Noob question about primary jugs

Hey everyone, sorry if this has been asked before (I did a search but had a hard time narrowing down results).

I have a 1-gal batch on the go right now, and I want to start another one. Problem is, I only have one glass jug at the moment, and my local homebrew store doesn't carry 1-gal jugs (it's a winemaking store). The guide I'm working off of is VERY explicit about NOT fermenting in plastic jugs (the ones that juice comes in)...is it really that much of an issue?

It won't be in there for more than 3 weeks, probably less. Has anyone who's tried it noticed a difference in the final product? Why would it be such an issue?

I'm not sure about wine, but for beer plastic is fine. I'm being cynical when I say they probably just want to sell you glass carboys.

I sat art in plastic pails and move to glass jugs. No prob.

For short term you'll be fine. People do meads in plastic water jugs all the time. Long term, not good - the plastic is permeable by oxygen.

BTW, Northern Brewer has a great deal on a 1 gallon setup, including the bung and airlock for $7.99

http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/brewing-equipment/fermenting-equipment/carboys-jugs/small-batch-fermentor

You could maybe go shopping for sweet Apple cider in a glass gallon jug this time of year.

Not a lot of options in my area, there's the Santa Cruz 3/4 gal jugs, but they're $15 here.

I did some more digging online, and apparently plastic #7 may contain BPA, which can leach into acidic liquids. So you're supposed to use #1 or #2. I don't think one batch will kill me though.

Buy cheap wine in a big green glass jug

I live in Canada. There's no such thing as cheap wine!

The biggest jugs here are 3L (3/4 gal) for $25ish

I believe that the plastic water jugs (Poland Springs, etc) are #2 PET.

Huh, that's good to know. I'll look into it, thanks!

I can get glass jugs, it's just too far away to justify the travel time unless I'm planning to be in the area anyway. But if I ever get into an experimentation kick, some cheap plastic ones might come in handy.

potatoes said:

I live in Canada. There's no such thing as cheap wine!

The biggest jugs here are 3L (3/4 gal) for $25ish

Click to expand...

Sorry. I was just in Nova Scotia and a small bottle of local wine was cheaper than a suitcase of Bud Light! Great if you like local wines. Guess you are better off getting food grade plastic buckets of glass is too expensive. Try AMAZON or your local bakery.

potatoes said:

I live in Canada. There's no such thing as cheap wine!

The biggest jugs here are 3L (3/4 gal) for $25ish

Click to expand...

Wine is so expensive here. I'm from around Montreal. If you want, I can give you some addresses ffor where I buy my gear. We have some good specialized stores here. A 23litre glass carboy is around 35$ and plastic bucket around 10$

I appreciate the offer, but that might be a bit of a drive from BC.

There's a decent homebrew store across town, I just can't get out there on a whim.