homemade topsy turvy

My mother in law and sister in law bought the topsy turvy, (upside planter for vegetable and fruits)but did not have much success so far. They both planted tomatoes plants they had bought partially grown from the store and both of their plants died very quickly. I am hoping to have better luck especially since I am growing mine from seedlings. More time I have put into it the more disappointed I will be if it doesn't work out. So I started thinking "Why can't I create my own homemade upside down planted?" So I am on the look out for old 5 gallon buckets that I can find on the side of the road. I will just wash them out and see how it goes. My motto is "One's man's trash in another man's treasure". I drive my husband nuts because I am always dragging something home that we can use.