"The problem with panniers …"

[MCL1981]

This is what saran wrap and/or aluminum foil is for

[eminva]

Try this:

http://www.amazon.com/Topeak-MTX-Trunk-Side-Panniers/dp/B000FICAQ4/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1323366881&sr=8-3

The top section, as you can see from some of the user photographs, is like an insulated lunch box. If you use it as such, you can unzip the panniers and put your spare clothes in there, completely separate. However, if you arrange stuff strategically in the top compartment, it stays upright. I can’t remember ever having a spill.

Either that, or one of those Hermione Granger charmed bags . . .

Liz

[Greenbelt]

I just made the big switch (to panniers). Got some really big ones that allow a lot of flatness on the bottom for helping to keep leakable food items upright. I’ve just been separating the food and clothes by putting both in plastic grocery bags. Then just take out the bags (and leave the pannier on the bike at all times). So far so good.
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[JustinW]

Wrap the spillage item well, and plop it on top of a mush-able set of clothes that you’d normally take. The clothes can serve as a flatter, more level surface to carry stuff with.

Learned thru trial and error, of course. One pannier still offers a hint of curry at times….

[CCrew]

@MCL1981 11785 wrote:

This is what saran wrap and/or aluminum foil is for

And Ziploc bags are your friend too

[DaveK]

If I bring lunch I usually tie down the Tupperware or whatever to my rack and leave it out of my panniers. That way it stays level and tied down to the bike individually.

[Dirt]

It isn’t any easier with a messenger bag. Food and beer tend to go in the cargo basket. Clothes and electronics go in the pannier. It isn’t easy to move food sometimes. Even good tupperware can open up under challenging conditions.

[Mark Blacknell]

Apparently I’m the only one who eats food immediately after it’s handed to him.

[culimerc]

I used the “clean side”/ “not-so-clean” side method. Laptop and clothes in one side. Lunch, coffee etc in the other. and as above, I keep a stock of plastic bags as well.

[PotomacCyclist]

Maybe remove the gyroscopes from a Segway and improvise a high-tech pannier compartment?

[KLizotte]

I use the Lock & Lock brand of containers when I want to transport food leak-free. So far, no leaks! They are like tupperware but have a silicon gasket and locking flaps on the sides.

http://www.locknlockplace.com/index.php/food-containers/plastic-series-airtight.html

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[Riley Casey]

Those nice even without the messy pannier trauma.

@KLizotte 11813 wrote:

I use the Lock & Lock brand of containers when I want to transport food leak-free. So far, no leaks! They are like tupperware but have a silicon gasket and locking flaps on the sides.

http://www.locknlockplace.com/index.php/food-containers/plastic-series-airtight.html

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[KLizotte]

@Riley Casey 11816 wrote:

Those nice even without the messy pannier trauma.

Yes, I liked my set so much that I paid for them to be shipped from the UK to the US when I moved back stateside. I mistakenly thought they were a UK brand and couldn’t buy them here. It’s the only brand I’ve found to be leakproof.

I never stick them in the microwave even though they are supposedly microwave safe (I don’t trust any plastic in the micro).

[JeffC]

I could not handle surviving on tofu and veggies. Carnivorous fare (e.g., pemmican, jerky, meat chunks) goes fine in screw top tupperware containers.

[Dirt]

Think of the pannier as an integral part of the food preparation process. Skip the whole tupperware and plastic wrap stuff. That’s all just gonna end up in the landfill anyways.. Just dump your food directly into the pannier. The bumps along the Custis trail will help mix it up and help get the consistency right. At lunch time just open the top, reach in and grab a handfull and put it in your mouth.

Be careful to get all the food groups in the pannier. Definitely adds a bit of adventure to lunch time.

Love,

Pete

[Author]

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