Hi,
I turned a landscaping utility trailer into a kayak transporter, using an old set of Thule feet, bars & various kayak racks. My issue is that we like to take our dog kayaking (with pfd, which in his case is a pooch flotation device), and he sits in the back of our Subaru Forester where the paddles and pfds usually go. He typically jumps in for a swim during our paddles, and for some strange reason the kids don’t want a wet dog on their laps during the drive home. So I’m looking for a locking box to install on the trailer. I’ve looked at standard truck boxes that are made of aluminum, but I’m concerned they are going to get moldy inside. Plus they usually run at least $200 for one 48", which is about the minimum size to store paddles after taking them apart. I’d prefer something made of a wire mesh and angle iron, but would want it to lock in case we ever decide to go for a hike or something.
The trailer has open sides and a mesh floor. I may add wood to the floor later on. Any new box would be bolted to the angle iron framing.
Any ideas?
Here is an example of what I was looking at: http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200390354_200390354
Thanks for any help.
And please refrain from telling me to get a bigger car, leave the dog at home, etc. There are other reasons I want to keep the pfds & paddles outside of the car. The dog was just one example. 
how about…
http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/king-kong-mobile-all-purpose-job-box#desc-tab
its a bit shorter, but I know I have seen poly boxes around.
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200611493_200611493
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/buy-sell-trade-other/125570-fs-delta-truck-mate-tool-box.html
Not sure about wire mesh
For paddles it may make no difference, but I don’t think I’d want PFDs carried on a trailer in a box made of wire mesh. In rainy weather they’d be soaked, but not by clean rain water, but by grimy water kicked up off the road. This would especially be a problem for the first rain to occur in a while when the mist stirred up by traffic (and your own car) is especially dirty (road grim consists largely of leaked engine oil and various dirt that’s adhered to it). You don’t notice this too much on your car’s finish, but I think you would on any kind of fabric, like what’s on PFDs. I take it you don’t ever drive on gravel roads, because if you did, you probably wouldn’t even be considering a box made of mesh.
I’d want the storage box to be enclosed. You could provide a little venting if the lid sealed all that well (and chances are it doesn’t fit that tightly). That way, items inside would dry pretty quickly once the box were exposed to some sunshine and the interior were to become hot.
Excellent point
I thought of that after posting it. I didn’t want a big solid box being like a sail, but given the configuration of my racks I think I pretty much have to turn it sideways anyway, running lengthwise in the trailer.
Not bad…
But I can’t find an inexpensive plastic bin big enough. Anything large enough breaks the bank. Thanks for the ideas though.
Back to basics?
I don’t know if this would work in your particular case, as it depends on your skills, but if you have some rudimentary carpentry skills, you could make your box of wood. That’s what many do for trailer-mounted storage boxes. Really, I think a person with no wood-working or carpentry experience at all could make a decent box if they dedicated half a day to the job, and maybe asked some friends for advice or looked online for it. A wood box won’t last forever unless cared for periodically, but even without care it should last 10 to 15 years or so (that’s assuming it’s well painted to start with).
Used locker
Used lockers are cheap and should be available locally at a junk dealer.
http://www.buyusedlockers.com/uploads/48361IMG_0466.JPG
Good idea.
I might do that. I’m slightly concerned about security with screwing it together, but I could probably glue it as well, and put the upper screws underneath the lid.
Security
I don’t think it’s likely that anyone wants to deal with the screws that hold a wooden box together. That would be a lot of work (terribly difficult without power tools), and made even worse by the fact that the heads will be painted. The screws attaching the hinges or latch(es) might be tempting to tamper with though. For those, I’d use bolts, with the bold heads on the outside and the nuts on the inside. On the inside, use double nuts, torqued against each other, to create a “plug” that can’t be disassembled from the outside. Or use carriage bolts, again with the bolt head on the outside.
Also
Yes on small carriage bolts for the hinges. If you’re worried about screws on the box, use glue and rink-shank nails, it’ll never come apart.
Good ideas.
Thanks!
Resin storage box at Lowes $55
Says it’s lockable
http://www.lowes.com/pd_544465-84396-17199435_0__?productId=50070503&Ntt=deck+storage&Ns=p_product_price|0&pl=1¤tURL=%3FNs%3Dp_product_price%7C0%26Ntt%3Ddeck%2Bstorage%26page%3D1&facetInfo=