Plastic codes

[marshman]

I've searched the bottling section for help, and found tons. Unfortunately, I've come up with a question that I can't find...How does a person tell PET plastic from other types? Just out of curiousity, I looked in my home recycle bin and saw HDPE and PETE on different bottles. All of the PETE contained food, but the HDPE contained food and non-foods. Is PETE the stuff I need for bottling? Or is there a different/better(I've heard of mylar and lined plastic, as well) stuff I should be looking for? I generally like glass, but the ability to pop off a large bottle for sharing seems kinda cool.

Muchos Gracias

 

[gnef]

why not use 2 or 3 liter soda bottles? just clean out the soda really well, and you know they are OK for food. would this satisfy your needs?

 

[user 4295]

Yes, you would need PET plastic bottles for bottling due to the fact that it is less oxygen permeable than other types of plastic. There is a triangular recycle symbol on most all plastic containers made today. The number inside that triangle represents the type of plastic the container is made from. Here is a list of those numbers and what they represent:

* Plastic #1 Poly(ethylene terephthalate) Pete: Soda bottles, water bottles, vinegar bottles, medicine containers backing for photography film, clear plastic ketchup bottles, plastic egg cartons, clear mustard bottles and microwave trays.

* Plastic #2 High-density Polyethylene HDPE: Laundry/Dish detergent, fabric softeners, Milk jugs, bleach, conditioners, motor oil, some toys, my vitamin container, and shampoo bottles.


* Plastic #3 Poly (vinyl Chloride) V Commonly called PVC: Pipes, Shower curtains, meat wraps, cooking oil bottles baby bottle nipples, shrink wrap, clear medical tubing, vinyl dashboards and seat covers, coffee containers.

* Plastic #4 Low-Density Polyethylene LDPE: Wrapping Film, grocery bags, sandwich bags, mustard container.

* Plastic #5 Polypropylene PP: food storage containers, syrup bottles, yogurt tubs, diapers, outdoor carpet.

* Plastic #6 Polystyrene PS: Coffee cups, disposable cutlery and cups, bakery shells, meat trays, packing peanuts, Styrofoam insulation. Recycled post consumer polystyrene beads can be found in our hemp and natural cotton been bag chairs.

* Plastic #7 Other: Not much use for this. It is usually made from a combination of the other plastics and is less commonly used.

John

 

[marshman]

gnef-I have used and plan to continue using 2-liter bottles. Always on the lookout for an interesting beer vessel, however!

johnsma22-thanks, that's pretty much the info I was lookin' fer. I take it 1 & 2 would be the ony ones of interest to a brewer due to the apparent food-grade applications. I still experiment with 2-gallon batches, so I'm always on the lookout for small fermenters as well as bottles. I guess I was eye-ballin the empty jumbo-sized laundry soap jug and havin' wierd thoughts...

Muchos Gracias, yer all gentlemen and scholars.

 

[gnef]

general practice is don't use containers that had things that you wouldn't want to eat or have in your beer...

 

[user 4295]

The Better-Bottles are made from PET #1 plastic and are great for both primary and even long term secondary due to its negligible oxygen permeability. HDPE #2 plastic on the other hand is fine for primary fermentation due to the fact that aggressive CO2 production during the primary reduces the risk of O2 being able to diffuse into the fermenter, not to mention that the primary phase is relatively short.

However, HDPE is not the best choice for a secondary, long term aging or storing because much less, if any, CO2 will be produced during this time and HDPE will allow oxygen to enter and possibly ruin the beer. PET or glass is much better suited for this purpose.

John

 

[marshman]

I just was curious, because as I mentioned, I was eyeballin an extra-large laundry detergent bucket and wondering if it was useful, but figgered, amusingly enough, that I'd never be able to get it clean enough for beer.

 

[gnef]

haha. i know what you mean. it'd be nice to be able to use it, but why save the 15 bucks on the bucket, when you could potentially ruin a 30+ dollar brew? good decision not to use the laundry container. now if you were able to find the manufacturer, and could get one unused, and it was hdpe (most likely) it should be usable, but i would just feel uncomfortable if it was still labeled as a laundry detergent container... heh.