55 Gallon Ordinary Steel Drum System

[lincoln]

I will just leave this here.

 

[CCBrewer]

I just have to laugh...


Who the hell would brew in a RUSTED 55gallon drum?


it's... RUSTING..... I know it's California.... But damn...... it is rusting....


He should be locked up for serving ANYTHING made in that drum to ANYONE.

 

[JRems]

Please please don't ask the op to see his brew pump, it might be a sewage sump pump he pulls out of his septic tank.

 

[jfrizzell]

As long as he puts one of these on each bottle, it's all good!

 

[CCBrewer]

I thought it was a fuel pump from a Pinto?

 

[TravisT]

I've read a lot of threads on here, from guys starting Nano breweries to "is my beer infected?"..... This one might be the the most epic!

 

[tenbricks]

Epic thread, maybe. But not in a good way; HBT is generally more helpful and a lot less insulting than this. While I would never brew with a setup like this, I couldn't criticize him either, since I don't know that it's actually bad.

I'm not a medical professional, or even know much about it, but I am skeptical about anything just assumed as common knowledge. So, a bit of googling turns up a few more facts:

- Iron, as posted earlier, is poisonous if too much is absorbed.

- Rust however is first insoluble and second not particularly harmful. Iron welders have a huge exposure to it from breathing in iron oxide fumes, and OSHA has concluded that's not very harmful.

- Cooking acidic foods in cast iron has been shown to leach in trace amounts of iron, usually considered a good thing unless you're one of the few people who already have too much.

All I can conclude is nation would be far worse off if he polished all the rust out of the kettle. But even in that case it's not clear there's anything to worry about; wort is only slightly acidic and nations large brew volume reduces the surface area.

Perhaps one of the more technical people here could run a few calculations on iron leaching rates based on a worst-case contact area, acidity, and boil time. I can't, but would be surprised if it turns out to be high enough for anyone to be worried about.

Again, I would never use a setup like this, and would happly suggest ways it could be improved or things he should worry about. But I wouldn't criticize unless I actually knew he's doing something dumb or bad.

 

[CCBrewer]

this thread should be locked

 

[heferly]

this thread should be locked

Agreed

 

[SwampassJ]

Epic thread, maybe. But not in a good way; HBT is generally more helpful and a lot less insulting than this. While I would never brew with a setup like this, I couldn't criticize him either, since I don't know that it's actually bad.

How would you feel about being served food that I dropped on the floor pre cooking or stired with my penis before cooking?

 

[bayern-kaiser]

if you really wanted to do this with a plain steel drum what you would do is set a fire inside and burn off all paint/lining then repaint it with some food grade/ high heat enamel or ceramic coating ( expensive stuff but will survive a direct nuclear strike) and slap some high heat paint on the outside. also I would look into that gold phenol coating they use for food grade paint cans

 

[Tupperwolf]

This is terrifying.

 

[bottlebomber]

Haha I forgot about this thread. If anyone is wondering if this is a good idea just take the fact that the OP disappeared from the forum right after he started using the system and never returned.

 

[kzimmer0712]

Yo man take it easy. The guy was only asking a question. He was looking for answers and constructive comments, not useless insults.

Cheers

 

[BlackJaqueJanaviac]

Wow. I think I've exposed myself to mor poison reading the comments on this thread thanthat guy has in his beer. Too much iron is bad for you. But your body will also die from too little iron.

He could do worse and brew using some truly toxic metals like aluminum or copper. But nobody is THAT stupid.

There is probably more iron in chili cooked in a cast iron pot. If you think the seasoning will protect you forget it. Just rinse the pot afterwars and see how much seasoning is left.

 

[LandoLincoln]

Wow. I think I've exposed myself to mor poison reading the comments on this thread thanthat guy has in his beer. Too much iron is bad for you. But your body will also die from too little iron.

He could do worse and brew using some truly toxic metals like aluminum or copper. But nobody is THAT stupid.

There is probably more iron in chili cooked in a cast iron pot. If you think the seasoning will protect you forget it. Just rinse the pot afterwars and see how much seasoning is left.

You would REALLY drink beer from that came from this thing?

You are crazy.

 

[JUST_BREW_IT]

Yo man take it easy. The guy was only asking a question. He was looking for answers and constructive comments, not useless insults.

Cheers

Are you from San Fran???

Is that you nation???????????

 

[BlackJaqueJanaviac]

You would REALLY drink beer from that came from this thing?

No. But not because of "rust". I would be more worried about the integrity of the coating. From the photo it looks like the coating has small cracks or holes which is allowing moisture to get underneath it. Is the black mildew or rust?

If that is what is truly going on, then you have micro environments where botulinum bacteria can fester. Botulinum produces a toxin called botulin which will kill you even though you killed the bacteria by boiling. Thats why you do not eat canned food from bulging cans. Cooking it will not save you.

If the OP wanted to do it right he would actually strip out the "food grade" coating. But then I would trust the experience of tradition in that the beer would taste bad. I am sure someone tried it at some point and that is why we see aluminum, copper, and SS as the metals of choice.

Keep in mind that you do not necessarily have to absorb the metal for it to affect the taste. I have read that copper boilers make superbly flavored beer. I would hope it is not because of any copper content in the beer though.

 

[kickflip_mj]

Just stop everything! stop being a cheap ass and save for another month, your medical bills alone could cover the cost of a large brewery.

 

[Jayjay1976]

Rusty beer. Now I've seen everything.

 

[PeteSeattle]

And I was worried about a few rust spots in my old keggle which I just retired.

Edit: if OP were near I’d just give him my old keggles because I’m that concerned ... others, please don’t pm me unless you have a serious rust problem.

 

[day_trippr]

This thread was dead for five years. I doubt the OP is still around...

 

[Jayjay1976]

This thread was dead for five years. I doubt the OP is still around...

Unless he's...undead. Red rust redemption, anyone?

 

[PeteSeattle]

This thread was dead for five years. I doubt the OP is still around...

Yeah, I figured. But I was also being facetious.

 

[Harry482]

You're right. I concede that it's a great idea now that I see the pictures of the still in use rusty barrels and the fact that he is still alive to post. If only all ideas could be measured in terms of whether it kills you in year or not.

Any chance the OP is screwing with us?!

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

I hate to say this but Ive brewed in a steal barrel before, 30 years ago on the farm, we burned the barrel twice washed it out mashed and boiled in it on a fire pit with a whole bag of grain and it tasted great and when I say 30 years ago this is how we made moonshine back then too so nobody died or got sick but again I wouldn't do it today

 

[Jayjay1976]

I hate to say this but Ive brewed in a steal barrel before, 30 years ago on the farm, we burned the barrel twice washed it out mashed and boiled in it on a fire pit with a whole bag of grain and it tasted great and when I say 30 years ago this is how we made moonshine back then too so nobody died or got sick but again I wouldn't do it today

Yeah but, ozarks. The rest of us have a future to consider.

 

[day_trippr]

Ouchie.
That's gonna leave a mark...

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

always a negative poster somewhere here, that's why I don't visit very often

 

[day_trippr]

I think he's been drinking...