Incorporating Your Mailbox

Welcome to March, the time to be preparing for April because the warm weather will have definitely arrived by then and it will be Lawn & Garden month.  While people are always focusing on their flowers and flower beds there is a part of many people's landscapes that unfortunately goes overlooked or which people get stumped by.  This common item which exists on many people's properties is the good old mailbox.  Many people sadly don't do anything with their mailbox and let it stick out like a sore thumb which takes away from the rest of their landscaping efforts.  The reality is there are numerous ways to make your mailbox far more attractive than it is and make it work with the rest of your property so that it isn't an eye-sore.

If you have your mailbox on a post then there are several ways to make it more attractive.  First one you can do is turn the surrounding area into a flower bed.  Then plant a flower in front of it which when fully grown will be almost up to the bottom of the container.  On the back plant an attractive climber which can cover the post from the rear.  Now instead of having an unattractive mailbox sitting alone it is surrounded with flowers and looks far better.  You can also install a decorative mailbox that goes with the flowers or your overall landscaping theme. 

In addition to planting flowers around your mailbox you can try painting it different colors.  The best way to do this is find flowers with colors that will complement your mailbox's colors.  These flowers don't even need to cover the post, the aim with this approach is to create a color design that is appealing to the eye and not make the mailbox feel alone and out of place.  If you're looking for an older more rustic style you can search for a wooden mailbox.  A wooden mailbox can be allowed to age and then have vines growing up its post which will give the feeling of being slowly reclaimed by nature.  Just make sure you're mail stays protected.

Another way to incorporate your mailbox is by moving away from the traditional post.  Plenty of people have found success by having the pillars at the end of their driveway which match the house's architecture work as locations for their mailboxes.  They can be embedded in the pillars or hang off the front of it.   This removes the need of the mailbox being its own entity and it blends right in with your existing landscape.  There are many more variations for implementing your mailbox into your landscape, so share pictures with us of what you've done!

Cluster Mailboxes – More than Meets the Eye

History

When Benjamin Franklin founded the first post office there was no such thing as a mailbox.  Before the 19^th century and really the 20^th century, mail carriers delivered mail directly to the recipient.  So if they were delivering a letter to a person's house they would knock on the front door and wait until someone answered to hand the letters.  A study was done and it showed that the average mail carrier lost around 90 minutes a day because of this.  Therefore in 1923 the Post Office Department mandated that all households must have a letter slot or mailbox to receive mail.  While this worked there was no regulation on mailbox shapes.  As America suburbanized more curbside mailboxes popped up.

Dawn of the Cluster Box

Then in 1967 the Post Office Department introduced the first cluster boxes.  The cluster boxes were built to service entire neighborhoods and buildings.  It was determined that the cluster box would not only save time, but also money.  The mail carrier would no longer need to stop each time to drop off one person's mail.  Since then the cluster box unit has seen multiple evolutions and has become the curbside locking mailbox that you commonly see.  As improvements happen every so often new specifications for their production occur.  The newest specifications released in 2005 required manufacturers to have a license in order to make them.

Advantages of Cluster Mailboxes

·   Multiple mailboxes at one location means mail carriers don't need to make as many stops, this saves them time and money because of reduced fuel costs.

·   Because the Post Office saves on delivery costs they don't need to increase prices for sending mail and other items which is good for the consumer.

·  The cluster box is considered safer than regular mailboxes and more durable.

·   A cluster mailbox can also have an outgoing slot.  This allows residents to drop off mail at the same time as they pick up their mail.

·  Cluster mailboxes help protect mail carriers from dog bites.  There really is an issue of people's dogs attacking the mail carrier when they try to deliver the mail.

·  For property developers cluster mailboxes provide savings over individual mailboxes for each resident or tenant.

·  A single combined mailbox can make a neighborhood more attractive because you will no longer have multiple unattractive mailboxes lingering around the area.

·  Cluster mailboxes do a better job of protecting the mail from the elements than regular mailboxes do.

People and Property managers looking to purchase USPS approved cluster mailboxes have a number of options for size, colors and configurations.  The mailboxes can even be utilized for commercial mailboxes.  So if you think a cluster mailbox will provide you with the benefits you're looking for don't hesitate to search for USPS approved manufacturers and dealers.