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Product · Third career
What a container does after it stops being a container.
Some totes reach the end of refill service with plenty of structural life left — a stained bottle, a scuffed cage, nothing actually wrong. Those become something else. We fabricate finished builds in the cage shop and sell the fittings loose for people who would rather build their own.
Short answer
Retired totes become rain harvesting arrays, aquaponics sumps, wash bays, dust skids, planter walls and storage cages. Use grade B or C stock — and food-grade only if the water touches food.
- Build types
- 8 standard
- Stock used
- Grade B / C
- Format
- Built or kit
- Lead time
- 1–3 weeks
Form 01 · Spec request
Describe your build.
Sketch it in the message field — capacity, site, whether it needs to move, whether the water touches food. We will quote the totes, the fittings and the fabrication separately so you can take any part of it.
Standard builds
Eight things we make from retired containers.
Each one exists because a customer asked for it twice. All of them are quotable as a finished assembly or as a parts list you fabricate yourself.
01
Rainwater harvesting array
Two to six totes manifolded together with a first-flush diverter, screened inlet, overflow to grade and a hose-thread draw-off. The single most common second life for a retired container, and it works.
02
Aquaponics and hydroponics sump
Cut-top grow beds paired with a full tote as a sump, bulkhead-fitted for pump and return. Food-grade stock only if the produce is for eating.
03
Jobsite wash bay and water station
A tote on a welded stand with a gravity-fed or pump-fed spray wand, sediment trap and greywater capture. Keeps runoff on site and inspectors happy.
04
Dust suppression skid
Tote, pump, hose reel and spray bar on a steel skid, forkable and strappable. Standard kit on demolition and aggregate sites.
05
Brine and de-icer station
Insulated or heat-traced tote with a metered draw-off for municipal and campus winter operations. Steel-caged units only.
06
Planter wall and green screen
Halved bottles in reclaimed cages, drilled, lined and stacked into modular planting walls for landscape and streetscape work.
07
Storage and parts cage
Cage and pallet with the bottle removed, hinged door added. A ready-made forkable stillage for a fraction of a new one.
08
Compost tea and liquid feed brewer
Aerated tote with a recirculating pump, diffuser ring and drain manifold for farm-scale biological brewing.
Build rules
Four things that decide whether a build lasts.
| Consideration | Why it matters | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Light | Translucent HDPE plus sunlight grows algae in weeks and embrittles the bottle over years. | Black UV-stabilised bottle, opaque wrap, or shade |
| Freeze | Water expands, the bottle takes a permanent set and the cage bows outward. | Drain to below the outlet, insulate, or heat trace |
| Head pressure | A full tote is over a ton. Stands and stacks fail at the feet, not the bottle. | Level, load-rated stand; never stack unsupported |
| Contents history | Prior chemistry can leach into anything you store afterwards. | Documented food grade for anything edible; grade C for the rest |
Questions
Upcycled builds, answered.
01Which grade of tote should a project use?
Grade B or C almost always. A build that will be cut, plumbed, painted or buried gains nothing from cosmetic condition. Save the good stock for people who need to refill it — that is a better environmental outcome and a cheaper project.
02Can I use a used tote to water an edible garden?
Only if it is documented food-grade stock. Irrigation water contacts the crop, so the same rule applies as for drinking water: buy the documented container, not the clean-looking one.
03Do you build to order or sell kits?
Both. We fabricate finished assemblies in the cage shop, and we sell the parts loose — manifolds, adapters, first-flush diverters, overflow fittings, stands and covers — if you would rather build it yourself.
04How do I stop algae in a rain tank?
Block the light. A natural translucent bottle in sunlight will grow algae within weeks. Use a black UV-stabilised bottle, wrap the cage in opaque material, or site the tank in shade — and keep the tank sealed except at screened inlets.
Build specification
What each project needs, in one table.
Feedstock grade, bottle colour, base type and the fittings that turn a container into an assembly.
| Build | Grade | Bottle | Base | Key fittings | Lead time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainwater array, ornamental | B or C | Black preferred | Any | 2 in buttress adapters, first-flush diverter, mesh screen | 1 week |
| Rainwater array, edible crops | Food grade | Black preferred | Plastic or steel | As above plus potable-rated hose | By allocation |
| Aquaponics sump | Food grade if produce is eaten | Either | Any | Bulkhead fittings, pump and return | 1–2 weeks |
| Jobsite wash bay | C | Either | Steel | Spray wand, sediment trap, greywater capture | 2 weeks |
| Dust suppression skid | C | Either | Steel | Pump, hose reel, spray bar, forkable skid | 2–3 weeks |
| Brine and de-icer station | B | Either | Steel | Insulation or heat trace, metered draw-off | 2–3 weeks |
| Planter wall | C | Either | Not required | Drainage, liner, stacking frame | 1–2 weeks |
| Storage stillage | Cage only | None | Any | Hinged door, shelf brackets | 1 week |
| Compost tea brewer | B | Either | Any | Aerator, diffuser ring, drain manifold | 2 weeks |
Engineering notes
Numbers that decide whether a build works.
| Stand height | Pressure when full | Runs | Does not run |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 ft | 0.43 psi | Gravity fill of a watering can | Anything with a nozzle |
| 2 ft | 0.87 psi | Short soaker hose | Drip emitters reliably |
| 4 ft | 1.73 psi | Drip irrigation, soaker hose | Sprinklers, hose-end sprayers |
| 6 ft | 2.60 psi | Longer drip runs | Sprinklers |
| 10 ft | 4.33 psi | Multiple drip zones | Pressure washers |
| 46 ft | 20 psi | A sprinkler — theoretically | Anything sensible; use a pump |
| Container | Empty | Full of water | Point load per foot (4 feet) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 275 gal composite | 145 lb | 2,435 lb | ~609 lb |
| 330 gal composite | 165 lb | 2,918 lb | ~730 lb |
| 550 gal oversize | 285 lb | 4,873 lb | ~1,218 lb |
| Half-cut 275 planter, soil | ~90 lb | ~1,900 lb | ~475 lb |
Those point loads are why stands fail at the feet rather than anywhere else, and why a stand that was level on the day it was built will not be level after two winters on soft ground. Build on compacted ground or a slab.
Maintenance
An hour a year keeps a build for a decade.
- 01
Spring
Check screens, clear the first-flush diverter, inspect the stand for settlement after the freeze, and check the cage is still square.
After the thaw - 02
Midsummer
Check for algae if any light is reaching the water, flush the manifold, and confirm the overflow is still clear and screened.
Peak season - 03
Autumn
Drain to below the outlet, open the valve so nothing freezes inside the body, clear leaf litter from screens, and cap anything unscreened.
Before the first freeze - 04
Any time
Replace the outlet gasket if the draw-off weeps, and re-wrap or re-shade a natural bottle that is starting to green up.
As needed
Bulkhead fittings — where builds leak
- Cut the hole to the fitting's specified size, not to whatever hole saw is nearest.
- Put the gasket on the wet side of the wall.
- Back the area with a stiffener if the wall flexes when you press it.
- Tighten by hand plus a quarter turn — over-tightening distorts the wall and creates the leak.
- Support the wall while drilling so the polymer does not grab the bit.
Things people ask that have a firm answer
- Bury a tote? No — the cage is not designed for lateral earth pressure.
- Pressurise it? Only downstream of a pump. The container is an atmospheric vessel.
- Drink from it? No, not without a proper treatment system.
- Stack a cut container? No — cutting the top removes most of the hoop strength.
- Paint the bottle? Possible with a polyethylene-specific paint; wrapping works better.
Extended FAQ · 7 questions
More questions, answered
01Which grade should a project use?
Grade B or C almost always. A container that will be cut, plumbed, painted or wrapped gains nothing from cosmetic condition. Save the good stock for people who need to refill it — that is both a better environmental outcome and a cheaper project.
02Can I use a used container to water an edible garden?
Only with documented food-grade stock. Irrigation water contacts the produce, so the same rule applies as for drinking water: buy the documented container, not the clean-looking one.
03Do you build to order or sell kits?
Both. We fabricate finished assemblies in the cage shop and we sell the fittings loose — manifolds, adapters, first-flush diverters, overflow fittings, stands and covers — if you would rather build it yourself.
04How do I stop algae growing in a tank?
Block the light. A translucent bottle in sunlight will green up within weeks. Use a black UV-stabilised bottle, wrap the cage in opaque material, or site the tank in shade — and keep it sealed except at screened inlets.
05Can a container be buried?
Not sensibly. The cage is not designed for lateral earth pressure and the container will deform. Purpose-made buried tanks exist for a reason.
06Can I pressurise a tote?
Only downstream of a pump. The container itself is an atmospheric vessel and should never be pressurised. Gravity from a stand gives about 0.43 psi per foot of head, which runs drip irrigation and nothing with a nozzle.
07What is the safest way to cut one?
A jigsaw with a fine blade, the wall supported so it does not flex and grab, and every cut edge deburred immediately — a raw HDPE edge cuts a hand as cleanly as sheet metal. Never take a hot knife to a container whose history you do not know.
Next step
Sketch it in the message field.
Half our fabrication work starts as a paragraph and a phone photo. Send yours and we will come back with a materials list and a price.