What's the trick to preventing stacked plastic buckets from sticking together? (2024 Update)

[Ivy Lane flowers and gifts]

Simply run hot water onto the outside bucket foe a few seconds. This expands the air between the buckets and also softens the outer bucket. Easy.

[Marilyn Manson]

Easy if you are near hot water.

[TimR]

No. I've tried it. I've tried pretty much everything except drilling the bucket for a tire valve and using an air compressor.

The problem is the side forces. If the two buckets were exactly centered together, concentric around a common vertical axis, then the only forces resisting would be the friction from the point where the bottom of one contacts the side of the other.

But that's not how buckets nest. One is always tipped slightly, and that makes it near impossible to extract.

Try it yourself with a couple of plastic drinking glasses.

[Gronk]

If they're not too fragile after having been outside in the sun for ages, I sometimes throw them onto concrete or the hardest soft ground I can find.

It only works about 1/2 the time (never on the strongest bonds). Then I pry.

When I ponder drilling a hole in the bottom to insert an M80, I give up.

But I agree with all that sometimes they're damn hear impossible to separate and I always wondered how the friction could be that super glue strong.

[Clare Snyder]

To KEEP them from sticking put a piece of cord, or even a "slat" of corrugated cardboard between the buckets when you stack them and they will come apart slick as goose poop

[Marilyn Manson]

...or a small length of 2 x 3, 4, etc.

Makes the stack a little taller but they don't even think about sticking.

[alex]

I looked up "tubafor" and nothing addresses this issue. What are you talking about!

[alex]

Good idea, done this - trouble is if you plan on hauling/holding liquids, they will leak - just be prepaired to patch with a little silicon!

[alex]

What the heck is a tubatoo?

[alex]

Great idea!!

[Scott Lurndal]

A stick of lumber tu nominal inches by for nominal inches.

[Clare Snyder]

Just throw a huink of twine over the edge of each bucket before stacking them and they come apart like butter.

[Clare Snyder]

2X2 or 2X4 lumber in hillbilly speek