Recycled Laundry Detergent Watering Can

by stevenr12

6.6K4110

Intro: Recycled Laundry Detergent Watering Can

Sometimes the best Instructables are the simplest ones. I saw this tip on Popular Mechanics list of their top tips and decided to turn it into an instructable. This is a really simple project to make and will save you some money buying watering cans, plus if you have already built a rain barrel from one of the excellent rain barrel Instructables, you will already have a good way to easily fill your homemade watering can. 

Tools needed for this Instructable:

1 empty laundry detergent bottle.
1 drill and drill bit.

STEP 1: Rinse the Bottle

Rinse out your empty laundry detergent bottle thoroughly. 

STEP 2: Drill Some Holes in the Bottle

Drill a bunch of holes near the top of the laundry detergent bottle. For a gentler stream of water drill smaller/less holes.

STEP 3: Fill Up the Bottle With Water.

Fill your bottle with water or rain water. If you can it would be really cool to find an adapter to the top of the laundry detergent bottle that could help you attach a hose.

STEP 4: Water Your Plants!

Water your thirsty plants!

10 Comments

notalis1970 11 years ago

I made one today! My bottle is a bit different but it'll work. I took off the label from the white bottle, and since it has a blue cap, I used a blue permanent marker with a gold fine-tipped one to decorate it in a Moroccan theme, so I can leave it out and it doesn't look too bad. I also sprayed a fixant on t it so the marker doesn't rub off in time. I'll get a pic up asap :-) Thanks for the idea! It was fun adn now will be useful <3

stevenr12 11 years ago

Awesome! I am really looking forward to seeing yours, it sounds like it looks really good with the Moroccan theme. I keep mine hidden away in the shed but if I can make it look nice maybe I would consider leaving it out.

Servelan 11 years ago

As I was messing about with a nearly empty soap container (why husband stuck it on the top of the freezer escapes me, but there it was), I pushed the button that releases the valve to dispense soap and thought it might be possible to remove the plunger in the valve and put a piece of hose in the valve if you needed to spot water or treat a plant (like if you took one of these containers and used it for applying fish fertilizer or compost tea or something).

Servelan 11 years ago

Tossing in some vinegar at the tail end of the rinsing process and slooshing it around well will speed the removal of the soap.

hanlin_y 11 years ago

Be careful when acid might be mixed with bleach. It releases chlorine gas.

Servelan 11 years ago

Vinegar will create a problem when directly mixed with bleach, but the container being recycled here is a soap container, not a bleach container. Common household 5-7% vinegar, used at the *end* of the rinsing process, will help remove the last of the soap residue in the container.

stevenr12 11 years ago

Good tip! I should have noted in the Instructable that it took multiple rinses of hot water to get totally clean and that I soaked it overnight.