I do not know if this works for other platforms. I am on 360, and can say with absolute certainty that this works every time, like a charm.

It is really simple.

During the game, as you are traveling/exploring, anytime you come across an empty container ( marked, "EMPTY" ), do NOT open the container. Leave it alone, and do not touch it.

As long as the empty container has never been looted, or opened, but rather, is just "empty", this will work.

Save your game.

After saving, reload an old save. Make sure the old save is as old as possible, preferably going back several hours.

After you reload the old save, wait a few seconds (doesn't matter how long you wait), then load up your save that you just created.

The container will no longer be empty, but will contain randomized loot.

9 times out of 10, this works.

There is a 10% chance that the container will still be empty. If this happens, just repeat. however this works with 90% certainty.

This trick does not guarantee special loot, just the random loot that would have normally already been randomized in the containers you come across.

This just guarantees no disappointing empty containers along the way.

This doesn't harm your game, or risk corrupting your saves at all.

I'd rather spend all that time reloading, exploring different dungeons instead.

Bingo.

Should probably have been in the Cheats, Hints, and Spoilers forum.
After all, this could be considered both a Cheat and a Hint by exploiting a glitch.

I play on PC, so if wanted to cheat like that I'd just use the console.

unlike criminal and others, i always like to see all the different glitches and tricks and exploits people find.

very nice, bleakwail.

When you say containers, do you mean ALL containers, like barrels or small boxes, or does it mainly work with just chests?

Have you ever noticed an empty container, ignored it, only to come back later on with the same character to have it filled with something?

WOW!

Cos theres not enough loot in Skyrim right

But what I don't get, how does this work anyway?
I've done my share of modding and container placement, and there are different objects for filled and empty containers. One have leveled lists, one have not.
So why a container supposed to be empty suddenly gets a leveled list is beyond me.

So it's going to contain a few pieces of gold and some random junk. Not worth the effort of reloading to me.

Its possible the level lists have a chance for "empty"

That's true, but I've never seen it. I've seen these lists, and I don't really see any indication that they might be empty.
If so, there would be a small chance that a merchant had no wares at all, if all their leveles lists went empty by chance.

well, on reloads you get merchants with no money.

Your manipulating something that's "empty" to begin with? i can't help but feel like its cheating lol even for a single player game :S

Then it's a bug. They have a set amount of gold available, that is their common amount.
Simple as that, forget I ever got confused, the bug-fest that is Skyrim got me an answer.

oh, it's definitely a bug. and, a very annoying one.

i'm always hitting the wrong buttons when dealing with merchants or changing my mind about buy/sell and reloading.

well, used to reload. not anymore.

This is in the same vein as punching a merchant to make him aggro, and then reloading a save made moments earlier to see his money magically reappear. I assume that both bugs are caused by the same reason: data being retained in memory inbetween savefiles where it shouldn't.

This is not a glitch. You're reloading and forcing the chest to respawn, which might have loot. 99% of loot in skyrim isn't even worth carrying tbh