Hey everyone! So I have my patio pretty well set up for entertaining. The one thing I could really use is a heavy-duty cabinet for storing supplies, whether it be pellets, utensils, foil and paper, foil pans... whatever. I'd like something metal since it gets really windy in my neighborhood. I'm worried a plastic cabinet would tip over. Are there any options out there that would be weatherproof and rustproof besides stainless steel? I can't afford $2,000 for a stainless cabinet! Any advice?
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Look at some of the tool chest cabinets at Home Depot, Lowes, or even harbor freight. I’ve seen a few on YT and they have butcher block on top. They look pretty good that way!-
I've thought about tool chests. Are those usually rust resistant? I'd like to be able to leave it out on the patio. -
TheAmazingJohnJ - I don’t know. I have a three stacked tool chest by Craftsman that I’ve had for at least 15 years, but it’s in the garage. You would have to read up on them and see - perhaps a waterproof cover over it? To help keep rain off?
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Are you sure it needs to be metal? There are plenty of sturdy outdoor plastic/resin cabinets (I'll admit they're not always as aesthetically pleasing), and if you can secure it to the floor (or just keep it stocked and heavy enough) then it probably won't blow away either.
Literally just today I put together a Suncast BMS2000 with a set of shelves still on the way. $235 from Grainger (local pickup) for the cabinet, shelves were extra but I'm planning to keep most of my BBQ and gardening supplies in there.Comment
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Try Sam’s Club. I bought one there years ago to have on my patio for garden stuff. We no longer have a Sam’s Club near us, so I don’t know if they still have them, but it was a stock item for all the years we had a location near us. It has held up great, all metal with stainless steel doors.Comment
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I use those stainless metal cabinets with the double doors from Sam’s Club for storing insecticides and chemicals. I do know they hold in the smells and vapors really well. They still sell them. Not sure about being totally waterproof since they are assembled with screws but maybe with the use of some caulk and thread seal they could be made to be.
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You could always buy plastic and put a few bags of sand or gravel on the bottom to hold it in place.
The last time I bought some, it was before Covid and was less than $5/bag. They should still be less than $50 today.
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That's a really good idea, Robb . I think my wife has an empty plastic/resin cabinet I could use. I hadn't really thought about just adding weight to the bottom of it!
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I will respond to your question in a comment above. If it is protected from the elements, a tool chest style cabinet will be ok. If it gets rained on, not so much. None of those, even if they have a stainless clad exterior, have stainless for the drawers and interior, the roller tracks on the drawers, and so on. And butcher block tops like some have are not meant to handle standing water from being in the rain outdoors. Again - on a covered porch/patio, its a different story.
Some of the cabinets like doors I saw mentioned above, like these at Sam's Club, are really not meant for outdoors, but might hold up if you realize that just the doors are stainless, meaning the body is powder coated, and will likely need repainting after a few years outdoors. I am thinking ones like this:
Anyway, good luck! I've ended up keeping most of my grilling stuff either in a backyard shed, on a shelf unit in that shed, or in the garage, in a set of plastic bins I stack on a shelf in the garage.Comment
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Not sure what size you need, but here are a couple of ones I found on Amazon that claim to be weatherproof, and might double as a side table for your patio as well:
And here is one I've considered a few times myself, as Sam's used to carry it:
Similar one, all I could find at Sam's today:
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I bought one of these, on sale
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As jtw mentioned above, Suncast makes some heavy duty plastic cabinets which seem to be fairly heavy, won’t rust and comes in various sizes. I’d be worried about rust with most of the metal cabinets.
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I have a craftsman with draws. I like drawers better than shelves. I have a grilling hut which provides some weather protection but because of wind gets a lot of exposure in a climate with 37 inches of rain a year. I have had it for over 25 years but it has been exposed outdoors for 7. It might have one small rust spot. The paint shows signs of fainting being exposed to the sun.Comment
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LA Pork Butt I'm with you on that. Ideally, I'd like a cabinet with a few drawers and a few enclosed shelves and a decent work top. Well, no... actually, my ideal situation is my neighbor's tree falling and destroying my garage/patio and then letting the insurance company pay to build a garage and outdoor kitchen exactly how I want it.
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Your heart my be set on a cabinet, which I understand. I bought one of those benches that double as storage. Keeps two bags of charcoal, butcher paper, foil, gloves, spatulas/tongs, extension cords and a bunch more. Very happy with it.Comment
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