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Author	Message Text
deerfoot	05/07/2021 06:33PM   What about my barrels - yellow from Eureka Canada when they still used yellow (now I understand they use blue barrels). Maybe Canadian bears have different preferences.
greywolf33	05/07/2021 06:10PM   ...because they are sad to know that they are only bear-resistant, not bear-proof?
gsfisher13	05/08/2021 11:01PM   Easier to find when the bear drags it into the woods. Blue easier to spot than green :)
bobbernumber3	05/04/2021 02:03PM   Industry standard for food storage.
merlyn	05/04/2021 12:46PM   I was talking to a guy about "out west" camping vs BW camping and the subject of bear resistant food storage came up. The question about whether bears can see color and it's relation to food storage became part of the discussion. Google says bears see blue and bluish tints better than other colors and although they can see reds and red -ish tints blues pops more for them. Begs the question "why are bear resistant food vaults mostly blue or have a bluish tint?"
AmarilloJim	05/04/2021 01:18PM   Those blue barrels aren't bear resistant but I don't know why they are blue.
bottomtothetap	05/04/2021 04:07PM   Mine (right side of photo) is green
quark2222	05/04/2021 05:53PM   I think blue barrels are faster than barrels of other colors. Just like red canoes are faster than other colors. Tomster
fadersup	05/04/2021 03:55PM   George Jones spent some time with this very question. Up above me are the skies Like the twinkle in your eyes These things are the colors of the blues In the mail your letter came The ink and paper look the same Blue must be the color of the blues Bluebird sitting in the trees Seems to sympathize with me For he's not singing like he used to do The pretty waters in the sea Feel as cold as you left me Yes, blue must be the color of the blues There's a rainbow overhead With more blue than gold and red Blue must be the color angels choose A blue dress you proudly wore When you left to return no more Blue must be the color of the blues Blue days come and blue days go How I feel nobody knows Life is mighty empty without you There's a blue note in each song That I sing since you are gone Yes, blue must be the color of the blues There's a barrel in the woods To a bear, it smells real good These must be the barrels bears do choose. Pack it full of fats and sweets Candy bars and jerky meats Blue you'll see when goodbye goes your food
A1t2o	05/04/2021 02:24PM   bobbernumber3: "Industry standard for food storage." This is it right here, it has nothing to do with a bear's vision. Also, blue just looks cleaner. Red makes people think of blood, yellow of oil or fat, orange a mix of yellow and red, green could be mold or mildew, white hides mold and soap or hard water residue, and black and brown are too dark and too closely related to unclean substances like dirt or poop. That's why blue is standard for food storage. Even if it is not a conscious decision based on the industry standard, people trend towards blue anyways.
mschi772	05/04/2021 05:35PM   Because there is no such thing as a "bear barrel." These blue barrels everyone thinks are "bear barrels" are just polyethylene open head drums with lever lock rings. They are just one of many industrial storage vessels used in tons of commercial and industrial applications. They are not specifically made for campers. They are NOT bear resistant. They are blue because that's the typical coloration of the plastic used in making these drums. Even the "brand," Harmony, that so many people associate with them is just a middle-man reseller. Most of the barrels we use are produced by Mauser Packaging. Regarding containers that are actually tested and certified as bear resistant... Bearvaults are a blue-tinted polycarbonate. Why tint them blue? I don't know. Perhaps the color is a consequence of them tinting the PC to reduce heat or UV. Perhaps they just tint them blue to match people's arbitrary expectations or to provide some sort of psychological appeal. Perhaps blue-tinted PC is just the most cost-effective PC that they company can source for their production. The Garcia canister is black. The Counter Assault canister is yellow. Bearikades are black carbon fiber. Regarding the visual acuity of black bears, they have quite good color vision, and testing up to this point has not found it particularly limited or weighted in any significant way.
sns	05/04/2021 06:10PM   I have been in a giant frozen food warehouse that had thousands, maybe tens of thousands of blue barrels filled with frozen blueberries and frozen cranberries. Every now and then one would get dropped and that would be a heck of a mess...the semi-frozen juice was just liquid enough to make it a no-fun event for the employees.
tg	05/04/2021 10:03PM   quark2222: "I think blue barrels are faster than barrels of other colors. Just like red canoes are faster than other colors. Tomster" I always love that one
pswith5	05/05/2021 05:41PM   fadersup: "George Jones spent some time with this very question. Up above me are the skies Like the twinkle in your eyes These things are the colors of the blues In the mail your letter came The ink and paper look the same Blue must be the color of the blues Bluebird sitting in the trees Seems to sympathize with me For he's not singing like he used to do The pretty waters in the sea Feel as cold as you left me Yes, blue must be the color of the blues There's a rainbow overhead With more blue than gold and red Blue must be the color angels choose A blue dress you proudly wore When you left to return no more Blue must be the color of the blues Blue days come and blue days go How I feel nobody knows Life is mighty empty without you There's a blue note in each song That I sing since you are gone Yes, blue must be the color of the blues There's a barrel in the woods To a bear, it smells real good These must be the barrels bears do choose. Pack it full of fats and sweets Candy bars and jerky meats Blue you'll see when goodbye goes your food " I was going to be a smart A and say why is the sky blue. But this does it better.
Knoozer	05/06/2021 10:08AM   I thought they were blue because the test marketing done by the manufacturers found that the bears preferred blue over camo.
4keys	05/06/2021 04:08PM   My neighbor, who is a RV camper, got a blue barrel from a friend. Then after discussing the bear issue around Seagull last year with us, he gave us that barrel. After opening it, we knew it had been used for bulk food stuff. It had a very strong smell of cumin. We could not get the smell out, so we did not use it in the BW.
mr.barley	05/06/2021 04:17PM   bottomtothetap: "Mine (right side of photo) is green " My blue barrel is also green.
tumblehome	05/07/2021 02:27PM   I must have a fast canoe
Jaywalker	05/07/2021 08:37PM   The thing that bugs me most is that that color of blue on Harmony barrels attracts deer flies.