What do you use for a "gigantic" piggy bank that doesn't break the bank..

[tinkermom23]

I've heard that if you fill a very large glass jar, it's so heavy that the bottom can break out when you lift it.

We use a tin can from Cub Scout popcorn. It's about a 2-qt size. I covered it with Mickey paper and the kids decorate it. It's smaller for a couple reasons- I want the kids to help bring it in to the bank and feel it is theirs too. They are more motivated when they see how much was in the can and wouldn't be as motivated if we only brought it in once a year.
Right now the can is for spending $$ for our upcoming Disney trip. We cash the can in about every 3 months and there is between $100-$150. We all take the cash and get a Disney gift card with it. The kids contribute whatever change they find! It has made it a group effort, not just mom & dad.

Next summer we will start a new can for our next family vacation, wherever that may be.

 

[Andrea from PA]

Not pretty, but can decorate -- We use a Rubbermaid Gallon Jug with handle. Got it cheap (yardsale maybe?). It was suppose to be used for Lemonade, but about 10 years ago it became the coin jar. We've had up to $200 in it and it still was not close to the top.

 

[bookgirl]

I use my WDW souvineer popcorn buckets. Seems fitting.


My mom uses a 5 gallon ozarka bottle for her pennies and a large apothocary jar for her silver coins. I'll just tell you now major PITA to empty and cash in. Big showy banks are cool to look at but not so practical.

 

[Thumper_Man]

Popcorn tin. Now for the holidays, they're everywhere.

 

[ChrisinNJ]

We use a Disney plastic popcorn container from MNSSHP 2008

 

[MEM]

I use my WDW souvineer popcorn buckets. Seems fitting.


My mom uses a 5 gallon ozarka bottle for her pennies and a large apothocary jar for her silver coins. I'll just tell you now major PITA to empty and cash in. Big showy banks are cool to look at but not so practical.

I often wonder about the logistics of cashing in the money in 5 gallon water bottles. I just can't imagine shaking that pig until its empty. Unless there's another strategy I'm not aware of? A sawzall?

We use our collection of WDW popcorn buckets but I have to hide them in my closet - DD15 tends to "borrow" change for her beloved Dunkin Donuts iced coffee.

 

[bookgirl]

Logistics of cashing in a 5 gallon jar of pennies.

try to lift it.....um not happening

tip it over and roll it towards something about two inches high

lever the bottom on the tipped over bottle to the two inch high item so that the top spout will tip downwards and start to empty onto a convienent towel

slowly like moving of the icebergs slow empty out the top of the pennies onto the towel and transfer to a pillow case when you run out of zipper bank bags (ziplocks will tear)

do this like 20 times inching the bottom higher as it gets lighter to get a more productive pour

when you finally get the jar empty enough to lift with out giving yourself a hernia move the jar to the couch and then hold it upside down while balanceing it on the edge of the couch to empty out the rest

take it to the bank along with a lot of apologies and sheepish looks and ask them to put it through the coin counter

take your approx $300 plus dollars and tell your mother that she's a lunatic if she thinks you're ever going to do that again then take some advil with a stiff drink

two weeks later start giving your mom your pennies because she misses her 5 gallon jar of copper and watch her start the process all over again

The silver is easier only in that the apothocary jar has a huge opening and you can just handful the coins out (this also takes a whole lot of time) to your convienent zipper bank bags and the pillow case but the walk of shame to the counter is still the same. The pay off is about three times as good.

They don't actually mind doing it but it's just so goofy to lug in all those coins and put them on the counter and have to explain that you don't have a vending machine buisness or a wishing well, you're just OCD about coins.

My mom hates to cash her's in but once I get to a couple hundred or really even one hundred I just want to get rid of it and put it in savings.

My nephew makes the fourth generation of coin hoarder in the family. My granddad did it and use to give my brother an I some of his to put in our banks. When I was young my dad worked construction and sometimes my mom's coin jars were how we got through the lean winter months when work was scarce. She use to let us pour them out and sort and count them...FOR FUN. Now my brother and I do it just out of habit. My nephew used to take change and keep it in his closet in a big tupperware bowl when he was a preschooler. We would give him coins for his "bank" and he adored them.

 

[SandrA9810]

I've always counted my change, I can't imagine letting a machine do it. Plus pennies vary in weight, and you could be off by a lot of money from a 5-gal jug.

And I like to keep all the wheat pennies.

 

[FINFAN]

ok, this is going to sound weird, but we unstuffed some old stuffed animals that the kids no longer wanted ( years back). Anyways, DH and I couldn't part with them all the memories etc. We cut a hole in the back of each of them, pulled out the stuffing and actually starting using them to put our change in. It was kinda cool to see them come back to life as they filled up and they were not too big so we could lift them once filled. The kids got the $ that was saved up in them. I did have to set them up in a bowl to start with, until they *grew* large enough to sit on their own.

 

[czkmom]

My kitchen is a disney theme.... and I have several disney cookie jars on the top of my cupboards (display only I never use them)..... except for change. For our past 3 disney trips (since 2006) I've been sneaky enough to toss change in them that no one knows to this day where it disappears too all the time! With three teen-aged boys, I'm afraid if my secret ever came out, the change would be out the door as soon as it was put in

 

[luvthemouse71]

Right now, I'm using an old souvenir popcorn bucket from WDW. I've also done the coffee can thing and also bought a bank in the kids section of Target that keeps a running total of how much is in there, which is fun.

Oh, and I do like a PP does. I only put silver and small bills into the banks. Pennies get separated out because they take up room and are just not worth the space. They go into a separate can.