Using a coin flip and a hose washer to mail seeds

Settlers of Catan is still a great game.

These are quite cool

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I wrap the seeds in a single square of toilet paper like burrito, and seal it with a very thin 3cm by 1cm strip of masking tape. I use a craft razor to score the entire roll of masking tape, so it undoes in two thinner spools.

I purchase plastic baggies from the dollar store; 72 bags for $1.00. They are resealable and waterproof. Wrapped seeds go in; the masking tape ring is labeled and the bag is labeled.

I tape the bags inside used DVD covers. I ask friends and family members to put their old DVD collections on a spindle; all the disks onto a stick. Iā€™ve collected about 500 of them free, just by mentioning it casually that I am in search. I have also seen used DVDs at thrift stores and flea markets for as cheap as $0.50 each; ie. ā€œ10 for $5ā€.

The DVD case goes into a $0.50 bubble mailer. If shipped within Canada, the postage is 3 stamps or $3.50ish. If shipped internationally, I pay $15-18 for tracking.

The plastic baggies are 2 cents each, the tissue paper maybe 1-2 cents I havenā€™t looked into it, and the bubble mailer 50 cents. The one roll of masking tape has lasted me three years and was $5, and thereā€™s still more than half left.

So packaging materials: pretty cheap and not too impactful. Iā€™m not ordering any custom plastics or stickers, or shiny bags or anything delivered to my house or whatnot. Just stuff I can pick up at the dollar store when Iā€™m in town. (Albeit from China.) The plastic in the bubble mailer is wasteful, and the plastic baggie is questionable. But at least resealable; an old dime bag can store five joints or some other seeds. I use these little bags multiple times, just crossing out the old nameā€“or the sharpie wears thin and I can just wipe it away and write a new name. And the DVD cases wonā€™t last forever. But they fit snugly into the bubble mailer, and have resulted in 0 incidents of crushing in hundreds of orders/trades/gifts.

And three postage stamps is alright for cost, a few bucks. Fits through mail slots. Usually how I send free seeds.

For sales though, I ask $10 US for shipping; about $12.50 CAD. A good fair price for shipping with tracking for the customer I think. It costs me $15 to $18 CAD per order to ship with tracking, depending on where it goes. New Zealand, Poland, UK, USA, all make it fine and have been similarly costed. Only sending a big box of clones to Hawaii was $50 ish.

I would use these washers and coin flips for envelopes to send seed as gift. Great tradition to share with us! Iā€™ll pick some of this stuff up and having it as an option from time to time will reduce other shipping costs. Itā€™ll be nice not to use full shipping materials for sending gifts; I will be inclined to send more I expect.

Thanks for sharing everyone. Cheers!

-Dr. Zinko

ps. That guy with the painstakingly hand-crafted artisan wooden washer! Hah!
ā€œI tried to send seeds sustainably but I lost a finger by the sixth order.ā€

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Amazon is selling packs of 10 hose washers for a buck a piece. I just received mine and they work great! They are the cheapest I found yet. Just punch in hose washers in there search bar and scroll down.

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Hey man, this method is above all. You are 110 percent right! All in my cart, pressed go. Thanks for the fire info!

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I send seeds this way lol havenā€™t had any broken ones yet,crazy how itā€™s so busted up

Yessssss! Your obsession with me gives me strength! I feed on it! :poultry_leg: :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

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Haha as a person who dabs a lot. I do have an obsession with you!

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Hey, Iā€™m finally getting around to ordering some flips.

Which size coin do you buy for? Quarter or Fifty Cent piece?

Iā€™m guessing quarter since the washer is tight insideā€¦ peace

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These are the ones I use:

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Thanks, I think I want the cheapo fold over and staple or tape. I was just curious if the washers fit in a quarter flip or does it need to be bigger. I can dig some out here from somebody but been real busy and didnā€™t want to go looking. I have a few packs sent that way but may take a while to find them. Once I find one I can measure it myself. Maybe tonight.

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I use these hose washers with that size flip. they are very tight, but fit with the full surface of the adhesive stuck to the other side. im sure the non-adhesive would work well too, once you get the first staple in

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Hope this helps @GMan

Forgot to mention itā€™s a 25mm flip and the washer is 25mm outside diameter.

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Quarter Flip OR Small Dollar Coin Flips works perfectly with Garden Hose Washer. You can buy 100 ct packs on BOTH eBay and Amazon. SS/BWā€¦mister :honeybee: :100: :pray: :heart_eyes:

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This is what itā€™s all about right here. Spreading knowledge to help others in any way possible, especially saving money!

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Finally got 'er done. Now I can share some of my stuff. Not that it means much, but I should have lots of stuff for people to play with. Thanks everyone. I got a brand with 27.5mm and great reviews for $6.99 per 90 pieces, and 50 hose washers for $4.99. I was surprised at how many flip sellers had shitty reviews. Main complaint is the window doesnā€™t match up when folded. This brand at least had some good fakers to give perfect reviews, lolā€¦ As long as my seeds donā€™t crack! peace

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Thatā€™s good to hear @GMan looking forward to growing some of your creations :grin:

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Be interesting to see some of your vault collection .
Maybe some Esco or Sannie surprises ?

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They go back. I got some crosses I really want to have grown, and try myself, from Bigun, Santero, Beachbud, and NAW crossed to a Lemon Fantasy by Le Rat, from Switzerland. Other stuff from all over the placeā€¦ At least the seeds all look AAA+. heh. I still have to cull a lot of them but now I have a mission.

I have lots of crosses fro the last few years, too. A few @SamwellBBā€™s ā€¦ almost everything I grew, lol. No sense in sitting on them. Iā€™m still learning much about the whole genetic history of what I partook in most of my life, but never new much of the details past the 70ā€™s. There should be some fun stuff. peace

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Asking someone who has sent out plenty of these internationally. What % of these never turn up? Thanks

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