Food Grade Plastic 55 gal Barrel Question

[poconogal]

Just wondering if there's any way to tell if a blue 55 gal. barrel is food grade. Does it have any sort of markings, code, anything at all to indicate when its a food grade barrel?

[kpotter2]

Don't know,but if you do a quick search online about it I am sure you will get some good info, if you don't find any here.

Later,

Kyle

[poconogal]

Tried online searching before I posted this, and again after I posted, there doesn't seem to be anything that addresses identifying what is food grade!

[Jhhnn]

It really comes down to an issue of trust wrt the source of used barrels. Sometimes barrels will have labels describing the previous contents, and sometimes they have residue of the previously stored product.

One of my two barrels came from a friend at work who claimed he got it from a salad dressing maker, and that it had held only vinegar. It had been kicking around his place empty for years, so the vinegar smell was long gone... The other barrel I picked up from a bakery, and there was still a little bit of propylene glycol, a food additive, in the bottom... at the price they were asking, $15 each, they had no reason to lie- people will gladly pay that for any plastic barrel that's in good shape...

All of the virgin blue or white plastic barrels are basically food grade before they're filled with anything. That first use and any subsequent use determines if they remain food grade or not...

[David Rose]

I picked up two recently from a local Craigslists ad that claimed to be food grade, but there are no markings. They had a drink concentrate in them previously based on what the owner told me on the phone and they definitely smelled of it when I picked them up. I just disinfected them in a bleach/water mix and was happy with my purchase for $12 ea.

[allan_mark76]

FOOD GRADE - mine contained syrup for the coca cola factory. Smelled real good too. Did not interfere with the water in any way what so ever. I would clean it out really good though. I filled it up let it sit for 2 days in the sun, emptied it on the lawn, did the whole process 3 times to make sure things were all good.

~AKA~

[discusjoe27]

you can also get a rubbermaid trash can from wallmart,lowes,target, etc etc.
it works just as good, that is what I use.

[poconogal]

I picked up two recently from a local Craigslists ad that claimed to be food grade, but there are no markings. They had a drink concentrate in them previously based on what the owner told me on the phone and they definitely smelled of it when I picked them up. I just disinfected them in a bleach/water mix and was happy with my purchase for $12 ea.

We just drove to Spring City, PA (went thru Macungee and Emmaus) where I bought 2 blue 55s for $10 each. The guy that had them said that there was only water soluble stuff in them, no chemicals. He said some had stuff like regular isopropyl alcohol, some had a soap concentrate and some were food grade with syprups for soda, etc. Since they were all together, he wasn't sure which barrel had what though.

I bought barrels that supposedly contained the alcohol since I wash up with it before sticking hands/arms in the tank anyway and figured that would be fine. It turned out that the 2 the guy's wife said had alcohol in them didn't. One had to have a syrup, it smells like vanilla cream soda but the other... it smells like strong vinegar, and it burns the nose a bit when sniffed. Of course, the vinegar we buy in the store for salads, etc. is reduced with water to only 5% acidity, so pure vinegar would be very strong. For some reason, neither my husband or me thought to smell them before we left duh... :o but the woman said she was 100% positive that these particular barrels had contained only rubbing alcohol, so...

Like Jhhnn said, it now seems from what I've been reading that all the blue barrels (and white ones, too) are food grade to begin with and then it depends on what was put in them, and since the guy said that no chemicals, only water soluble stuff was in them, and it does smell like vinegar, I'm going to wash thoroughly, rinse about 50 times and test that barrel out on a 20 gal. tank with Tetras in it.

[poconogal]

you can also get a rubbermaid trash can from wallmart,lowes,target, etc etc.
it works just as good, that is what I use.

Thanks and yes, I have a 30 gal rubbermaid that I used to use, but I didn't want to spend the money on the super duper sized rubbermaid. $10 a barrel was easier on the budget, since I'm on unemployment since January.

[Jhhnn]

Seems like you did alright, Poconogal.

And, yeh, the nose knows, often more than we give it credit for.

Your tetras will probably enjoy a little cream soda, right?

[poconogal]

A little cream soda, who wouldn't enjoy that? LOL!!!

[Daniella]

The Rubbermaid 32 gallons Model 2632 is food grade for meat and poultry. I bought a Rubbermaid Roughneck and I have had no issue with it for storing my RO water. You have to check the code underneat to see if it is safe. HDPE and LDPE are safe from what I understand. Mine is made of LDPE and I have been using it for 6 months without problem. Here is what I found on the Rubbermaid Roughneck from a thread in this forum:

http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/f43/important-information-regarding-the-storage-of-sw-and-ro-di-water-for-top-offs-long-2577.html

"I called Rummermaid in Wooster OH and talked to a Customer Service Rep. and told asked her if it was possible for the trash can (Roughneck Refuse Container #1339) could LEACH into the contents fo the can. She quite readily said that IT WAS POSSIBLE because these are made of Recyled Material. She email me the codes that are molded into the cans and their meaning for what the cans are made of. I have copied the information into this post below:

Thank you for your interest in Rubbermaid Products.

Each of our products has a recycling code molded into the plastic on the container. It is a triangle with a number in the triangle, and letters along the bottom of the triangle, which indicate the material the product is made of. Codes are as follows:

1 - PETE polyethylene
2 - HDPE high density polyethylene
4 - LDPE low density polyethylene
5 - PP polypropylene
6 - PS polystyrene

I asked her if Rubbermaid maid containers that were safe for FOOD USE. She said that their Commercial Division has products like this and gave me their number: 1-800-347-9800. I called and they have containers that are USDA approved for meat and Poultry use. They have many products, and if you want to check them out you can go to: http://www.rubbermaid.com or http://www.rubbermaidcommercial.com The web page on the 32gal containers that are USDA approved is: http://www.rubbermaidcommercial.com/...search=2643-00 "






Just wondering if there's any way to tell if a blue 55 gal. barrel is food grade. Does it have any sort of markings, code, anything at all to indicate when its a food grade barrel?

[poconogal]

Thanks, good to know those codes.

[MTH]

I also have a barrel from a DR Pepper soda factory. They stored the soda's syrup in it. It was a hand me down from a fellow hobbiest so I got it for free. Would like to pickup a couple more. Does anyone know where in San Diego I can get them?

[Jhhnn]

I also have a barrel from a DR Pepper soda factory. They stored the soda's syrup in it. It was a hand me down from a fellow hobbiest so I got it for free. Would like to pickup a couple more. Does anyone know where in San Diego I can get them?

Search craigslist for "food grade"- several ads in your local edition. Your best bet is to get 'em directly form the people who used the stuff that was in 'em, rather than through a middleman...