How does it work in the summer when you've got a bunch of trash-bags baking in a tin can for several weeks? Does the trash ever turn into rotting goop?
We're pretty careful about what goes into the trash, so there's not much in the way of food waste. It'll smell a bit in the summer, but there isn't really anything that can rot in it. That stuff goes into the compost bin. It's almost entirely dry waste, with the occasional disposable diaper, but those are just for overnight, so they're rarely messy.
Also - trailer registration costs?
Idaho has permanent trailer registration - pay once, you're good forever, and this already had a plate.
Also also - why are those PVs in hte photo not out harvesting electricity for your office-shed?
Which ones? The ones hinged to the east wall of my office connected through a PWM controller to my battery bank? They're not just leaning against the wall, they gather the morning sun as it comes over the road and make a big difference in time to "fully charged" during the morning.
https://syonyk.blogspot.com/2016/10/solar-shed-part-13-morning-panels.htmlI'd worry about critters getting into a trash pile, but that's just me. Great job saving a few bucks though!
It's up high enough off the ground, and it's fairly well sealed around the bottom, so I'm not that worried about it. Plus, I'm pretty sure our property cat spends a lot of time under there, so any sort of critter would rapidly turn into a playtoy/snack. More the first than the second lately, based on the stuff I'm finding laying around other parts of the property...
My inlaws have outdoor trash storage in burn barrels that aren't exactly well sealed at the bottom after a few years of burning and sitting, and they don't have a problem, so I'm assuming that with nothing much to eat in there, they're not going to bother it. There are
far tastier places on the property than a trash trailer without food in it.
* protection for the tires and/or frequent replacement (UV, dry rot/etc.)
It's in a decently shaded area, and I've since tossed some scrap OSB up against the tires to shield them.
the inevitability of having a major problem with the trailer that is that old and likely not well maintained (rusted out lugs, seized bearings, rusted out bed bolts, rusted out suspension components, etc.)
We don't get much in the way of rust here. The trailer doesn't roll many miles a year, and a round trip isn't that far (30 miles). So I'm just not that concerned about it. Worst case I transfer the trash into my truck bed and haul it while I fix the trailer, but if I need another axle or something, old truck axles are a dime a dozen out here.
having a rotting, stinking pile of trash on your property for months at a time ;)
If there's no food in the trash stream, what is there to rot and stink, really? Our trash can we had previously stunk an awful lot more than this does, because we weren't as careful about what went into it.
Glad you have a quality of life improvement, but I would have just held the trash company to account and made it easier to haul the 1/8 mile (say a home made hitch mounted platform). I'd rather do that than deal with the problems above =) Sadly, it would cost about $25 to unload a trailer like that where we live so it wouldn't even be a cost savings (though oddly, if it were a truck bed still attached to the truck, it would be only $9 hah).
My initial attempt involved dragging it behind an ebike, and I destroyed a perfectly good frame that way. Starting the truck to haul a trash can to the top of the driveway is silly as well - I try not to short start it that often.
But, fortunately, I don't have your silly landfill prices. ;)