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Strong Tub Trugs
chicky
Posts: 10,409
Does anyone else use tub trugs in the garden ? I use them all the time, but over the last few weeks the handles have snapped off all of them, making them a bit useless. They are about 4 years old, and are kept outside all the time, so probably the frost has degraded the plastic.
Has anyone found any that are more durable ?
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Wickes have some 40 litre ones in yellow (not sure if that's preferable to black though!)
Exactly the same siuation for us chicky - we just keep buying new ones. Be good to know of a longer lasting one but maybe 4 years is in fact value for money considering they are not that expensive to buy?
I think it is when they get left out of doors in sun (!!) and frost, the weaker areas do deteriorate - like brittle watering cans and so on. The ones that have remained in the shed holding things, and thus have not not exposed to so much to light and cold, have kept their handles. Last year when I 'did' my hosta pots, I filled a large bright pink tub trug with grit and top of the pots discard for disposal, but the handles came off as you said, and now I am going to have to empty it small jar by small jar full - grrrrr!
It is very likely UV damage to the plastic caused by sunlight. You could try wrapping the handles in gaffer tape etc to protect them from the sun, but I suspect they will then break at the point where the tape ends! Like chilli lover, I'm happy if they last for 4 or 5 years given how little they can cost if you look around. I grow lots of things in builders buckets - maybe not the most attractive things, but long-lasting, cheap and tough.
Many thanks - we have a local agricultural supplier, I will try there.
You can get cheap trugs from ASDA or Tesco now but they tend to be a bit thin as planters. I first found a british made trug on twitter called Rainbow Trugs and they have got me hooked with container gardening. A bit dearer than the cheapo ones but loads of different sizes and colours.
I had one for years but always put away in shed as plastics or resin types have a shelf life and do go brittle after a time.
so yes, value for a few years but then what happened, why all at once, was it weather or simply age and use?
Good question chicky.
it was actually a question from last year MrsG..... In the end we bought some black builders ones from Travis Perkins (so far, so good, if i can stop OH running off with them for construction projects). I also punched holes in the old ones and knotted rope through to make handles. No good for really heavy stuff, but works as a weed bucket
I have a load inside the house that i use for laundry, and they are still fine - so i think you are right, its the UV that makes them brittle.