Stupid question, probably already know the answer.

[mximus11]

I got ahold of dome 15 gallon jugs from a hotel. They used to hold laundry detergent. Would they work as fermenters if cleaned out good enough? Also I forgot what number what needs to be inside the recycle sign on the bottom. They have a number 2.

 

[japhroaig]

Many plastics are notorious at holding on to smells, so while I doubt you'll get poisoned, even if there is just the feintest whiff of odor it'll show up in your beer. Also, even if they are food grade, isn't the plastic wall quite thin? Amy plastics, even the large thick walled HDPE plastic conicals I use will eventually oxidize what yer fermenting.

So my first advice would be not to use them. However if you are gung ho about it, first make sure they have zero smell and aren't scratched up, and get the brew bottled or kegged asap.

 

[RedGlass]

Not worth it. I doubt they're food grade and I'd expect some flavors/aromas of the detergent to show up in the beer, even if the containers are cleaned very well.

Plus, they're 15 gallon jugs -- so either you're risking a large quantity of beer or you're leaving a ton of headspace in your fermentor. Either way it's not ideal.

 

[mximus11]

That's the advice I needed. Thanks.

 

[mximus11]

That's the advice I needed. Thanks.