3 Home Depot Homer Buckets $7 Shipped

The title says it all. I saw this on Slickdeals.

http://m.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v...SID=Vsa_mO6zEeGtTVriAfNBtA0_0_cIJ_0_0&cj=true

I just saw that as well. I haven't done much reading on the topic: are these food grade and/or safe for fermentation?

It looks like it doesn't come with a lid, isn't this the same price as in-store?

joshrosborne said:

I just saw that as well. I haven't done much reading on the topic: are these food grade and/or safe for fermentation?

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I don't know. I picked them up for sanitation and grain milling/storage. I don't currently ferment in buckets. I also have a house painting project coming up so I may use one of them for that. The nearest Home Depot is 2 hours away so this is a great deal for me. For $7.43 shipped to my door, they can be a lot of things.

joshrosborne said:

I just saw that as well. I haven't done much reading on the topic: are these food grade and/or safe for fermentation?

Click to expand...

They are not food grade. People have mentioned fermenting in them before. Personally, I wouldn't... They're great for storing grain though.

bertsbeer said:

It looks like it doesn't come with a lid, isn't this the same price as in-store?

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It seems to be the same price as the store buckets without a lid around here.

They are #2 grade. I thought that is food safe?

The 3 pack is $.27 per bucket less than in the store.

Ask around, I have heard that people get icing buckets at the supermarket and soy sauce buckets at Chinese restaurants for free. I got mine at a local dairy for $1.50 ea. (syrup buckets)

Just FYI, the number on the bucket has nothing to do with being "food grade." There are a number of non-food grade and food grade containers made from #2 plastic. The difference comes from the dyes used in the manufacturing process and their leaching temperatures so you really need to check with the manufacturer. Unless the bucket says "food safe" on it, I would call them first. Homer buckets are made for painting so there's no telling what kind of chemicals are in there. If the bucket was actually used to store food at some point (like the icing and soy sauce buckets,) that's a different story.

#5 plastic, on the other hand, has a much higher melting point and is often used to make "food grade" containers for items that are packaged hot. These plastics are much safer for a brewer to use. I would still check if they aren't labeled food safe though.

I skimp on many things in life, but nothing I'm going to ingest. A few more dollars for a safer bucket is a great price for my health and peace of mind.

The best deal on buckets has to be the Firehouse Subs pickle buckets. 2 bucks with the lid if they didn't forget and toss it. It has to be food grade (duh it had food in it) but on the bad side it has a smell you will NEVER get out. I use one of mine to hold my grist before it goes in the mash tun. The other one I use for a car wash bucket. I don't think I'd ever consider making a fermenter out of one because of the pickle thing but the buckets are great for other stuff.