Practical Uses for 5 Gallon Buckets

Us preppers sure do like 5 gallon buckets. We use them for eeeeeeeverything! And why shouldn’t we? They’re cheap and sometimes completely free.

You can get 5 gallon buckets from places like Walmart, Lowe’s, Home Depot and other stores that have a hardware type section. They can range anywhere from $3-20. We usually get the $3 buckets from Walmart, just plain ol’ regular buckets. You may have to pay extra for one with a lid.

So where do you get free 5 gallon buckets? Getting free 5 gallon buckets these days has gotten a bit more difficult. However, here are some places you could acquire a 5 gallon bucket for free:

Bakery’s and deli’s, this includes the bakery’s and deli’s at Walmart and local grocery stores
Craigslist, search the free section or put an ad out that you’re looking for 5 gallon buckets
Fast food, Wendy’s and Chick-Fil-A tend to have the best success rate
Dunkin Donuts

However you acquire them, make sure to clean the buckets out thoroughly before using.

There are many, many, many DIY’s about how to use a 5 gallon bucket, there’s even a whole book on 5 gallon bucket projects, but I’d like to suggest a few practical uses below.

In general I’d suggest keeping about 5 buckets around for these various uses. You may need to use them all at the same time or maybe just a couple. They stack nicely within each other so they don’t take up a lot of space. You can also store a few things in the very top bucket, and/or place a lid on it, throw a blanket over it and make it into a little side table.

Here are some practical uses for 5 gallon buckets for emergencies and disasters:

Emergency toilet – You can use one or two buckets as an emergency toilet. You can use one bucket with a bag in it for #1 & #2 and then a second bucket to place reusable toilet paper in. Or just use the one bucket for now.

Laundry – I’ve done laundry in 5 gallon buckets and it works supremely well. You need two buckets, a plunger and some paracord and you’re in business.

Grow potatoes – Using 5 gallon buckets to grow potatoes is extremely easy and effective!

Emergency Kit – Make an emergency kit inside of a 5 gallon bucket

Food storage – Place your mylar bags of food inside of the 5 gallon buckets and close ’em up.
General storage – Designate certain buckets as specific prepping gear. For instance, one bucket could be for paracord and other shelter needs. Another bucket could be fire starting items. Another bucket could be water purification items. Etc.
Carry water – Use 5 gallon buckets to transport water from one place to another, this is especially useful when you can place the buckets in a cart and haul them back. However, you could designate one bucket for the ‘dirty’ water and store it in there until you use whatever means to filter and purify. You could even throw out a bucket while it’s raining and let it fill up with water!

There are countless ways to use 5 gallon buckets. I didn’t even dive into any ways you could use them for DIY projects. I’ve only given suggestions on how to use them just as they are.

Keep several 5 gallon buckets around and you’ll be set in emergencies and disasters, and even everyday uses!