I have found these flexible plastic tubs very useful around the garden and for storing recyclables etc. However, they usually fall apart in less than a year or 6 months, and soft plastics are not recyclable in our area, so they go to landfill. I have purchased through the local hardware, the “cheap” shop and Bunnings, but they are all marked Ezy Storage. They usually break at the handles, but also break randomly, as shown in these photos. They are mostly kept in the shade or indoors, so I can’t blame the sun.
Would be interested in finding alternatives or similar with longer life.
I get the biggest black plastic pots from Bunnings, they have drainage holes at the bottom so no liquid storage but they last and they are cheap. They don’t have loop handles but they do have hand holds under the rim. If looking to hold liquids in them I’m sure you could place a decent bin liner in them to hold the liquid.
I’ve purchased similar from the local Mitre10 in the household and gardening area. They are now two years old and have stood up to being my weed collection bin and another for storing small garden tools, fertiliser packets etc. I don’t leave them in full sun except when in use.
The cheapest probably have minimal UV stabiliser. Some cheap black poly pots can also suffer the same, although I’ve plenty that are years old and always out doors with no major problems. Some from the $2 shop and others elsewhere.
Go to a rural produce store and get similar tubs intended for horse feed. You may pay a little more. I have had them for years and they do not break. Sorry I can’t give you a brand.
This information is from Nadja’s Garden - Permaculture Garden Design - Adelaide
( http://nadjasgarden.com.au/ ), and is associated with a post on FB using flexible tubs for wicking beds. I asked for a ‘fact sheet’ and some feedback on her experience with tub quality.
"Hi Trish,
I’m glad you raised the question. I used the Ezy Storage flexi tubs (60L) from Bunnings ($6.50 each), not cheaper imitations. Yes, I have had other tubs (usually from hard rubbish collection) - some are brittle and cracked, others still going fine after years in the sun. These that I bought are BPA free and UV stabilised. I suspect that some colours and materials are much more durable than others. In general, if they are very flexible and ‘rubbery’ to begin with, they tend to maintain their flexibility better than those that feel stiffer. But being in partial shade is probably extending their life - which suits the kinds of plants that I like to grow in wicking containers (leafy greens, mint, coriander). *
****I hate throwing plastic into landfill so if my tubs do crack later I’ll be repairing and reusing them for storage (kindling for wood fire, materials in garden shed etc)."
PS. If anyone is interested, here is a link for the fact sheet:
I have also used very many of these around the garden & i have wasted sooo much money & am hortified of the landfill. There should be label saying not sppropriate for planting. Even ones in part shade or not moved much broke withing 6 -8 months. The only one that hasnt was in total shade on porch never moved or bumped.
I dont think bunnings or the company should sell them without a warning that they are for indoor use only & not recyclable And can break etc. because its dangerous if someone is carrying or shards of pieces breaking off after they crack unexpectedly is dangerous
I’m getting advertised these plastic tubs from Bowwa, which say they have a 150kg load rating and are UV stabilised, which means they might replace the cheap flexible plastic tubs, but I would be interested if anyone has used them before.
Haven’t used them, but a few things don’t stack up with this website. The PO box on the website is also for Discover Magazine. This is unusual.
The only contact is through a webform. No address, phone number email etc. This raises red flags.
The website states they have sold out of one version of the bucket…it is highly unusual that a successful product doesn’t have any online presence other than the sellers website. This is another red flag.
They widely use the words Aussie and Australian on their marketing materials. Such approach is often used by overseas sellers to give the impression they are a local business.
Videos on Facebook are AI generated… they even state this is the case. Don’t know why they would use AI generated videos with Australian ascents…it may suggest an overseas business that doesn’t have access to Australians.
I personally would be steering clear of this product/website.
So probably just a drop shipping company? Cool, good to know. I wonder if the same type of product is available somewhere else. It does look like a pretty straight forward product. I’ll keep looking.
I agree or a Chinese company masquerading as an Australian business.
It seems extremely unusual for all their bucket straps to be sold out without any online presence other than their website or Facebook page. If it was a great as the claims and had been sold (to sell out quick), one would expect some noise other than their own pages.
It is likely the strap has never existed, but is click bait to direct traffic to their website. I can’t see how the strap is an improvement, I personally believe the contrary might apply.
In effect what they are selling is very expensive buckets compared to existing ones which is available. There is nothing to convince me they warrant a large premium over ones already available.
The Ezy Storage buckets from Bunnings and other retailers only last 6-12 months outside. I gather from some of the other comments that some people are using them as pots to growth things in. They are not designed for this. There are much more durable and cheaper options for that (grow bags are my personal preference). I have lost count of how many of these I have thrown out. I was using them to collect rain water and in the garden to move soil, mulch etc. But the plastic gets brittle and they start to crack or the handles break after a while. I bought some of the Bowwa buckets someone else mentioned in the comments about 12 months ago and they are very tough - much thicker than the Ezy Storage ones. No problems so far. Made in Spain from recycled plastic but as I said, I would not use these to grow stuff in. I bought a set of three and they cost a bit but I got tired of throwing out the cheap ones from Bunnings every six months.
