In my home daycare I provide separate cubbies for all my children to store their personal belongings. In our entry way we have a 8 foot area with hooks on the wall for hanging coats, snow pants, etc. below this is a long shelf that holds these Sterilite Storage containers. The kids put their shoes/boots under the shelf. It’s a pretty good set up, and the Sterilite containers have a nice look.
Before I bought the Sterilite “totes” I had open bins for the kids. While that was easier for the children, it was a problem with our dog Abby, a little Silky Terrier. She is just big enough that she could get on her hind legs and steal the kids hats, mittens, socks, underwear, you name it. She never ruined them, just packed them around. I decided I needed new cubbies, ones that had locking lids – and these Sterilite containers fit the bill perfectly.
Description
The containers measure a generous 14 1/4″L x 9 1/2″W x 6 7/8″H. They are a semi transparent so you can see what they are holding. They are made of a sturdy plastic resin. The sides have a flat surface (no bumps or ridges) where I can stick the child’s name with a wide piece of masking tape. When tape needs to be removed, residues come off easily with Goo Gone or vegetable oil.
These have a handy yellow handle on the top, that fits into two slots. The ends can be pushed down through the slots to allow the handle to sit flush with the lid. For carrying, the handle pulls up 1 1/2″, and there is a indented area under the handle. It is easy to get my hand under the handle, but my knuckles do hit the lid. And I have small hands. I think a man with larger hands might have a hard time getting a good grip on this handle.
The containers have a 1/2″ wide lip that runs all around their edges, and the plastic lid has a large 5″ long latch on each side that snaps down onto this lip to lock it in place.
The corners are nicely rounded and the bottom does not rest directly onto the shelf due to the 1/4″ ridge running arond the bottom perimeter that keeps it elevated. There are also two plastic “feet” on each side to help keep it up off of a surface. This is handy in case something wet spills – it won’t touch the bottom portion.
Uses
Since these are see-through, they make great storage bins for a large variety of objects. They can be used in the classroom, garage, office, or home. They are great for storing crafts, small toys, crayons, Leggo’s, doll clothes, medicines, books, fishing supplies, etc. The possibilities go on and on. With the snap on lid, whatever the contents are, they will remain dry.
Thoughts
These Sterilite containers have been the perfect solution to my problem, stopping my thief of a dog from snatching the kids belongings.
I have used these for the kids cubbies approximately 8 years, and only one of them has broken – so they hold up very well. The broken one was my fault. I was washing the window next to the shelf holding these, and when I lost my balance I stepped right on it. All 120 pounds of me came crashing down on this plastic container. It shattered into several parts.
The Sterilite Show Off Storage Containers are very easy to clean, in fact once a week we have a “clean the cubbies day”, and the kids have to take everything out so they can clean up their own cubby. We use simple soap and water. They cost me about $3.50 each, and are well worth the price.
