fermenting buckets from hardware store

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jlewin

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can i use a 6 gallon bucket from the hardware store as a fermenting bucket? looks exactly the same as the one I paid about 15 bucks more for at the brew shop.
 
The process that they use in making them is not nearly as precise as with food grade buckets, so they are no where near as smooth as good ol' Ale Pails. The lack of smoothness, the little pockets and whathaveyou, are excellent harboring grounds for bacteria and extremely difficult for your sanitizer to reach and clean thoroughly.

Do you really want to risk $40 of ingredients to save $15 on a bucket?
 
Do you really want to risk $40 of ingredients to save $15 on a bucket?[/QUOTE]


nope. thanks for the tip. just for future reference is there any way to tell if plastic is food grade? do they include some sort of marking on the bottom?
 
Pretty much unless they came with food stuff in them, they are not. I know some people use ones that they got from a restaurant after they got all of the product out of it.

Avoid the ones that held pickles, for obvious reasons.
 
I picked up a home depot bucket. They are just fine for mashing and for bottling. I also use them to store my supplies between brews. I wouldn't trust them for an extended ferment, but for an hour of bottling, they're fine.

So I say pick one up....
 
I'm using home depot buckets too. I'm using them because I couldn't find small food grade buckets. My beers taste great, but I did notice the finish isn't 100% smooth, like what was mentioned above. Just wash/sanitize them well and you should be fine.
 
thanks. i'll pick up a couple i think for a quick racking and bottling. be nice to have extras for that purpose.
 
I used to be very much into saltwater reef aquariums, and using non-food-grade buckets or trashcans was always a huge NO-NO..but the real reason was the salinity of the water would break down the plastic, nothing noticible to the human eye, but it would leach toxic compounds into the water. Even then the compounds that were leached were rarely enough to harm fish, but the expensive inverts in the tank would be poisoned.

That being said, i don't know how much the acidity or basic qualities of wort would cause a leaching, and even at that I don't know if it would be enough for the human pallet to discern an off-taste.

That being said if you you can find food grade buckets you will sleep easier. The bakeries around here typically have buckets and buckets of icing that they will give away or sell very cheap.
 
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