare. They say they're fire-rated too. If you buy one, make sure you order it with the liner.

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