Picked a 55 gallon drum over a 330 gallon tote for a marina job and it saved my back
Last Thursday I had a small piling job in Long Beach where I had to haul gear down a 60 foot dock with no crane access. My two choices were the 330 gallon tote that holds more gear but weighs a ton when full, or the 55 gallon drum that I can roll solo. I went with the drum and it was the right call because I loaded it up, rolled it down the dock myself, and my helper just had to keep a hand on it. The tote would have needed two guys and probably would have caught a cleat. What are you all using for small marina jobs where you can't get a lift in there?
That drum idea works even better if you strap a cheap hand truck to it, the kind with the big wheels for stairs. Then you can tip it back and walk it down the dock way faster without dragging the bottom on the wood. The trick is you want the weight low and centered so it does not wobble when you hit a loose board. I have done the same thing at a couple docks in the harbor and the guys with totes were watching me roll past them while they waited on a second set of hands. Small jobs just do not pay enough to tie up two people all day.