If you've never had a milk crate on your bike rack, you are missing out on one of the most versatile ways to haul a diverse array of items. I will present some of the most compelling reasons here. Invest in yourself to celebrate Bike Month and consider adding a milk crate to your commuting setup. It's more affordable than a set of the cheapest panniers.
You can find a milk crate in the office supply store, hardware store, or superstore in the home organization section. Or better yet, find one in the trash to upcycle. I've had 3 different milk crates on bikes in my life (in the past 20 years). Sometimes people attempt to steal or vandalize your milk crate, and sometimes the plastic just wears out. Mount it securely to your rack with nuts & bolts. Carry an adjustable wrench and screwdriver to tighten the mounting hardware if it gets loose.
1. Hazardous Materials - Pictured here is a jug of bleach bungeed onto my rear rack. It would have been safer in a milk crate. I could see this would also be a safer way to transport paint. Anything you wouldn't want to spill or explode in a pannier. A milk crate can be easily detached and rinsed out in the event of a leak. If the milk crate gets ruined, you can buy another for less than $10.
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| May 5, 2017 |
2. Bags - Pictured here is my typical backpack (containing a computer) and a dog-hiking saddlebag turned into a bicycle toolbag. The milk crate offers various positions for your bungee hooks, so it's easy to keep everything tight and secure. You can put all shapes and sizes of bags into the milk crate, make an 'x' of bungees across the top and go!
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| November 18, 2010 |
3. Water - If you don't have a water bottle cage, a milk crate is a great place to store your water. This was a bikeshare bike that I rode from Geneva, Switzerland to Evian, France.
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| September 14, 2007 |
4. Cakes - I transported numerous cakes from my house to school in an upside-down Tupperware container (so the lid supports the bottom of the cake). You wouldn't put that in a pannier, since it could tip over, but a milk crate is perfectly level.
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| July 31, 2008 |
5. Costumes - This is a mole costume which requires a bicycle helmet under the 'hood' part of the head. Celebrating 'mole day' is a thing chemists do periodically. It's really fun to arrive at a party with your costume (and several cases of beer) in a milk crate.
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| October 23, 2008 |
6. Rocks - If you're into geology, a milk crate is a great way to bring back rock samples. You wouldn't want them weighing you down in a backpack. And you also wouldn't want them to get your bags dirty.
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| February 15, 2009 |
7. Plants - Maybe you're not into inorganic (rocks) but you're more of a biologist... it's really awesome to transport plants in a milk crate. Here, I'm showing a flat of Arabidopsis on my rear rack but it would really have been better to have the plants in a milk crate in case the bike tilted left or right too far.
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| September 15, 2009 |
8. Ice Cream - The last thing you want is melted ice cream in your saddlebag. It's much better to have an insulated bag in your milk crate, then pedal at top speed to get that frozen treat home before it melts. In Germany, I did all my shopping by bicycle. I would buy frozen fish fillets regularly.
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| December 29, 2009 |
9. Locks - it's no problem to bring your U-Locks if you can toss them into your milk crate. That way you can secure your bikes while you enjoy your destination.
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| January 1, 2010 |
10. Maps - There's nothing less safe than looking like a tourist. Some people go around on bicycle tours with a cue-sheet, remarking on ooh! and aah! and ooh-la-la! When I'm in a foreign country, I try to blend in as much as possible. Keeping the maps on the down-low and only discreetly peeking at them to plan your next segment on a trip to the restroom (in full privacy) ensures that you don't become a target of pickpockets. In Italy, I stayed at several hostels and heard horror stories of travelers who had lost money, passports, phones, and other important travel documents. If you keep your maps in a milk crate, you'll think twice before pulling them out in public.
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| June 26, 2010 |
11. Take-Out - Imagine hot liquids, such as Phở or Sweet-and-Sour Pork. You wouldn't want to risk that spilling in your saddlebags! A milk crate is the perfect way to pick-up your to-go foods.
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| July 19, 2010 |
12. Farmer's Market - Because the seasons change, you never know what you'll find at the Farmer's Market. It's so much safer to transport items such as plums and tomatoes in a milk crate because if they're ripe, the skin can break, releasing sticky sweet juices that could be hard to get out of your panniers. I like how there are all ages of people in this photo. It's not only for the young and fit to use a bicycle as a primary means of transportation.
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| August 28, 2010 |
13. Workout Gear - Imagine sweaty socks, ballet slippers, swimsuits, wetsuits, anything that would stink up your panniers or carry a good amount of sand and surf. Those items lend themselves perfectly to a milk crate on the back of your bicycle. You could also bungee your yoga mat directly to the milk crate.
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| May 27, 2011 |
13. Dog - Our dog didn't love riding behind me in a milk crate, but I've seen other dogs quite content to do so. We would employ the harness that came with our 'dog hiking backpack' which resembled a kind of strait jacket to keep her from jumping out. This was a 30 mile bike ride in Death Valley.
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| December 23, 2014 |
14. Books - The best way to get stronger legs is to put your heaviest books in your milk crate and bomb some hills. I used to put Chemistry, Calculus, and Biology, top it with a bungee and then head out. This photo is from when a bookstore was closing and we took home a big haul of books!
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| September 14, 2014 |
15. Sound System - I've never done this, but I know lots of people who do for open street events like CicLAvia. You don't have to abandon your tunes when you get out of your car. There is plenty of space in a milk crate to set up speakers loud enough to share with a group of your friends.
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| October 24, 2014 |
17. Cosmetics - I buy cosmetics regularly from CT Organics. You don't want to put those oily lotions, soaps, and creams into a bag that you also have your cell phone in. Especially if you have a long, hot ride back to The Valley from Santa Clarita. Throw them in a milk crate and you can be sure that your electronics can be well-segregated from the essential oils. Speaking of which, SHOUTOUT to the Mother's Day Boutique, which is TODAY.
18. Coffee - Instead of buying coffee at school, I'd take about 6 Cups of drip-coffee in a Hydroflask and bungee that to the inside of my milk crate. Then I would put the half-and-half in a 700 mL water bottle with a coozy around it. I could refill my travel coffee mug (in the water bottle cage) at will during my commute on the Metrolink train. It is a glamorous way to travel!
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| October 20, 2014 |
19. First-Aid Kit - If you're spending all day in the sun with the family, your adorable nephew may end up with a skinned knee. This day, his pedal was threaded backwards and consequently fell off three times, each time our nephew fell to the ground and skinned his knee. If we had been carrying more tools and a first aid kit (and a picnic lunch) in a milk crate this family day wouldn't have had to be cut short.
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| April 7, 2012 |
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| September 27, 2014 |
21. Campaign Signs - Although I had a good time doing some last-minute campaigning for the passage of Measure M, this sign would have been more effective on the sides and back of a milk crate. Think of the milk crate as advertising real estate.
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| October 23, 2016 |
22. Firewood - Our bicycle camping trip was fantastic. I had to ride several miles to the Albertson's to buy firewood and it would have been convenient to put the bundle of wood in my milk crate. Instead, I bungeed one bundle to the front rack and one bundle to the rear rack, which was OK, but that's another thing you wouldn't put in a pannier.
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| December 29, 2015 |
23. Teaching Supplies - In this photo, you can see I fitted my milk crate with a custom-trimmed paper box lid to make it somewhat padded and also have fewer holes. I brought everything I needed to do my job in this milk crate for years. Candy, cookies, molecular and solid state modeling kits... anything somewhat fragile that wouldn't do well banging around in a backpack is ideal to be transported in a milk crate.
In closing, I will offer a word of caution. The high center of mass created when you fill your milk crate will change the dynamics of stopping, starting, turning, and overall handling of your bicycle. Make sure your brakes are in working order (read: tight). If you are riding with a group, remember that a fully loaded milk crate will alter your stopping distance (because you have more momentum).
If you find that a milk crate makes your bike too difficult to handle, panniers will be better since they have a lower center of mass. I have more trouble with weight on the front of my bicycle than the back. Front baskets are good so that you can see what's going on, but when you let go of the handlebars, the front wheel will turn rapidly so that the load has the lowest potential energy.
If your weight is in the rear, however, and you are stopped at a red light, simply use your legs to stabilize the bicycle frame. Take care when not moving to stabilize the bicycle. You may want to investigate in a heavy-duty two-legged kickstand if that's important to you, but I've always found a bike rack or tree nearby to prop the bike against.
Share your thoughts, suggestions, experiences and comments! HAPPY BIKE MONTH!!!!!!
So many cool stories in this post. I personally want to hear more about the Geneva to France on a bike share and many more !
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