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If you had a bunch of 2 liter soda bottles, what would you do with them?
i have a bunch on hand, and am trying to think up ways to use them.
i can:
use them for kool aid, juice from concentrate, and reconstituted powdered milk.
maybe use them to store my homemade laundry detergent once it’s mixed up.
any other ideas? i know there’s a lot of gardening uses for them but i don’t garden. besides: it’s just about wintertime now.
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© Can Stock Photo Inc. / gvictoriaMichelle, I am laughing so hard right now :To funny: you should take a look in my pantry. Let me tell you what I have done with the 2-liter bottles: I am using them to store:
Oatmeal
Flour
Sugar
Powdered Sugar
Hot Cocoa Mix
Rice
Dried Beans
Corn Meal
Oil
Instant potatoes
Elbow Macaroni
Chocolate Chips
SplendaI am still trying to think of other uses.
I’ve never used them for resoring stuff because I find that the hole on top is too small and I get the stuff all over my counter,guess I could use a funnel and store my rice in them (buy it in bulk at Sam’s Club) I have used them at a kids camp for bowling pins, just put a little sand in the bottom to give them some weight and they can use any kind of ball to knock them down, or even a frisbee if the are kept light enough.
We did thes projects when the Boys were in Scouting….
Conserve—-
Fill the two liter bottle with water and place it in your toilet tank to use less water with every flush.Bird feeder—-
Use a knife to cut two holes at the bottom of the bottle large enough to slide a stick through for a bird perch (perfect use for a disposable chopstick!). Next, cut a few holes above the perch for retrieving seed. Finally, fill with seed, tie a string around the top and hang.Flower pot—-
Decorate the bottom half of the soda bottle and plant a flower.Gift wrap and or mailing Package—-
Decorate the exterior of the bottle with ribbon and markers then cut a slit in the back big enough to get your hand through. Place the gift inside– Seal the opening with clear packing tape. Now you have a mailable package.California. Everything is recycled, legally or otherwise. Big problem lately is people stealing brass statues, fire hydrants, power lines, grave markers, etc., for their copper/brass value.
For regular honest people it is aluminum cans, glass, plastic, cardboard and (news)paper.
There are also Hazardous Waste Roudups for electronics, batteries paints, oil, and other waste that would otherwise contaminate the landfills.
@JoAnn 92359 wrote:
Where is there recycling for 5 cent per boottle?
Maine, New Hampshire, Michigan (you get .10 there!) and a few other states, mostly in the Northeast.
But it’s not really FREE money, because when you buy it, they add it in to the purchase. So if you buy a 12 pack of soda in Maine for $3.00, they add .60 to the purchase price automatically, (plus Tax, which is additional).
@mcnerd 92369 wrote:
Big problem lately is people stealing brass statues, fire hydrants, power lines, grave markers, etc., for their copper/brass value. For regular honest people it is aluminum cans, glass, plastic, cardboard and (news)paper
In South Carolina people are stealing Copper- Ripping out A/C units from homes just for the copper thats in them. One of the churches has lost 3 units in less than 2 months from this.
@FreebieQueen 92588 wrote:
But it’s not really FREE money, because when you buy it, they add it in to the purchase. So if you buy a 12 pack of soda in Maine for $3.00, they add .60 to the purchase price automatically, (plus Tax, which is additional).
That is true. The state/counties needed money to pay for the recycling they had to do, and then offered the payback incentive to encourage the consumer to recycle.
For the most part it didn’t work. The majority of the consumers still just toss the stuff and can’t be bothered recycling. So it becomes free money for the dumpster divers.
No-Bending-Required Door Stop – I cut an old soda bottle in half. I put a hole in the middle of the cap and secured the “stick” from some old blinds in it (a dowel will work), this is the handle. I then weighted (not too heavy, you need to be able to lift it!)the bottom and glued the top back on.
The bottle stands up with the “handle” sticking out the top. To decorate it I “wrapped” it in satin and lace and secured it with some decorative cording and roses.
Ice Packs
Potpourri Holder – Cut the bottom from the bottle. Fill with pot pourri and cover the open part with curtain lace and glue to the outside of the bottle. Cover the raw edges of the curtain lace with either ribbon or lace.
Wind Socks – Cut top and bottom off 2-liter bottle to have a perfect cylinder. Punch 4 holes (with a hole punch) spaced evenly on top. Tie a 12 inch piece of fishing line to each hole.
Attach all four to a large swivel snap used in fishing. Sand the bottle and paint with paints any design you wish. When dry, punch holes every inch around the bottom.
Tie a 3 foot piece of ribbon in each hole. Vary your colors or make them all the same. Hang up and enjoy.
Totally forgot about this – pop the black part off & cut off the odd shaped bottom. Be sure the inside is clean & dry. Insert a skein of yarn threading the yarn end (the end from the middle of the skein) thru the small opening and put the black part back on.
This way your yarn stays clean even if it is on the floor.
I use them to hold water and put into my potted plants for self watering. There is a gadget I bought at Harbor Freight that the bottles screw onto. Invert and stick into the soil.
Kind of like an inexpensive version of those glass things that are on the As Seen On TV aisle at Walmart. The item is called Watering Cones and they come in a package of 6 for about $5 if I remember right.
Hi, I cut the plastic bottlel,1/4 of the way up from the bottom, then I cut the part with the cap on it and cut the top part off somewhat so it to forms a scoop at the bottom, the cap is like a handle, I use it for sand, salt, flour, etc. Walmart used to sell a top with a cover that comes off, so I store bits in my sewing room, scraps.
They make great camping lights, cut them about two thirds of the way up, crochet a lacy looking cover (I don’t have a printed pattern, just copied one from somebody) and slide it over the bottle. Use an old string of the outside type Christmas lights, remove bulb, place top part of bottle by the socket and then screw in a bulb to hold it on. I used white yarn and clear bulbs.
Have received lots of compliments on my (cheap) lights.
I would love the crochet pattern that was passed on to you.
Also, I have used many 2 L soda bottles for my emergency kit. I thoroughly clean them then fill them with tap water and date them. I change them about every 6 months or so.
They make great storage for extra water in an emergency. With all this global warming and crazy weather you never know, you just might need it.
Don’t have a written out pattern just kind of winged it from one I saw. I’ll be going up to our camper next week and will bring one home with me and try to see if I can do some counting and figure out a written pattern for you. May be a couple of weeks before I can get back to you on this.
We don’t have phone or internet in the mountains where we’re staying.
When putting Kool-aid etc into 2L bottles you can then fit the bottle into the door or sideways on a refrigerator shelf if you need to make space.
I reuse 2L bottles and jugs cat litter comes in to collect water. At my house it takes 2 jugs of cold water waiting on the hot. I keep 2 jugs by the tub to catch the water then water plants or put it in the pool to compensate evaporation.
In summer, I set a jug under the a/c drain outside and use the draining water to water plants. We get about 10 gallons a day.
I enlarged the opening in some jugs and I’m going to to grow herbs in them this spring.
This woman on etsy (it’s not me, I promise) makes trash bags for your car which fit over cut up 2 liter bottles.
Car Trash Tube in Autumn Leaves by ArrivingInStyle on Etsy
I couldn’t find a tutorial, but if you’re crafty you might be able to duplicate by looking at her design and explanation.
I like the composting idea and the tomato plant idea as well.
I use several of these (clear) bottles. I fill 3/4ths of the way up with water and put the cap on (the remaining space is for expansion – important to leave, otherwise the bottles can explode). Then I leave in the sun all day.
At the end of the day, the water inside is HOT. Free hot water for doing dishes, hand washing items, pet baths, and for quick “rough showers”. Frugal ways to use “alternate” resources (solar).
Great when camping, or when the electricity is out for days.
@splashangel 170230 wrote:
I lived primitively in the Tn. Mountains for a while and I did this with milk jugs.I was surprised how well it worked.
Walmart had a top with a cover that you put on when you cut the bottle in half, then put this on and you can seal it off and see the contents inside. I did this for one bottle.
Was a few years ago, it is white.
I can’t drink pop (allergic to corn) but my son using these for all kinds of things! He has a large vertical garden hanging in his house made out of 2 liter pop bottles, He has a whole wall in the basement filled with them with water stored in them. Going to his home is an adventure to see what all he is using them for now!
When I drive for vacation trips, or camping, or visits which take more than one day’s driving, I freeze 2 liter bottles of water for the trip. I do NOT fill the bottles full before freezing, as freezing water expands. So, only fill 3/4th full before freezing.
Then you will have your regular (home) water for the trip. Don’t forget some for Fido & Kitty, too, if they accompany you on the trip. Just freeze several 2 liter bottles for each day’s travel, and drink the melted water as you travel.
I kept mine in a cooler on the back seat. By drinking the water that you are used to (and pets, too), you avoid possible “tummy troubles” which can go with changing water. Makes for a happier trip.
Making crushed Ice…. I fill 2 liter bottles 3/4 full of water and freeze…. once frozen, take a hammer and beat the bottle until all the ice is crushed…
use either scissors or a knife to cut bottles open…. makes wonderful crushed ice … frozen bottles can also be used in coolers to keep the inside of the cooler cold for long trips and you also benefit by having ice cold water once it starts to melt.
make a self watering flowerpot. Cut 1/3 off the bottom to use as your reservoir. Use a hot ice pick or drill to make a hole in the cap.
Thread a cotton shoelace through the hole and leave about 2″ outside the cap. Fill the bottle with potting soil making sure that the shoelace reaches up the side of the bottle. Add your plant and more soil.
Fill the reservoir with water and place the bottle inside. You can paint the bottle if you’d like, however don’t paint the reservoir so you can monitor the water levels.
This might not be practical, but if you want to, you can turn them into roses or other flowers by cutting out petals in the plastic, melting the edges, painting the pieces, and gluing or melting them onto a base. The whole process can be followed from this tutorial, which, with google translate, will translate it from portuguese.
you can also turn them into zip-closed plastic boxes for kids to decorate or for small storage needs, or cut into long, vertical strips and use for small weaving projects. 
in a pinch, assemble into emergency plastic giftboxes for home-made gifts such as candles, lip gloss, soap, bath bombs, stacked cookies, or other, then just wrap the plastic box in a wide ribbon with bow on top to make it look less industrial.Just some ideas for less conventional uses to use them up in case you’re swimming in them.
i return all that i can to the bottle depot otherwise…remove all the tops and stand them inside drawers for keeping socks and underwear tidy in kids rooms. most underwear can be rolled and stored that way. if the cut edges are a problem trim them with duct tape. personalize using different colors and patterns.
the funnel tops can be used to decorate christmas lights, one each per light… or… cut the bell part of the tops into 3,4,or 5 petal shapes down to the screw on part.(leave that in tact) stack together, one inside the other, but dont line up the petals.
stagger them. to make flowers. or fit onto the base of a candle.
i dont remember what to use for painting them. so many new products.
I make jewelry. Cut them around in different widths. Take masking tape, size it to fit you, cut off excess and use tape to hold the bangle braclet together.
Now mix elmers glue and wster together, have strips of paper I use newspaper, run thru glue mix and wrap around. When you get to the desired thickness, set aside to dry. You can glaze with Mod Podge or Diamond Glaze.
Paint them, than glaze, add beads, lace, ribbon, sky is the limit on how to decorate them. No one knows it is bottle and paper. Take the left overs, turn them into earrings, barretts.
Take two bottoms, paint them, place together and you have a apple trinkent box, make a stem and leaf from some of the extra and hotglue on. My son took and cut small holes in them, took a string of christmas lights and put one light in each appl placed in a basket, added christmas flowers. Looked cool sitting by the front door to greet guest as they approached his porch.
I read a great way to use 2 Lester bottles. You can make mosquito catchers. Here in the south that is a big thing.
You cut the bottle just over 1/3 of the bottle. You put in a mixture of 1/4 cup dark brown sugar, yeast 1/2 pack, and 1/3 cup of water. Take the top part of the bottle upside down and they are now ready to go.
Place them around the area you will be having a bar B Q and have a blast.
@melissa2682 513909 wrote:
Ok this may be a stupid question,but i’m sure someone will have the answer lol.Why is it when i buy any kind of bagged rice and store it in the cupboard it ends up with little moth looking things in it and the bag hasn’t been opened?
Those are grain mill bugs, all processed grain has eggs in it, no matter how well processed. You can avoid this by freezing your grains for 24 hours Before storing them. It will kill the eggs.
Since I live in the Pacific Northwest where the summer growing season isn’t as long as I would like it to be. I used empty 2 liter soda bottles for extending the growing season. I painted some of them black and filled them with water.
They got warm during the day and in the evening I would put them in my little greenhouse to radiate just enough of that heat to keep the veggie starts from freezing. I also used them as mini greenhouse over some of the more delicate starts. I just cut the bottom off and toss the cap and place it over the plant like a terrarium to protect it from cold or bugs or help it grow.
Good luck.
My husband and son love fishing. They tie the bottles up with string and use them as big bobbers to fish. They call them jugs!
Also you can put water and a little salt inside of them, freeze them, and use them in a cooler or even set the frozen water bottle in front of a fan to make a makeshift air conditioner.I also freeze water in the soda bottles. I store them in the chest freezer to prepare for emergencies and almost of the other uses we’ve read about. But I have one more fabulous use.
During “high harvest season”, I use several frozen bottles in the water to chill down the blanched produce quickly. I stick one or two in the chill water before I start blanching to give it time to get good and cold, then dump in the blanched vegetables. When I’m done, I wipe off the bottles I’ve used and refreeze.
Works great.
Please remember, some plastics used in soda and water bottles leach out a chemical into the liquid in the bottle. Be careful if you are re-filling with any citrus (especially essential oils). Also don’t drink if it has been in a hot car.
This applies to regular bottled water as well, not good for you if has been left in a hot car. Stay safe and keep the ideas coming!!
@Dundin 471099 wrote:
I had forgotten about all these re-uses. Thanks for the reminders!
I also remember seeing a 3-liter size for store brands. The unique feature of this size was a larger neck and mouth. However, I don’t recall seeing that size recently.
I believe Mountain Dew was sold with a larger neck & mouth also.
I believe Kroger sells 3 liter if there us one close to you
For all that cutting go to your local hardware place and buy a debuting tool. You run it around the edges and it makes them nice and smooth.
I use mine for small critter tunnels. Cut off top and bottom leaving as much bottle as possible. I just use a box knife following the lines on the bottle.
Deburr. Duct tape. My ferret love then as much as $20 hard plastic trails plus you can tape to boxes etc.
Make
Ginger BeerGinger Syrup Ingredients
1 cupgranulated sugar1/2 cupwater2 tbspgrated fresh ginger
Ginger Beer Ingredients
1/8 tspactive dry yeastGinger syrup (above)3 tbspfreshly squeezed lemon juice7 cupsfiltered water.
You will also needClean 2-liter plastic soda bottle, funnel
Servings:2 liters
Peel a chunk of the ginger with the tip of a teaspoon—the papery skin scrapes right off—and grate it, using the fine side of your grater. Place the ginger, sugar, and water in a saucepan over medium heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Turn off the heat and allow the mixture to steep for an hour.Strain the mixture (discard the ginger solids) and allow to cool.You’ve now made ginger syrup (or gingerette, as the Brits call it). Stop right here if you’re looking for a short-cut to ginger ale and you don’t want to mess around with the fermentation process. Pour three or four tablespoons (more or less depending upon how gingery you like it) of your syrup over ice and add 8 ounces of seltzer water or club soda.
Bottle the rest of the syrup and store it in the refrigerator. For the full ginger beer experience, place a funnel in the top of the bottle and pour in the filtered water. Sprinkle the yeast in, followed by the syrup, lemon juice, and water.Put the lid on the bottle and shake the concoction until the yeast is dissolved.
Stow it on a shady shelf or in your pantry out of direct sunlight for 2-3 days, or until fizz is achieved. At this point it is ready to drink, and must be stored in the refrigerator to prevent further fermentation. Don’t forget about the bottle, or the pressure will build up so much that it may explode!As with any yeast-powered beverage, the fermentation process continues unless you prevent it from happening.
Refrigerating will slow the process down but not stop it completely, that’s why it’s best to treat ginger beer as a perishable beverage. Consume within 1-2 weeks. CAUTION: be sure to open the bottle every day to release the extra gas, otherwise the bottle might explode and you’ll have a big mess on your hands!
Note that as the beverage ferments, sediment will settle at the bottom of the bottle. You can strain it out if you wish.Serve over ice.
They can also be used to grow great root very such as carrots or parsnips.
Cut the top off, fill with compost i add 6 seeds in 3 sets of 2. One they are bigger just take out the weeker seedling and before you know it you will have a meals worth of carrots etc.@FreebieQueen 513915 wrote:
Those are grain mill bugs, all processed grain has eggs in it, no matter how well processed. You can avoid this by freezing your grains for 24 hours Before storing them. It will kill the eggs.
I did not know this.
I have thankfully never had this problem but now I know what to do.
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