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I want to make a small cache of silver coins in my backyard. I'm going to take a couple of my generic silver rounds and bury them, and make a treasure map and all. How do I package them for the dirt? I don't want my soil to dissolve them, and I don't know what various lawn and chemicals have been poured out there over the years.

I also don't want a mole or gopher to carry them off to their burrow. Do they pick up shiny things like crows? It's clear I have no idea about this.

You put them in an envelope marked PROPERTY of penny pretty, with my address. also just to help out, send me a copy of map for safekeeping!

Preppers use PVC pipe. Size to fit your needs, cap one end with a pipe cap with epoxy or other adhesive for PVC, dump yer booty, seal the other end with your adhesive and cap, and bury.

Use PVC pipe to safeguard the items from water and soil. Enclose a small radio set to a local Country station with the antenna running topside as to get a good signal. Turn the radio on at medium volume as to extend battery life once buried but still be loud enough to be heard through the PVC by human ears. There, that should be a theft deterrent for the gophers as we all know that they can't stand country music. Next you'll need several tracker locaters for smaller silver items as moles can tolerate all music; even bluegrass will not drive these thieving little bastards away. It may be worth your time to look into their removal if they become too prevalent. Check the yellow pages and find a good dermatologist and explain your mole problem to him/her. They are often very knowledgeable and skilled at removal. As with anything, proper planning can avert many headaches. Bury your treasure only in better neighborhoods of your yard such as next to flower beds and koi pond. Steer clear of troubled low income areas such as children play areas and properties adjoining the doghouse. This isn’t everything you’ll need to know but it’s a start. Good luck.

Rodebaugh wrote:Use PVC pipe to safeguard the items from water and soil. Enclose a small radio set to a local Country station with the antenna running topside as to get a good signal. Turn the radio on at medium volume as to extend battery life once buried but still be loud enough to be heard through the PVC by human ears. There, that should be a theft deterrent for the gophers as we all know that they can't stand country music. Next you'll need several tracker locaters for smaller silver items as moles can tolerate all music; even bluegrass will not drive these thieving little bastards away. It may be worth your time to look into their removal if they become too prevalent. Check the yellow pages and find a good dermatologist and explain your mole problem to him/her. They are often very knowledgeable and skilled at removal. As with anything, proper planning can avert many headaches. Bury your treasure only in better neighborhoods of your yard such as next to flower beds and koi pond. Steer clear of troubled low income areas such as children play areas and properties adjoining the doghouse. This isn’t everything you’ll need to know but it’s a start. Good luck.

That's some sophisticated redneck humor right there.

PVC causes discoloration on silver coins. Use ammo cans wrapped in 6-mil poly.

Article on PVC damage to coins:

http://coins.about.com/od/caringforcoin ... ge_faq.htm

You can also bury them in my safe. That is if I had a safe. And what is this gold and silver bullion I am reading about. Is it as good as chicken or beef bullion? Don't ever try to eat a chicken bullion cube. My brother talked me into eating one when I was 4. It was nasty.

Anyone aware of any side effects of other pipe material types: especially ABS?

I would suggest you first place the coins in some coin-safe containers/slips, then seal that in a non pvc tupperware, or plastic baggie airtight. Then it doesn't matter if the pipe is pVC...

If you have a Food Saver system. Then just dump your coins into bag big enough to hold them and send it through the vacuum and seal cycle. Now you have an airtight sealed bag of silver. Drop that bag of silver into a PVC pipe. Seal both ends of it, and bury it. You now have a water proof container as well as a bag with next to no air in it. The bag will protect the silver from the PVC and the lack of air in the bag will prevent tarnish.

The article linked to above says the more flexible the plastic, the more PVC it has in it. Do those food saver bags have PVC in them?

I tried the burying thing a while back... cant remember if it was buffalos in the meadow, or canadian maples in the forest...

Diggin4copper wrote:I tried the burying thing a while back... cant remember if it was buffalos in the meadow, or canadian maples in the forest...

Wheats in the field

So doing some quick research on the web. I found that the reactive part of PVC is the chlorine molecule in the PVC. Chlorine is very bad for most metals. The Food Saver bags are made of Polyethylene hence there is no Chlorine to react with the metals. Here is a quote of the differences between PVC and Polyethylene.

PVC is the polymer produced by the polymerization of vinyl chloride (H2C=CHCl).
Polyethylene is the polymer produced by the polymerization of ethylene (H2C=CH2).
Thus PVC has chlorine atoms on the polymer backbone whereas polyethylene is composed of only carbon and hydrogen.
Most paints don't adhere to polyethylene without a special surface treatment of the polyethylene (usually by plasma bombardment). Thus if you were going to paint or glue the material you would want to use PVC.

So considering that the Polyethylene is only carbon and hydrogen, which are both relatively inert when it comes to silver coins. Then I would say that the food saver bags would be a viable option to store your coins in. Then store those bags inside the PVC pipe for burring.

Rodebaugh wrote:

Diggin4copper wrote:I tried the burying thing a while back... cant remember if it was buffalos in the meadow, or canadian maples in the forest...

Wheats in the field

Rosies in the Garden

Walkers under the sidewalk

jtlee321 wrote:

Rodebaugh wrote:

Diggin4copper wrote:I tried the burying thing a while back... cant remember if it was buffalos in the meadow, or canadian maples in the forest...

Wheats in the field

Rosies in the Garden

Walkers under the sidewalk

Saints in the chuch yard.

still waiting for treasure map! AAAR MATEY!

If start diggin a hole in the back yard, it might not be to good for the wife!

Depending on the size of your loot, you might also want to make sure it is protected from metal detectors. Shrouding it in lead should accomplish this, or burying it under a large rock or a tree.

If you really, really don't want anyone to ever go after your stash, just drop it in your septic tank

Long ago I read that the best place to bury stuff is more than 10 feet down (metal detectors can't reach more than 6-8), or right near old fence posts (there's iron in dog's urine and that will throw off detectors, you know how dogs mark territory) or simply plow scrap iron bits into your soil. I'm not worried about a metal detector. I'm not burying the hoard, just a few coins because I think it would be fun.

IF you can find them, the mil spec hard plastic containers for the 155 mm arty round makes a good underground cache, just make sure you you put them in rolls, taped, throw in some desscicant packages, etc...but bud, unless your in the deep weeds, rural, i wouldnt do this......suburbs? or any place where there's any people, you think you're doing something on the QT?...think again, people aint all stupid, they got eyes, a fellow digging a hole...these days? come on. there's a trick, if you got to, called hiding in plain sight, is good. but at the root of it all is OPSEC, keep your mouth shut, tell no one, except a family or a friend who meets this one crieteria, which is, if you killed somebody, who is the one person or persons, who would hide you out, no questions asked?...thats your wingman.

in short, dont bury no silver, the 155 mm arty containers are good for extra firearms and ammo, but they are super hard to find.