DIY Weatherproof Outdoor Storage With These Genius Repurposing Ideas

Durable and weatherproof storage for areas outside your home can be one of the best ways to keep your yard or garden well-organized. This includes proper spots for everything from gardening tools or pool toys to larger amounts of potting soil, mulch, and rock salt for winter sidewalks. While outdoor storage containers can be costly from home and garden centers, there are a number of much cheaper alternatives that allow you to fashion great outdoor storage from items you may already have hanging around the house. Even better, they are created from upcycled materials that might otherwise be thrown out or wind up in a landfill. 

With a little ingenuity, you can make perfect large baskets, containers, and bins to suit all your outdoor needs. Not only are they less expensive, but they are easy to construct. Some only require the upcycled elements like garden hoses, plastic planters, and old plastic bins, as well as easy and accessible supplies like plastic zip ties, spray paint, twine, and other common household materials. They are also completely customizable to your outdoor design aesthetic.

Old rubber hoses are perfect to repurpose for a number of outdoor and indoor DIY projects, including this cool tutorial from YouTube DIYer Teddy Craft Gallery, which creates a stylish large basket from an ordinary green garden hose. Begin by wrapping the hose in a spiral around the end nozzle, securing it at each side with a plastic zip tie. Continue to coil the hose until you have formed the desired diameter of the base of your basket. Once you have, begin to layer the coils upward to form the sides of the basket.

When you reach the desired depth, place one last zip tie at the end, then use the remaining hose to form two loops along the top that serve as handles for the basket. This basket is perfect for holding smaller items outdoors in a cute and outdoorsy way. You can also spray paint it another color to fit your outdoor decor. 

If you're looking for covered storage solutions that are weatherproof, you can create a stylish storage bin from a large plastic planter simply by adding a lid. TikTok user @rebeccaeubanks22 demonstrates how to create a deep bin perfect for storing potting soil and larger items using a simple round piece of wood as a lid. Eubanks adds a handle to the lid first before screwing a hinge to the side that attaches to the planter. This allows you to easily open and close your new storage piece. You can leave your planter unpainted, like Eubanks, or paint the lid a color of your choice and seal it with waterproof sealer.

Other great items to repurpose for outdoor storage are any plastic bin containers you're done using. These bins often hold things like laundry soap and cat litter. Simply clean out the used containers and paint them whatever color you like for durable and airtight storage. Add decorative elements like twine-wrapped handles and stencils, or letter stickers to add additional charm as well.