5 gal Primo h20 from walmart
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haven't used one yet but if you look on the bottom of the bottle and it has an HDPE with a #2 it should be fine. The only worry I would have is the fact that you have no head space for a 5 gallon batch. for a few more bucks you can get a 6.5 gallon bucket.
GrogNerd
mean old man
it's holding water fit for drinking
why wouldn't it be safe to drink beer fermented in it?
why wouldn't it be safe to drink beer fermented in it?
Water and beer/wort have different properties.... Wort is very acidic and would leech from non food grade plastics.... and most of the plastics that hold water are semi porous which would let oxygen in again bad, for $3 more get a proper bucket
bigdaddybrew
Well-Known Member
Could be similar to a Better Bottle. I've read triangle symbol with a 1 is good. Triangle with a 7 is poor as it can contain "other" plastics. I'm not an authority on plastics.
I need to grab it out of car.... I read their website which had an article that basically said, " bpa has not been proven to kill ppl", so- I'm guessing its not bpa free, which means I won't use it....
But- guess I better check it first.
Worst case scenario, I'll shoot it.
But- guess I better check it first.
Worst case scenario, I'll shoot it.
GrogNerd
mean old man
i hadn't thought of the leaching, but doubt they would put potable water in anything but food grade plastic
This is from somone else that I found on the internet that explains it beter than I can...
"What Is Food Grade Plastic? The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) requires that plastics used in food packaging be of greater purity than plastics used for non-food packaging. This is commonly referred to as food grade plastic. Plastics used to package pharmaceuticals are held to an even higher standard than food grade.
Food grade plastic does not contain dyes or recycled plastic deemed harmful to humans. However, this does not mean that food grade plastic cannot contain recycled plastic. The FDA has detailed regulations concerning recycled plastics in food packaging.
Another aspect of food grade plastic is matching the appropriate type of plastic to the food in question. Foods that are highly acidic or that contain alcohol or fats can leach plastic additives from the packaging or container into the food. As a result, you should only use plastic containers that are FDA approved for the particular type of food the plastic will come into contact with.
Finally, it should be noted that a plastic container can no longer be considered food grade if it has been used to store non-food items like chemicals, paint, or detergent."
Note the bold. Food Grade is specific for a each specific individual application. That container is considered food grade for the application of water with a fairly neutral pH. Throw in alcohol, and they're not responsible now. It's quite possible ir could be safe, but who knows what leaches and extracts out after a certain amount time at specific temps?
GrogNerd
mean old man
and aluminum causes cancer or alzheimer's or turns your man parts into dust
Coke & Pepsi are EXTREMELY acidic, and they come in plastic containers
you can buy macro brews in plastic containers
so, plastic + acid or plastic + alcohol is safe enough
Coke & Pepsi are EXTREMELY acidic, and they come in plastic containers
you can buy macro brews in plastic containers
so, plastic + acid or plastic + alcohol is safe enough
As a new brewer myself, I went and bought a plastic carboy from my local dealer for $28.00. Afterwards I read a few posts here about the triangle and # system and decided to check. Would you believe it was 7! So off to the dealer and "tried" to talk to them and they wouldn't listen. They said if you look it had imprint it was water safe...AHUH, BUT... didn't matter, they didn't want to help out. Well....sorta helped.
They suggested I go to local store and buy a 5 gal water and swap out my carboy for it......NICE!
So now I wont deal with them and go to their competitor.
They suggested I go to local store and buy a 5 gal water and swap out my carboy for it......NICE!
So now I wont deal with them and go to their competitor.
GrogNerd
mean old man
you're worried about barely-detectable levels of a POSSIBLE poison leaching into 5 or more gallons of your KNOWN poison
Those bottles are specific to soda or alcohol being stored in them at cold temps. There is a difference.
I work in a lab that measures leachables of plastics from filters that are used to sterilize drugs that are put into your body.
The amount of leachables is always time and temp dependent, along with other factors such as pH.
No one is right or wrong here. Just giving out some info. Do with it what you want.
I built a bottling bucket with spigot for $13 from a 7+G pail. I think you could've saved yourself the worry & just bought an ale pail or the like.
I been using them for years, I don't long term store but a couple of weeks is ok. I have 3 that are actually are made by better bottle corp.
All or most water that is put into those 5 gallon jugs is RO. If you can, do a little reading up on how acidic RO is/can be. I'm not sure the acidity would be the cause of leeching.
beaksnbeer said:
Cool- I should have probably posted this in the cider forums. I keep my beer in glass or buckets from lhbs, but was looking for something to keep cider in.
Is the RO water in the thing good to brew beer with?
You'll typically see RO in the 6's. Yes it's towards the acidic side, but consider that beer typically finishes in the 4's.
One of the proponents of leaching is the acidic nature of a liquid. It's also time and temp dependent. I'm not an expert on all of this, but with a pH of 6.0, that will not be as aggressive as a liquid at 3.0.
Beeksbeer said he's been using them for a couple of weeks at a time, and not for long storge. That may be fine, but who knows? The only way to really find out is too take a sample of the wort after fermentaion and run it through a LCMS machine, but who's got one of those to do that?
I guess using your best judgement to err on the side of caution is always the best thing to do.
Well enough, who truly knows what is leached out of any of the plastics that homebrew comes in contact with the only product that I have a verified proof is Bev-seal ultra. All plastics to be verified would have to be tested.
The fact that better bottle sells a product for fermenting and they state that their products are BpA free is as good as any plastic bucket (many of which are only chemical leeching free for DRY storage.
Dr. Francois
Well-Known Member
From what I understand from family in the recycling business, #7 isn't necessarily a deal killer, but it can be. #7 is a catch-all for OTHER or MIXED plastics.
In water applications, this usually means a foodsafe liner surrounded by a more durable plastic shell. You can imagine how much abuse the commercial water bottles must withstand.
In water applications, this usually means a foodsafe liner surrounded by a more durable plastic shell. You can imagine how much abuse the commercial water bottles must withstand.
Agreed. I tasted the same thing you probably tasted in Bev-seal. I switched to Bev-seal Ultra and it made a huge difference.
Never mind plastics, I just pulled a real dummy yesterday and dumped my wort into my fermenter that still had a half gallon of Star San! I know most of it is nutrients for yeast, but still.... :cross:
