Storing feed in plastic trash cans

[GarlicEater]

I think the galvanized cans are good. Those are probably the way to go.

 

[classicsredone]

Is it humid in Gilroy? We have pretty low humidity whenever it is warm in Sacramento. I thought Gilroy was hot and dry, too?

 

[EssexGirl]

I used to keep our feed in a plastic tote in the stable, but squirrels chewed a hole in the lid - and one day a squirrel leapt out of the box when I went to get the feed and gave me such a fright!

 

[bantyhen'sfriend]

We keep our horses' grain in big wooden shipping boxes, and our chicken feed in either plastic 5-gallon pails with lids or in metal trash cans. We have also never had a problem with moisture. As long as it goes in dry and no other moisture is added (due to leakage, spilling a bucket, etc.), it comes out dry. We have had no problem with condensation, either, even on our most humid/rainy days.

If you had a full scoop of water, and some of the food was soaked, I wonder what the moisture content of your corn was. For condensation, you must have moisture on the surface of the container that "sweats". A cold drink "sweats" because the liquid inside is cold, and the water in the air outside condenses on the outside of the glass. To have condensation on the inside of your plastic garbage can, you would need to be storing corn with a fairly high moisture content.

Unless I misread your first post, and if that is the case I apologize. If the lid of your can sprang a leak, what you could do is drill some small holes on the bottom and along the sides for air flow and moisture drainage. You might also be able to build a wooden box or get one from a friend or business that recieves large, fragile packages in the mail. Or you could get a metal gerbage can, although besides the lid there is no difference between metal and plastic with air flow. I would not go with cardboard, because if the feed does get wet, the cardboard will just get ruined and then you have a mess. I would also steer clear of baskets and cloth because you cannot protect the feed from predators. Also, if feed gets wet, there is very little air flow in the center of a feed container so some stuff will mold if you don't catch the problem right away.