Nuisance Bears...Secure Garbage Ideas

[keithb7]

We live in right on the edge of town here in Canada. The interface zone between man and wildlife. We have nuisance bears that roam the neighbourhood, looking for an easy meal. Winter is approaching and hibernation is in mind. They need to fatten up asap. Especially if there are a couple of cubs in tow. Momma is making rounds with vengeance.   The City pics up the garbage, curb-side is once a week. Yes we are supposed to keep garbage containers secure, inaccessible to the bears. We are not allowed to put our garbage out to the curb before for 5AM on collection day.

 

My garage is my craft room. Like your living room, I spend my time in there relaxing. Working on projects. No I don't want stinking household garbage in my garage. Would you like it in your living room? We have large garbage bins handed out by the city. Plastic. I have attached ratcheting tie down straps around the garbage can. 2, crossing at the top.  Securing it lid on tight. The bears can't get in. They try. The plastic bin is full of teeth marks and claws digging in. its only a matter of time. I have resorted to collecting household garbage only when needed. When it starts to stink. To lessen days that it's actually stored outside in the collection bin. The bears are getting into other garbage in the neighbourhood. They associate the bins as a food source. A fed bear is a dead bear unfortunately. They eventually will be captured and destroyed by Provincial conservation officers. They just keep coming back. As mentioned, the fall seems to the the only time of year it is a problem.

 

So I know what I need to do. It's simple. Find a secure place for my garbage bin. I am thinking of fabb-ing up a metal enclosure with a hinged lockable top. Flat sheet metal and angle iron.  Screw/anchor it right into the cement. Wood is easier, cheaper. However it rots in the weather and needs regular paint and maintenance.  I am interested in seeing what others may have built to secure their garbage from the bears. What have you built?  Pics and ideas are welcome.

 

Guests coming and going here in the dark evening are a concern. Just 20 mins ago a bear cub walked along the wall of my house, 2 feet from a window. Momma is not far away. Someone unaware may inadvertently get between Momma and a cub. Other times, I have come home and seen a bear up in a tree in my driveway. Just last week my wife heard a ruckus outside. I was not home. Momma bear had chased her two cubs up a tree. She was knawing on my garbage bin. She did not get in. My wife opened the door yelled at the bear. The bear was not intimidated and was not leaving. My wife proceeded to throw empty glass beer bottles at momma bear. Several later, bouncing off the bear's head,  and more yelling, Momma bear walked away. A very dangerous situation with cubs around.

 

I have a 12 ga with slugs and buck shot. That'd do it, however it is illegal here within City Limits. Unfortunately, in reality those bears are gonners when the conservation officers catch them. What have you done? Do you have a similar problem? Any folks from Alaska here? Ya'll gotta have bigger problems than me. 

We have no fruit trees. That's not a contributing factor. Aside from building a shed, I am looking for design ideas on an enclosure. 

 

Here is a pic of a Momma bear 2 years ago. Beside my house My garbage bin knocked down in RH lower corner. It's a problem....

 

 

Edited October 10, 2020 by keithb7

[Frank Elder]

My cousin lives in Maine......Black bears........same problem. He bought and installed a chain link dog kennel cube and hooked a hotshot electric unit that tickles them pretty good.......lol. They scat pretty fast and leave without dining.

[Plymouthy Adams]

at the state park they have bear proof trash containers in the camping area....they work great...

[Tooljunkie]

Expanded metal, metal garbage cans. Expanded metal flat on ground,a couple blocks of wood. Neutral to expanded metal,hot on metal garbage cans. They get a good memory that garbage cans are not that easy any more. 
 

Many years ago a guy in the whiteshell had enough with them. Only a couple “treatments” and they were no longer interested in garbage cans. 
 

14 gauge sheet metal,angle iron and square tubing. Hinge top and front. Then its easy to clean/wash. No place where they can get a claw in and tear it open. 
 

good luck, they can be relentless. 
 

i worked for conservation, i had the oppurtunity to build bear traps. There is lots to them. 

Edited October 11, 2020 by Tooljunkie

[linus6948]

My metal garbage box was getting hammered by the bears this year, getting it open, flipping it over and pushing it around my driveway. I finally ended the problem by taking empty balloons and with a small funnel I add a few ounces of "Gramdma`s" favorite super aroma ammonia. Then using a blow nozzle I carefully fill the balloon with air knot it off add a piece of string and tie it to my garbage box as high as I can. The final step is to smear the balloon`s outside with bacon grease, I had my first customer in less than an hour in broad daylight.

The bear bites the balloon and gets a very nasty surprise, I can attest to it being unpleasant as I used too much air pressure on one and had it explode in my face. After using the balloons for a few days my bear vandalism problems were over. I was putting four filled balloons out at a time and as we have a lot of bears here different ones were showing up and taking a try. Now all is quiet on the western front and I haven`t had to clean up scattered garbage for weeks.

[Pete]

We live on the edge of a huge wooded area. We get lots of visitors.

 

We store our garbage in a sealed container in the basement until we take it to the dump on Saturday morning.

 

However, this spring the bears were up and about early and this one found our sunflower seed stash we keep for the bird feeders. He dragged a 40 pound bag about 1 hundred yards into the woods.

 

Pete

 

[keithb7]

Thanks for the ideas folks. I am going to look into fabricating a steel enclosure with hinged top and front. I'll likely use concrete anchor bolts and mount it in place.  There'll be no tipping it over or dragging it around.

[Plymouthy Adams]

I'll take can number two for 200 Alex...

[Dan Hiebert]

Ditto bears in Maine.  Downstate they have issues with them, but still nowhere near as much as, say, Pennsylvania...yet.  In northern Maine, people are too few and far between, there are plenty of woods for them to haunt, and most big animal wildlife problems are with moose.  Bears are called the "ghosts of the forest" up here, 'cause you usually only see their poop ("scat" if you wanna be technical).  Bear vs. garbage problems up here are out at peoples' camps in the willy wags.  The only thing that seems to work is metal enclosures, or no lingering trash.  Our garbage bin is in the garage under the house, and I take it to a transfer station every other week or so, or when it gets smelly in the summer, which ever comes first.  No issues so far.  Your metal enclosure idea will work, and will work much better than wood.  If they're really hungry, wood is no deterrent.  They'll eventually learn that your place is unproductive.  I keep in mind though, that "bear proof" containers really only delay the bear(s).  Often they'll just look for easier pickings but may come back and demolish a bear proof container if they're desperate.

[Plymouthy Adams]

nuisance bears and other nefarious animals are often seen only on Monday nights in my area as they chase after the same piece of pig skin...

 

real nuisances here are squirrels and armadillo in that order...the record weight black bear in my county was bagged just less than 1/2 mile from my house by a Peterbuilt....had he been taken in legal hunt...that man would probably hold that record for quite some time.  The game management agents had been looking for him for a few weeks but he seemed to always be a step ahead of them.....he was sporting a tracking collar with dead batteries...he was reported by resident as he was raiding cans and bird feeders etc.  I have only seen one bear nearby and that was 8 miles up the road.

[linus6948]

When a neighbors lazy teenage son forgets to put out the garbage on pickup day and you try to store it in your garage for next weeks pickup day.

[keithb7]

Well folks a few months later, I think I have a solution. I approached a retired friend. He can fab stuff up. He’s pretty well equipped. I asked if he’d realize an idea that I had. 
 

He built me a bear proof bin. All corners pinned or welded. Nowhere to pry with teeth or claws. Recessed top latch. Angle iron on all bottom surfaces. Drilled for anchor bolts. I’ll drill into my cement and bolt it down. I can easily open the top to add garbage. I can swing open the front door to wheel my garbage bin to curb on garbage day.  Next year it will be put to the test when the bears come back around. 
 

 

[plymouthcranbrook]

And in the off season you can keep the family silver in there.

[Plymouthy Adams]

some folks would have opted for a freezer and just put the bear in there......?

[plymouthcranbrook]

7 hours ago, Plymouthy Adams said:

some folks would have opted for a freezer and just put the bear in there......?

Suitably dressed of course.