DIY Life

A very long time ago (well, not in the grand scheme of things) I made an iPod case out of a milk jug. The real trick was folding everything so the brass brads never had a chance to scratch the polished steel:
http://homepage.mac.com/vagreda/ipodsling/

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In our city we have curbside recycling pickup. While recycling is better than trashing things, it's not as good as reusing. Thanks for the tips on all these uses. We'll have to go that step further and keep a few of them them out of the recycle bin.

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These jugs can be filled with water and then when frozen. You can add to your cooler during the summer. It is a way to save on buying ice.
Plus, they last a long time due to their size

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When we went tent camping when I was a kid, Mom would fill a plastic jug with water, put the lid on, take a nail and punch a hole in the bottom, hang it on a tree with a dry towel, lay an old used sliver of soap on the ground under it, find a small stick and put in hole in jug to keep it from loosing all water and we had our own hand washing station.

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We use and reuse milk jugs filled with water to weight down tarps outside and to hang around the edges of the pool cover in the winter. Just remember to fill only about 3/4 full to allow for expansion when frozen. We also make brewed ice tea ( about 4 gallons each week) and store it in the fridge in empty milk jugs. We also keep an empty milk jug full of water From the tap) in the fridge so we always have cold water. Also -- on those rare occassions when we buy bottled water when out -- we save the bottles -- I wash and reuse them -- fill them and store in the fridge so we have cold water to go

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Ever have a load of drill bits in your drawer? Cut the front out of the jug, making sure you can get a full-sized piece of insulating foam (@ 2 inches or so thick), Then use it for your odd drill bits, just push them in to make a permanent home for them, and they are always easy to find!

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In other words, there really isn't much you can do with plastic jugs. Honestly, perhaps you could possibly retain 10 or so for the ideas above, but not more than that.

Recycling is still the way to go. These 'Hints from Heloise' kinda scream White Trash Central.

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Reuse them for iced tea or other drink jugs.
Fill them with water (or sand) and use as weights.
Fill with water and freeze and use as cold drinking water as the ice melts. Great for when working outside. This works very well with plastic drink bottles also.

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Cut the bottom off on a angle, and use when you change your oil filter. It will catch any oil that will be in the filter.

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I use the gallon size plastic milk jugs when picking my strawberry crop for sale at farmers' markets. Just cut around the pouring spout and discard that part. The opening in the jug is just right for filling with the freshly picked berries--buyers love getting a full container with and easy carrying handle for transport back to their cars. The jug usually holds about 3 1/2 quarts of berries.

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In other words, there really isn't much you can use plastic milk jugs for. Honestly, you need maybe 10 of these for what the average person would possibly use them for.

A seed starting container? OOOOKKKKKK. Yea, I'll jump right on that.

Ah yes, the good ol' white trash bird feeder. Classy

A scope? Yea, b/c the sturdy plastic handle ones which last a lifetime are just too inconvenient.

Sweet Moses on a Pogo Stick - a Piggy Bank?!? NNNOOO. Have we learned nothing as a civilization? Please raise your hand for how many of us had those as a kid... and it collected about a 1.37 in change before getting tossed.

Toilet Brush? TOILET BRUSH? Yea, it's soooo stable to put your toilet brush in an ol' plastic milk jug... and ain't it fun to keep picking that oh so clean brush off the floor?

Flooters for your kids... Do I even need to comment on this? See 'white trash look' above.

Rock n Roll!!! The funnel! Yes!!! By all means, go work on your car with one of these as your funnel. Go ahead... I dare ya.

Permanent marker for plants? Harmless I suppose, but unless your garden is the size of Idaho, exactly how many do you need? And does anyone see the irony of planting plastic sticks into fertile ground?

I could go on and on, but you get the point. It's time to be realistic here. Of course everyone wants a clean environment, but right now, efforts should focus on recycling. 99.9% of the population simply is not going to utilize any of these idea. They're just silly. And before you dog me, honestly ask how many juges could you possibly use for this? Just recycle them and move on w/ your life.

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Plastic Milk Jugs: Cut a large hole opposite the handle with a small bit of the cut out piece still attached, like a flap. Use to throw in garbage, the flap serves to keep unwanted odors from escaping.

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I strongly suggest NOT using these containers as swim floaties for children. The string could cause a choking hazard.

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I string empty milk jugs by tying a rope on the first jug handle. Then I thread additional jugs on the rope threw the handle and hang in the garage. Then when going to the recycle,15 or 20 jugs can easily taken to the recycle center

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Using as floats for your kids sounds pretty dangerous, maybe I'm not visualizing correctly?

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When I was a little girl, I would cut a "door" out on the side and make the milk jug a shower for my Barbies.

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we've made 'bunny buckets' for Easter; cut a large hole opposite handle. Use permanent marker to draw eyes, nose, mouth, Big Teeth, & whiskers. We used 'paper twist' for ears (use hole punch; insert length, un-twist, cut ears to taper)...crepe paper might also work.
regular glue won't stick, so if you Glue anything on, it should be rubber cement or similar.

w/hole cut opposite handle, a milk jug can hold Paint, or paint brushes and refinishing tools...use when harvesing flowers, fruits or vegetables ...seashells at the beach...'stuff' that's being pre-soaked on laundry day...pet gear for a trip. Decorate with Stickers and use a jug as a picnic container...use as a waterproof basket liner for flowers/plants. Really good for holding Canning Jar pieces/parts and ping-pong balls.

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When my sons were small, I cut them off at an angle and made scoops for a beanbag toss game. Great for that hand-eye coordination!

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Um, tying strings around plastic milk jugs and hook them to your child in the pool? This seems dangerous and a good way to strangle a child. Ack!

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Maybe your time would be better spent insulating your pipes so you dont have to let them drip all winter and waste water(and energy)

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