11 uses for cat litter bins

As you may or may not know, Edgehill House is home to three cats. I haven't yet taught them to use the toilet, so we go through quite a lot of cat litter. It comes in a large (non recyclable) plastic bin most of the time, and sometimes we get it in the slightly smaller plastic jug. I hate to throw stuff away, and I have accumulated about a thousand empty Tidy Cat Bins. Fortunately I have discovered plenty of uses for them, and I thought I would share them with you.

1. Recycle Bin - They already have nice handles and they are small enough that I can fit two or three under my kitchen cupboard. Plus, the relatively small size encourages us to go to the recycle center on a regular basis. The first batch I spray painted several years ago are looking rather worse for the wear, but now adays they make spray paint especially for plastics, so you can make them look as cool as you like!

2. Kitchen Laundry Hamper - A nice thing to have if you are trying to cut back on the use of paper towels.

3. Homemade Laundry Detergent Container - The shorter 27 lb container is the perfect size for the recipe we use. I thought I had a blog post about Delia and I making it, but I don't. This One was the starting point for our recipe, but we replaced the bar soap with one part grated Fels-Naptha and one part grated Zote.

4. Bathroom Trash Can / Emergency Vomit Bucket - Once when we were young, a guest at one of our parties decided he needed to puke in my stockpot. That will NEVER happen again. Also, if you've ever had the stomach flu or food poisoning, you know how nice it is to have an extra bucket handy.

5. Drip Catcher - If your house is old like mine, you might have the occasional indoor rainstorm. I can always use one of these buckets to catch the drips, which leaves me free to freak out.

6. Toy Tote - We keep the water pistols, frisbee, and any other picnic toys in one, but you could use them to sort Legos, Barbies, Bristle Blocks, Lincoln Logs, or any toy that has multiple parts or needs to be toted.

7. Gardening Tote - I keep my trowel and fork and gloves in there. They are also good for carrying potting soil around from the front of the house to the back and vice-versa.

8. Watering Can - I am particularly proud of that one. It is made from one of the 20 lb jugs. I used a sharp object to cut holes in the lid and holes in the handle to let air in. It works GREAT.

9. Rain Barrel - Kind of small, but it fits right underneath the gutter drain that sticks out of the retaining wall in front of my house. If we're outside playing in the rain, we can fill up several buckets, and the lids keep mosquitoes out.

10. Compost Bucket - Fits under the sink, and I can carry it out to the compost pile whenever.

11. Charcoal Bin - Keeps the briquettes for our charcoal grill nice and dry!