I need a diplomatic soltuion to a little problem - Page 5

Tonchi · 10-13-2005, 11:31 PM

Quote:

I, too, have been known to reuse ziploc bags, even washing them. Drying is definitely a problem, though.

I can help you on this one. First of all, it's only worth it to save the Ziplock and freezer storage ones, the others are too thin to mess with. Do not use hot water to wash the bags, it makes them turn milky colored. Wash inside and out with a soapy sponge and rinse carefully to get all the soap out, dry by putting a clean dishtowel inside the bag and pat the outside against it with a second clean towel. Then stand them upside down on the counter until they cool and air out thoroughly. Doing the bags last thing before you go to bed is best so they don't end up in the way when you need the counter to fix dinner.

Lest you wonder, I learned this from my o/c Momster, but if I do say so myself, MY bags look much better than hers when I get finished :p I will draw the line at washing the rubber bands from the newspaper before I'll use them, though. She puts hers in the dishwasher so they will be sterilized! And yes, she gets a Kleenex and wipes off the newspaper too before she will read it. I just wash my hands afterwards, good enough.

wolf · 10-14-2005, 12:48 AM

The link works fine for me ... the main site is http://www.gaiam.com

try going there. Search for "countertop bag dryer"

Perhaps the problem is the site detects browser? I used Mozilla, and sometimes IE gags on links that were generated in Moz.

I clicked around in IE ... so here's another copy of the link.

dar512 · 10-14-2005, 09:11 AM

Try this link.

BigV · 10-14-2005, 11:27 AM

wolf, dar, thank you for the new links. The all work now, even the original link. I guess that gremlin has moved on to a different machine now.

I love seeing things like this, simple solutions to problems. I must say that the DIYer in me says, hmm half a dozen chopsticks, hey! I can use the collection of orphans, a base block, and 60 seconds with the drill and I can use the other $18.00 for a couple of large pizzas and some pop for movie night. But then I am a cheap b*stard after all.

Tonchi: Thanks for the tip. That's a good one. I like the idea of using two towels, one in and one out. I usually put hot/warm soapy water in, sometimes with the sponge, zip it shut and shake it. Then rinse with warm water shaking zipped the same way. I'm looking forward to trying the new drying technique.

Tonchi · 10-14-2005, 10:59 PM

Welcome

I hope you're more efficient than I am because I usually don't get around to washing the bags until there is a pile of 20 on my counter so that they keep sliding into the sink and getting even grubbier. Drying them is the easiest part. Don't use PAPER towels, they scratch up the bags, but if you don't have any clean cotten ones handy you can use the VIVA kind in a pinch because they are much softer. I haven't bought a box of NEW plastic storage bags for years, not since I needed the really large ones to put the loaves of bread in when I was on a bread-making kick.

BTW, not a good idea to zip the bag up and shake it while filled with water. The combination of weight and heat can separate the sealed edges in one of these bags very easily after they have been washed a few times. You will end up in water from the knees down when it splits

Tonchi · 10-14-2005, 11:24 PM

YO! I just realized that here we are talking about plastic food bags, after a very logical segue from plastic trash bags, so I wanna go back to there again with a really helpful hint. Those monster leaf bags or the 32-45 gallon size trash bags are even more useful for storing stuff in your garage or rent-a-space. I put suitcases, kettle-corn or dog chow tins, birdcages, dog beds, kitty litter boxes/scoops, empty aquariums, waders, tents and posts, practically everything you need to get out of the way will fit nicely into a leaf or garbage bag. Seal down the edges with packing tape to mold the bag around your item, write what it is on a piece of masking tape, and stick it to the bag where you can see it easily, then toss the thing on the top of the pile in your garage. When you need the item again, it will be free of dust, spider webs, or small crawly things. You rotate that bag you just unloaded back to trash duty and repack the item in a fresh one if needed. Living in Fresno, everything is always covered with a thick layer of dust and the black widow is our State Bird, so this is an excellent solution

LabRat · 10-18-2005, 09:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lumberjim

so....i bought a 65 gallon trash can...

Well, any news? Is it helping?

lumberjim · 10-19-2005, 09:29 AM

well.......i filled it with so much heavy shit from my flooded basement that the trash men broke the damn handle off of it tring to lift it, gave up and left it full of trash......so, i'd say no. just wait till i get my hands on that cat. ....just kidding, tw, you cocksmoker.

xoxoxoBruce · 10-20-2005, 02:20 AM

Did they take the handle? Did it have the requisite bags tied to it?

lumberjim · 10-20-2005, 09:24 AM

I was able to repair the handle, but they took the friggin bag, the jerks.

Undertoad · 10-20-2005, 09:34 AM

This is becoming high drama. So they broke your can, took the bag for payment, and didn't take the trash. That kind of idiocy takes hard work.

My current trash collection people are incompetent. At first they were incompetent because they couldn't remember to pick up my trash. Now they are incompetent because they remember to pick up my trash but forget to bill me. I like this second version of incompetence very much.

Clodfobble · 10-20-2005, 09:38 AM

My recycling bucket disappears at least once a month. Sometimes I find it at a random neighbor's house halfway down the street, usually I never find it at all. The guys at the closest recycle bucket distribution place (the local firestation) think I'm a complete liar but there's nothing they can do but keep giving me buckets. None of my other neighbors seem to have this problem. I can't think what I ever might have done to piss those guys off...

lumberjim · 10-20-2005, 10:26 AM

I'm not all that pissed about the $2 bag. it's gonna suck splitting that big trash can down to manageable size, though

Undertoad · 10-20-2005, 10:30 AM

It would seem that my suggestion of peeing on the bag is now ideal.

lumberjim · 10-20-2005, 10:37 AM

yeah, but you know they wear gloves. I'm sure they hate me because all of my trash bags have holes in them from that cat. it's a vicious circle. i'm just a victim of circumstance, I tells ya. weep for me

10-14-2005, 12:48 AM	#62
wolf lobber of scimitars Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Phila Burbs Posts: 20,774	The link works fine for me ... the main site is http://www.gaiam.com try going there. Search for "countertop bag dryer" Perhaps the problem is the site detects browser? I used Mozilla, and sometimes IE gags on links that were generated in Moz. I clicked around in IE ... so here's another copy of the link. __________________ wolf eht htiw og "Conspiracies are the norm, not the exception." --G. Edward Griffin The Creature from Jekyll Island High Priestess of the Church of the Whale Penis

10-14-2005, 09:11 AM	#63
dar512 dar512 is now Pete Zicato Join Date: May 2003 Location: Chicago suburb Posts: 4,968	Try this link. __________________ "Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain." -- Friedrich Schiller

10-14-2005, 11:27 AM	#64
BigV Goon Squad Leader Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Seattle Posts: 27,063	wolf, dar, thank you for the new links. The all work now, even the original link. I guess that gremlin has moved on to a different machine now. I love seeing things like this, simple solutions to problems. I must say that the DIYer in me says, hmm half a dozen chopsticks, hey! I can use the collection of orphans, a base block, and 60 seconds with the drill and I can use the other $18.00 for a couple of large pizzas and some pop for movie night. But then I am a cheap b*stard after all. Tonchi: Thanks for the tip. That's a good one. I like the idea of using two towels, one in and one out. I usually put hot/warm soapy water in, sometimes with the sponge, zip it shut and shake it. Then rinse with warm water shaking zipped the same way. I'm looking forward to trying the new drying technique. __________________ Be Just and Fear Not.

10-14-2005, 10:59 PM	#65
Tonchi Victim of gravity Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Hiding in plain sight Posts: 1,412	Welcome I hope you're more efficient than I am because I usually don't get around to washing the bags until there is a pile of 20 on my counter so that they keep sliding into the sink and getting even grubbier. Drying them is the easiest part. Don't use PAPER towels, they scratch up the bags, but if you don't have any clean cotten ones handy you can use the VIVA kind in a pinch because they are much softer. I haven't bought a box of NEW plastic storage bags for years, not since I needed the really large ones to put the loaves of bread in when I was on a bread-making kick. BTW, not a good idea to zip the bag up and shake it while filled with water. The combination of weight and heat can separate the sealed edges in one of these bags very easily after they have been washed a few times. You will end up in water from the knees down when it splits __________________ Everything you've ever heard about Fresno is true. Last edited by Tonchi; 10-14-2005 at 11:04 PM.

10-14-2005, 11:24 PM	#66
Tonchi Victim of gravity Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Hiding in plain sight Posts: 1,412	YO! I just realized that here we are talking about plastic food bags, after a very logical segue from plastic trash bags, so I wanna go back to there again with a really helpful hint. Those monster leaf bags or the 32-45 gallon size trash bags are even more useful for storing stuff in your garage or rent-a-space. I put suitcases, kettle-corn or dog chow tins, birdcages, dog beds, kitty litter boxes/scoops, empty aquariums, waders, tents and posts, practically everything you need to get out of the way will fit nicely into a leaf or garbage bag. Seal down the edges with packing tape to mold the bag around your item, write what it is on a piece of masking tape, and stick it to the bag where you can see it easily, then toss the thing on the top of the pile in your garage. When you need the item again, it will be free of dust, spider webs, or small crawly things. You rotate that bag you just unloaded back to trash duty and repack the item in a fresh one if needed. Living in Fresno, everything is always covered with a thick layer of dust and the black widow is our State Bird, so this is an excellent solution __________________ Everything you've ever heard about Fresno is true.

10-19-2005, 09:29 AM	#68
lumberjim I can hear my ears Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 25,571	well.......i filled it with so much heavy shit from my flooded basement that the trash men broke the damn handle off of it tring to lift it, gave up and left it full of trash......so, i'd say no. just wait till i get my hands on that cat. ....just kidding, tw, you cocksmoker. __________________ This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality Embrace this moment, remember We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion ~MJKeenan

10-20-2005, 02:20 AM	#69
xoxoxoBruce The future is unwritten Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 71,105	Did they take the handle? Did it have the requisite bags tied to it? __________________ The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump.

10-20-2005, 09:24 AM	#70
lumberjim I can hear my ears Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 25,571	I was able to repair the handle, but they took the friggin bag, the jerks. __________________ This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality Embrace this moment, remember We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion ~MJKeenan

10-20-2005, 09:34 AM	#71
Undertoad Radical Centrist Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Cottage of Prussia Posts: 31,423	This is becoming high drama. So they broke your can, took the bag for payment, and didn't take the trash. That kind of idiocy takes hard work. My current trash collection people are incompetent. At first they were incompetent because they couldn't remember to pick up my trash. Now they are incompetent because they remember to pick up my trash but forget to bill me. I like this second version of incompetence very much.

10-20-2005, 09:38 AM	#72
Clodfobble UNDER CONDITIONAL MITIGATION Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 20,012	My recycling bucket disappears at least once a month. Sometimes I find it at a random neighbor's house halfway down the street, usually I never find it at all. The guys at the closest recycle bucket distribution place (the local firestation) think I'm a complete liar but there's nothing they can do but keep giving me buckets. None of my other neighbors seem to have this problem. I can't think what I ever might have done to piss those guys off...

10-20-2005, 10:26 AM	#73
lumberjim I can hear my ears Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 25,571	I'm not all that pissed about the $2 bag. it's gonna suck splitting that big trash can down to manageable size, though __________________ This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality Embrace this moment, remember We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion ~MJKeenan

10-20-2005, 10:30 AM	#74
Undertoad Radical Centrist Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Cottage of Prussia Posts: 31,423	It would seem that my suggestion of peeing on the bag is now ideal.

10-20-2005, 10:37 AM	#75
lumberjim I can hear my ears Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 25,571	yeah, but you know they wear gloves. I'm sure they hate me because all of my trash bags have holes in them from that cat. it's a vicious circle. i'm just a victim of circumstance, I tells ya. weep for me __________________ This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality Embrace this moment, remember We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion ~MJKeenan

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