Making wine in my beer bucket?

Anyone make wine in their beer bucket.
I have found that my beer bucket has started to turn brown from all the hops and usage.
I currently have it soaking in some oxiclean and will be scrubbing.
I intend to use the bucket to make a spiced ale, but then need it to make some berry wine.
Just dont want my berry wine coming out tasting like hops?

I wonder if I should just use another bucket to be safe.
But the last thing SWMBO wants around the house is another orange Home Depot bucket!

I do have a 5 gallon home depot bucket which is filled with Star San, so I guess I could use that. But then I would be weary of using it to store sanitizer.

So what say you?

Sent phrom my IPhone!

I use the same buckets to brew beers, ciders, wine, etc. I never had flavors carry over from one batch to the next.

WI_Wino said:

I use the same buckets to brew beers, ciders, wine, etc. I never had flavors carry over from one batch to the next.

Click to expand...

Me too. But remember that after primary, you need an appropriately sized carboy for the wine.

I also use the same vessels for beer and wine without problems. Just clean them very well. The smells and stains do not seem to transfer anything to the beer or wine.

+4. No issues.

One of buckets turned green from brewing an IIPA (8-9 oz of hops). I don't think it will ever leave, but no issues with transfer of color, taste, or aroma.

Yooper said:

Me too. But remember that after primary, you need an appropriately sized carboy for the wine.

Click to expand...

I have more carboys than I know what to do with.
I have taken a year off from wine making to make beer, but I am going to make a raspberry/blackberry/blueberry wine to hand out for holidays.
(I just need to but wine making supplies, energizer, sorbate etc... All my stuff is so old it most likely no good anymore)

Thanks for help.

Same here, my brewing equipment is also my winemaking equipment, back and forth no problems, just a good cleaning (I use oxyclean green)

If you just started the wine. Be careful with handing them out for the holidays. Did that once and started them this time of year. Long story short. Most we gave as gifts blew there corks. Hahaha!

I would recommend you stick with food grade plastic for fermentors. Home Depot buckets are not food grade... Your beer bucket most likely is. Just be careful when u scrub it, try not to scratch the inside. Bacteria likes to live in those scratches.

I use two buckets or my Big Mouth Bubbler for everything.

One bucket is for my cooking wines made using hot peppers, onions, and/or garlic.

The other bucket is for everything else.

I soak both in bleach and Oxyclean (yes, yes, I know, bleach shouldn't be used, blah, blah. Don't worry, I rinse thoroughly and let the bucket dry for days before using.) and have never had any issues with any off flavors bleeding through.

bendog15 said:

I would recommend you stick with food grade plastic for fermentors. Home Depot buckets are not food grade... Your beer bucket most likely is. Just be careful when u scrub it, try not to scratch the inside. Bacteria likes to live in those scratches.

Click to expand...

Home Depot does sell food grade buckets but they'll usually be white. I'm pretty sure all the orange colored ones are not technically food grade.

WI_Wino said:

Home Depot does sell food grade buckets but they'll usually be white. I'm pretty sure all the orange colored ones are not technically food grade.

Click to expand...

Orange bucket, NOT food safe
http://www.homedepot.com/p/The-Home-Depot-5-gal-Homer-Bucket-05GLHD2/100087613
These white ones are food safe but I don't see where they sell them singly
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Leaktite-Premium-5-gal-Food-Storage-Container-10-Pack-P9GL00FG/202735752

My orange Home Depot bucket says HDPE 2,
Which I read was food safe

Pyg said:

My orange Home Depot bucket says HDPE 2,
Which I read was food safe

Click to expand...

This is what it says on their website:Link in previous post.

Use for mixing paint, hauling topsoil, storing parts and for other purposes
Ideal for use as a utility pail on work sites
Holds up to a 9 in. bucket grid
Plastic construction for durability
Orange color with the Home Depot logo
Buckets are not food grade
Note: product may vary by store

bendog15 said:

I would recommend you stick with food grade plastic for fermentors. Home Depot buckets are not food grade... Your beer bucket most likely is. Just be careful when u scrub it, try not to scratch the inside. Bacteria likes to live in those scratches.

Click to expand...

I was thinking the same thing about the Orange bucket. I was talking with my brother who was trying to convince me to skip paying a few bucks for a bucket and use one that was a cat litter container! I told him he was nuts that fragrance would probably never leave the plastic. I also use equipment for both wine and beer.

Pyg said:

My orange Home Depot bucket says HDPE 2,
Which I read was food safe

Click to expand...

White HDPE2 is, who knows what they use to color it?

I worked for years in the plastic industry, and there can be all manner of reasons that a plastic isn't food safe; anything from release agents and pigment to air quality in the plant and storage conditions. If you want to be sure, just look for the NSF stamp for food safety, should be on the bottom of any container that's usable.

http://www.nsf.org/about-nsf/nsf-mark/

I frequently go back and forth with my bucket between wine, mead, and beer. A good hot soak with PBW always seems to work just fine. But normally I just start wine kits in carboys, unless there is a blatant reason not to (grape skins, tons of oak).

theDREWery said:

I worked for years in the plastic industry, and there can be all manner of reasons that a plastic isn't food safe; anything from release agents and pigment to air quality in the plant and storage conditions. If you want to be sure, just look for the NSF stamp for food safety, should be on the bottom of any container that's usable.

http://www.nsf.org/about-nsf/nsf-mark/

I frequently go back and forth with my bucket between wine, mead, and beer. A good hot soak with PBW always seems to work just fine. But normally I just start wine kits in carboys, unless there is a blatant reason not to (grape skins, tons of oak).

Click to expand...

I am going to be making a berry wine using 9 lbs of berries in a mesh bag. No way that fits in my carboy.
Then again I could pay my kids to sit and drop each berry into the carboy, but seems more work than worth.

If the orange Home Depot buckets are not food save, are they ok to leave 3 gallons of San Star?
I keep a Home Depot bucket full of sanitizer .
I have 1 more batch of beer 1 batch of cider and a batch of wine to make before the holidays and only 1 bucket.
The problem being is that I don't want to buy another bucket for the 1 month I need it.

Maybe I will finally start making wine, cider and beer in all my empty carboys.
Something I have never done before

Pyg said:

I am going to be making a berry wine using 9 lbs of berries in a mesh bag. No way that fits in my carboy.
Then again I could pay my kids to sit and drop each berry into the carboy, but seems more work than worth.

If the orange Home Depot buckets are not food save, are they ok to leave 3 gallons of San Star?
I keep a Home Depot bucket full of sanitizer .

Click to expand...

I don't know but I do use a bucket that is not marked for food safety to sanitize in, been using it for years just for that purpose and have never had any ill effects from it.
Again, don't take my word for it, that is just what I am doing.
PS: for the record, I don't store sanitizer for more than about 24 hours.

menerdari said:

PS: for the record, I don't store sanitizer for more than about 24 hours.

Click to expand...

I keep a gallon of K-meta in a glass jug and in a spritz bottle.
I usually keep a small amount of K-meta in the bottom of my empty carboys.

I also keep a 1/2 gallon of San Star Ina. Home Depot bucket and keep a lid on it. I also keep a spray bottle of it as well.

Looking at my plastic, and almost none have the NSF stamp. I believe the stamp has to due with international standards, but it's absence doesn't mean a container is not food safe. I've read that Sterilite's products are all food safe, but cannot find that reference right now. Best thing to do is just research whatever you plan to use. I know most of my buckets are Ropak brand. Good rule of thumb is if it is used for food storage its fine. Although you'll probably never get the pickle flavor out of those Firehouse Sub's buckets. I'll try to do some more research into this, but a universal symbol or stamp seems unlikely.

Pyg said:

I keep a gallon of K-meta in a glass jug and in a spritz bottle.
I usually keep a small amount of K-meta in the bottom of my empty carboys.

I also keep a 1/2 gallon of San Star Ina. Home Depot bucket and keep a lid on it. I also keep a spray bottle of it as well.

Click to expand...

Star-san, once mixed and diluted, lasts a LONG time, doesn't it? I usually end up spilling it before the pH rises to a non-sanitizer level. I make up a gallon at a time, and use and reuse for weeks and months. That's something like 1/4 ounce per gallon, so it's a very small amount to use over 6 months.

I've been using star-san for about 9 years now, and I'm on my second bottle. :rockin: Between beer and wine, it's used weekly or even more often. I use it for my kegs, my keg lines, my winemaking gear- even my apple press!

A large bottle would probably last me forever.

The orange buckets HDPE2 were food safe years ago however now it is said if these buckets are heated they release a chemical that has been found to be a carcinogenic. As far as my understanding goes as long as you sanitize them properly and don't heat them there should be no issue. However I still used beer buckets that are food safe as I don't want to mess around with a carcinogenic when I can spend a few extra bucks and be safe. There is also a reaction occurring in these buckets so not sure if the exothermic energy will release the carcinogenic chemicals in the plastic or not.

The Brutes stamped with the NSF stamp -
The following is taken from the Rubbermaid website:

Meets NSF 2, 21 approval and is USDA Meat and Poultry Group listed, ensuring regulatory compliance for food storage and clean ability and:
Accepted for direct food contact as follows: in Grey, light grey and natural for all food contact types.
Fuschia is only acceptable for usage with the following food types:
Alcohol less than 15%, aqueous, bakery products with no free fats or oils on surface, dairy - oil in water emulsions, and dry solids.

Izzie1701 said:

The orange buckets HDPE2 were food safe years ago however now it is said if these buckets are heated they release a chemical that has been found to be a carcinogenic. As far as my understanding goes as long as you sanitize them properly and don't heat them there should be no issue. However I still used beer buckets that are food safe as I don't want to mess around with a carcinogenic when I can spend a few extra bucks and be safe. There is also a reaction occurring in these buckets so not sure if the exothermic energy will release the carcinogenic chemicals in the plastic or not.

Click to expand...

So should I be concerned storing my Star Sam in there, for fear of carcinogens leaking into my sanitizer?

from http://modernsurvivalblog.com/preps/safe-plastics-for-food-and-drink/


All food grade buckets are made of HDPE #2 (high density polyethylene),
but not all HDPE #2 buckets are food grade.

Buckets that are not food grade may out-gas and leach into the container, as well as into the contents held within the container.

HDPE #2 buckets that are not food grade may have been manufactured with a non-food-grade “mold release agent”.

In some processes, a mold release agent is what is used to help get the newly shaped plastic off of the hard mold that it was shaped from during the manufacturing process. Without the release agent, the new plastic shape will likely stick to the mold. Some mold release agents enable much faster production than others, but may be toxic to your health if later used with food.

Other processes apparently do not use a mold release agent and only use high pressure compressed air to blow the bottles into shape on the inside. No mold release agent of any kind is used inside the bottles of this process.

If you are unsure, you might simply contact the supplier or manufacturer to confirm.