Fixing my metal watering can with a bit of TLC

When you live in the sun-tropics, you need to keep on top of the metal watering can at certain times of the year. Its not always practical to pull out the hose and so for some plants on the balcony or under the pergola, I like to use a watering can.

Like most of us, I have fallen for the $5 plastic ones from giant hardware stores but have found that after a season, or maybe two on the  outside – it simply falls apart or some one drops it from a great height (don’t ask) or the dog thinks its a toy and I have to buy another and another and another. One day, not so many moons ago I found an old metal watering can at a garage sale that I managed to buy for a whole $2!

Its fantastic! It doesn’t disintegrate in the sun, it takes dropping from a great height and even if the dog was still alive to use it as a toy, he wouldn’t be able to do much damage to a metal watering can!

Then last week – my watering can developed a leak!! Its was a small but annoying hole and my can would water my foot as well as the plants. Now I love my $2 investments and love it even more when I can fix them and keep using them so I wasn’t about to give up that easily!

Here’s what I did…

One of our neighbours has a husband who has a welder thing-a-mo and today I heard him zzzz-ing things together and stuck my head over the fence. I asked him if he could zap my wee watering can and plug the leak for me and he reckoned the can was too soft/small/wrong for that sort of thing – and why didn’t I just put a smear of silicon on the hole…

Well why didn’t I think of that?? He took my wee can away and soldered it up anyway – mainly because he could and sent me home to put some vege oil on the inside.

He said that it was a bit rusty and if I put the oil on it and left it in there it would help stop the rust get worse. He reckons that olive oil isn’t going to hurt my plants when I water them but other rust killing things would.

So, with a bit of help from the neighbour – my metal watering can is back on duty, in its spot under the tap and waiting for me to get about my watering duties without getting a wet foot!