Husky 20” PRO Tool Tote
Husky 20” PRO Tool Tote
The Husky 20-inch PRO Tool Tote is a great example of why Husky tool totes and bags are seen everywhere on jobsites, in use by pros of every trade as well as by DIYers.
Husky, as most readers know, is one of the Home Depot house brands. The Husky brand comprises hand tools, storage products, work benches, and tool bags, totes, and pouches (and probably other things that I’m forgetting). What is unusual with Husky as a house brand is that it enjoys a good reputation, not just with DIYers, but also pros, for excellent value (that’s certainly been my experience). Indeed, I see Husky tool bags and totes everywhere, in use by professionals in every trade, far more than I see any other brand.
The Husky lineup of bags and totes is extensive, so finding the ones that work for the way that you specifically organize and carry your tools is pretty easy. There are two main lines of Husky tool bags. The all-black PRO line is made from heavier fabric and more robust construction methods, and comes with a 5-year warranty. The red and black bags are the standard line, and they come with a 3-year warranty. I’ve used both types over the decades with no complaints, and see both in use frequently.
Tote vs. Bag
When my dad was discharged from the Marines at the close of World War II, he entered an electrician’s apprentice program. The first task for any new tradesman (it was all men back then) was to make himself a toolbox. There were no off-the-shelf tool boxes available (any that were, were very expensive); each man made his own, usually from plywood (a relatively new material then). Most, including my dad’s, looked a lot like the one below: longer than wide, with an open top, and with a couple of vertical compartments. My dad used that same toolbox — sporting a lot of repairs! — well into retirement. It’s what I grew up thinking of a toolbox as.
The open-top tote is still my preferred style of tool carrier for my most commonly-used tools – the ones I take on every job. Additional tools specific to the task at hand are then carried in other totes and bags, and I have a variety of styles and sizes on hand to choose from. I used a Husky 16-inch version of this tote for a few years until it proved too small for my needs. This 20-inch one holds considerably more.
The main advantage of a tote over a closed bag is that longer tools can be stored vertically. The primary disadvantages of a tote are 1) it’s less stable as your truck goes over bumps and around curves, and 2) your tools aren’t protected from the elements. Everything is a trade-off.
Husky 20-inch PRO Tool Tote
Husky’s actual name for this tote is the 20-inch PRO All Trade Tool Tote, which emphasizes that this tote isn’t configured or sized for any one specific trade, as some totes and bags are. It features:
- Model # H-2220
- Pro durability with heavy-duty 1680D polyester, reinforced ripstop pockets and waterproof hard base
- Tool organization including tape clip, tape roll tether, 15 external pockets and 16 internal pockets
- Modular tool wall panel allows customizability and the ability to bring a full section of your tools out of the bag
- Hard-sided exterior pocket for sensitive items
- Reinforced handles and padded shoulder strap for durability and comfort for transport
- Quick-disconnect adjustable shoulder strap for easy access to tools
- 2022 cubic inches of storage
- $74.98 at The Home Depot
Vertical and Horizontal Organization
Vertical tool organizing totes have been all the rage for the last few years, and they are well-loved by quite a few pros. I suspect that they are best suited for tradespeople who need pretty much the same tools day in and day out. Many others, including me, find ourselves doing different jobs from week to week, usually with a core set of tools, and then specific tools for the job at hand. A tote like the Husky 20-inch PRO Tool Tote allows both vertical and horizontal tool carry; the side pockets are well-suited to vertical-carry hand tools, while the main compartment can hold anything that will fit there.
Notable features
You can get a good idea of the pocket layout from the pictures, but here are my comments and observations from using this tote.
This thing feels bomb-proof! It has a very solid feel overall, the 1680 denier fabric is very substantial, and the solid molded bottom, which covers 2 inches from the bottom, provides hard case-like protection to the tote’s most vulnerable area.
It can hold a nice assortment of tools in the vertical pockets (both internal and external). Only one side wall had internal pockets deep enough for longer screwdrivers, but there are enough pockets there to accept a good number of them.
The handle is very securely attached to the body. And importantly, it swivels, as it must to put larger tools into the main compartment.
There are more pockets than you will use!
The saw sleeve on the outside will accept a speed square nicely (see picture below).
The zippered external pocket is large enough to hold a good assortment of small tools and whatnot that you don’t want getting lost at the bottom of the main compartment. This is an essential feature of any tool bag.
The 10ish-inch width and overall size are right at the maximum that you want to avoid bumping into clients’ furniture and belongings as you walk through a space that’s in use (see picture below).
You can pretty much find a pocket for almost any tool that you want to carry.
The “modular tool panel wall” (see picture below) is hook-and-loop attached to one of the interior walls. You actually have to know that one of the pocketed interior tool walls is removable because it’s not obvious when you look at the tote. It takes a little doing to disengage all the hook-and-loop, but once you do, you can just lift it out, tools and all, to create a smaller carrier for a selection of tools. I don’t know how many tradies will find this useful, but in any case, it doesn’t take up any space in the tote, and you can just forget about it if you want to.
How It Feels in Use
It should be obvious that I like this PRO 20-inch tote a lot. It does everything that you could want in a tote in a comfortable but large enough size to be useful for anyone. It carries comfortably, doesn’t have any design features that get in the way, and has an extensive assortment of pockets to accept commonly used tools. And feels comfortably rugged!
While I’ve used (and still use) bags and totes from Husky’s standard line that have held up well, the extra beefiness of this PRO-level tote is comforting. While I can’t tell you how long it will last, I’ll give you very good odds that I won’t be using the warranty.
The versatility of the Husky 20-inch PRO All Trade Tool Tote really is suitable for all trades, as its full name suggests. If you have more, different, and/or very specific needs in the tool bags and totes that you use, Husky makes hundreds of models in all sizes and configurations. Unless you need something lockable or hard-sided, I cannot think of a trade that can’t be well outfitted with a selection of them…as my jobsite observations over the last couple of decades indicate.
Finally, if your needs are for something analogous but in a zip-close bag, Husky makes two similar 20-inch PRO-line bags. You can check them out here and here.
