Red tag the trash can

The key for the trash didn’t work. I didn’t do any work in the shop tonight, but I saw a full can and thought I would empty it. Maybe it didn’t work for me since the trash wasn’t mine, more than likely it is just a broken or really stuck lock.

Indeed, the woes have been mentioned - Trash Key Troubles

@JoeN requested someone lubricate the lock, not 100% sure where we have that in the shop but hopefully that helps. I’m sure @JoeN, @EricP, or another steward will assess to determine if we need to order a new lock, but hopefully lube does the trick.

The lock is broken. You can hold it upside down and unlock it. Not an elegant solution, but it lets the pins move and the lock open. I brought some lube from home and it didn’t help.

I have like 2 locks that I’m not using I can give. I’ll go by this afternoon and can replace, leave the keys.

Does it need to be a special type of lock? I was always curious how the trash pickup is able get to it

Just a thought. Do we need to continue locking the dumpster? I believe they are up to 4 bins out there, and I haven’t seen many issues with unauthorized dumping. Maybe we could try without a lock for a while, just a thought.

The trash pickup folks have a copy of the key, so we’ll need to be sure they get the new key. @Jon did you help coordinate that last time? Can’t remember when we did that last.

@jamesfreeman we had someone dump an oven (or some other large appliance) not too long ago. I think we haven’t had problems lately because it’s been locked, but Joe or Eric might have more insights on that.

I was under the impression the dumpster is a type of gravity lock, and when the truck flips over the dumpster the wire system slips through and lets the bar flip and the lid open. Definitely could be wrong, and if so it sounds like the trash guys must have a big key ring haha

@valerie Nope, dumpster locks was before my time.

If the dumpster can’t be emptied without removing the padlock, somebody came up with the world’s most complicated padlock hasp. That mechanism seemed so weird I always assumed it was doing something clever.

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It is a gravity lock on the dumpster

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That makes so much sense. There was definitely a lot of discussion and clearly misunderstanding around the lock situation last year.

Should we take @kingkeyan up on his lock offer then so we can get a fully functioning padlock on there?

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Mine are definitely not gravity locks, but if there’s a use for them just let me know and I’ll come by/coordinate with whoever needs the extra keys

The dumpster itself is the gravity part of the gravity lock system. I go super early so I see it more often than most but after they dump the trash sometimes the lid swings slower than the bar and you have to unlock it to lock it or the lid will rest on the bar.

The trash people will ask for a copy of the key in case it gets stuck the other way (they will usually just violently shake the can so they don’t have to get down or return with the key) or in the case you don’t pay and they don’t have to cut their “chain” and charge you a fee. I pay for one of these and I say it is worth it to lock it. It is not hard to grab the key and head outside. Also if people know they can throw stuff in those dumpsters it will be a free for all especially being so hidden.

If there is trash it will reliably open turning the bar towards the ground(the whole lock upside down). The springs inside will not move, but gravity will let the pins fall into place. I have had a lock that I use like this for a while, because I also use it as a hammer to knock the door into place and I know I will break a new lock anyway.

Request. Can someone give the trash key get a larger fob?

If you’re referring to a larger “key chain” for the key, I did that a little while back. One of the members even lasered “trash” on it.

Great! Thanks @jamesfreeman