DIY Fermenter

I have an ancient keg and corkscrew kit. Posted in this thread; https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/looking-brew-have-questions-271846 Its a 5.5 gallon fermenter with drop in bags. This kit is from 89 and I don't believe I can find refill bags. I may be looking to fabricate a fermenter and continue to use other equipment from this kit. It seems a lot of kit fermenters are pretty simple. It appears to basically be just a bucket. Ideas?

Really all you need is a food grade 5 gallon bucket with lid. You can get them possibly free if you try restaurants or bakeries, just make sure the buckets weren't used for non food items or pickles, other strong stored items that are vinegar based. They leech through the bucket into the beer.

Then just drill a whole in the top of the lid (or buy one pre done with a grommet) buy a $2.00 airlock and your good to go for a fermenter.

Lowe's has food grade buckets for $5, as well as regular buckets for $2. FWIW I bought mine before they carried food grade buckets and the beer tastes great and I'm not dead yet (I think I'll go for a walk now). I wouldn't use them for extended bulk aging though as they are O2 permeable.

Actually one of our members has been lining his fermenters with, IIRC Turkey roasting bags for years and years. Or something similar. Obviously they are food grade.

bjl110 said:

Lowe's has food grade buckets for $5, as well as regular buckets for $2. FWIW I bought mine before they carried food grade buckets and the beer tastes great and I'm not dead yet (I think I'll go for a walk now). I wouldn't use them for extended bulk aging though as they are O2 permeable.

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I bought one of my lids from lowes that I drilled, it said 2 grade so should be good enough for krausen to touch every now and then :cross:

This is exactly what I will be doing then.