DRiBOX – Large IP55 Weatherproof Outdoor Electrical Connection Box 40 x 31 x 14.5cm – Power Cord Enclosure for Christmas Lights, Timers, Extension Cables, Leads, Reels, Transformers (Large, Green)

Likes, having used it for many months: price, totally waterproof (at least from rain; I've never submerged them), lightweight, very secure and simple closure system, large enough to accommodate a timer and multiple sockets, more than one pair of cable ports, tough and durable, simple hinge systemDislikes: none, I'd buy these again ... and all the above also applies to a smaller box of the same type, which I also bought, the only difference being that the internals are smaller and there are fewer cable ports, which was what I wanted

Bought a new pool for the kids this summer (what summer, I hear you ask? There was ONE day at the very start of September) so I thought I was clever and filled this pool, that my 3m square gazebo won’t fit over, from the hot tap on my shower. Plugged the pump into the Dri-box and we were ready to go. The pool was great blah blah blah, really warm water (after it had taken 7 hours to fill it (5 hours cold fill, 2 hours hot).Kids go back to school, weather not warm enough to use pool again and it has a leak somewhere so let it naturally empty. The Dri-box is still protecting the pump plug nicely.Meanwhile, back in the house, the pump goes on my boiler (too much hot water putting pressure on & eventually it gave up the ghost. Unlike the usual bad luck I have, it was just after I’d had a shower, rather than before or worse still, during, but I digress...), call the insurance company and have a week long argument about why I haven’t had the boiler serviced during lockdown (I’m shielding and my gas man is also because of his wife), eventually they come out, brilliant. Hot water again... pressure drops... call insurance company again, they send an engineer who says ok, expansion vessels gone and need changing, will have to order them and come fit them one day next week. End of the week arrives and no expansion vessel. Still pressurising the boiler by hand to keep heating and hot water on. The plug in the Dri-box is still protected and dry in it’s weatherproof box.Another week passes and I call the engineer, who is 100 miles away, but ‘closest’ according to insurance company. They text back to tell me engineer isn’t coming as work not authorised by insurance company? Speak to someone higher up than the customer services dude who’s working from home with his cat purring as it climbs across his lap, he’s slurping a cup of something hot while telling his dog to stop barking, in the background. Dog must’ve turned round, seen cat on his dude’s lap, cos you suddenly hear Rover’s 4 heavy paws pelting across dude’s laminate floor and Tiger lets out a big shriek, at which point I’m guessing he stuck his claws out and into dude’s legs cos dude gives a muffled shriek, the type of scream someone gives when they’ve been sliced by Edward Scissorhands whilst they were drinking a hot mug of something (I’m guessing tea, he sounded like a tea drinker and I’m not certain I didn’t hear the faint noise of a rich tea biscuit being crunched when he answered the phone?). Of course Tiger jumps to a place of safety and starts to wash himself as he can’t be certain when the last time dude washed his hands, so he could be dirty.Anyway, person above him says they do have to come and leaves me reassured that she’ll sort it (no tea being slurped or pets being chased on this phone call. Very professional).So engineer texts to say he’ll be there on Monday. Brilliant. In the meantime I ask my 17yo son to pack the pool away as it’s killing the grass below it (in all honesty, I’ve asked him to do it every day now for at least a week and been met by ‘eurgh’ and ‘sigh’, but I’m disabled and can’t do it myself, so I keep ‘reminding’ him daily) and he packs the pump away, removing the plug from the Dri-box, which is still working a treat and hasn’t let any water in. In fact, it is so good he decides to leave the extension lead plugged in in the garage and the Dri-box housing the plug end for a few more weeks, just to check how watertight it really is!Sunday night I realise I’ve got hospital on Monday when engineer is coming, so I arrange for someone in my bubble to house sit and let him in. Before I leave I spray everywhere I think he might touch with a thick layer of anti bac as I know he’s not wearing a mask or gloves.Thanks for reading. I give the Dri-box 5 🌟, my ideal boiler, the insurance company and the engineer’s company all only get 1 🌟 to share between them!

A good idea, but not very well made (or not well quality-controlled or both) and expensive for what they are, patent notwithstanding - essentially a slightly fancy plastic box. I got one as a Warehouse Deal, and it arrived with one of the insulation bits missing for the cable. Am sure Amazon will sort it out for me, but don't see how it could've come loose.. The others are stuck down quite firmly, you'd have trouble removing them, so guess this left the factory like this. For this price, you'd think they could afford decent quality control.. I paid a bit over £6 and it then cost around £7 new. Now they're nearly £9.50, which I think excessive.. They also do medium and large sizes (even more expensive).. They are reasonably sturdy, though, and will probably last a long time. The hinges used to secure it come loose sometimes, but only if they're open, once it's shut, they're secure. The lid is reasonably easy to open and close, although the clips can be a bit stiff. The inside available space on this size is 22 cm long, 11 cm wide and 9 cm deep, although not all of this space is fully available: there are 2 square pillars in the middle of each short side, on which the insulation material for the cables sits. These are around 3 cm square, so you've only got 16 cm length fully usable inside. Please see pictures, I've probably not explained that well. The outside measurements are 27 cm length, 15 cm width and 10 cm depth, with the lid attached. It's not big enough for a 4-gang extension socket, although a timer for a seed heating mat and the socket for the heat mat just about fit inside - I'll reluctantly pay the price for another one for this purpose. I bought this for a 2 plug socket on my outside extension lead, which fits easily with plugs in both sockets. If there is such a thing, a 3-gang extension socket would probably just about fit with plugs in it, although haven't tried this. The position of the cable feeds are not ideal in my view. If they'd put them in the corner of the short sides, or one (or better yet 2) on the long side, it would be far easier to feed the cables through and would've been more space efficient. As they are, if you're using a normal extension lead, you have to bend the cables for the devices around in quite a tight bend, which will surely lead to wear of the cables over time - don't think cables are meant to be bent that much. With the medium and large size boxes, the cable feeds are on the long side, which is better, but not ideal, either. One cable feed would be better on the short side of the box. As it's got a US patent, I imagine they're not designed with British sockets in mind. I've only used mine outside once so far, when it wasn't raining much, but am sure it's fully waterproof, or would be, with all the insulation pads. The entry points for cables are cushioned from above and below with silicone pads, to give a tight seal. It's not very heavy, so if it's being left in place permanently, might need to be weighed down. They're very handy for anything electrical outside, and would recommend and buy again, despite the price and shoddy quality control. Other brands cost just as much or more - some come with extension leads, though, so might work out a better price if you need one.