Another Lowes 5 Gallon gucket question

[rmclark12]

I know this has been asked many times before, but I'm not sure if they were referring to the same bucket as me. I'm talking about the white 5 gal buckets at Lowes that they advertise with a sign as "Food Grade buckets and lids". They have the Lowes logo on the side. They are hdpe 2. Here is a link on their website:
Shop Encore Plastics 5-Gallon Polyethylene Bucket at Lowes.com

As you can see down in the description it says FDA approved.
Anyone have any reason why these particular buckets couldn't be used as fermenters?

 

[theo1069]

I love these buckets! I use them as bright tanks to store uncarbed batches waiting on kegs to empty. They are exactly 5 gallons though, so if you are going to ferment in them I wouldnt do a batch size much bigger than 3.5 gallons or so.

Been using them for a few months with no off flavors.

 

[kh54s10]

All the buckets with a 2 in the logo are food safe. Home Depot's orange bucket is food grade. They have a white one also. As theo1069 said they are too small for a 5 gallon batch. If you need to go smaller you will have to adjust the recipe.

 

[PapaO]

The HD orange and Lowe’s gray have BPA. The Lowe’s white bucket is BPA free.

 

[DSmith]

The Lowes lids have a rubber seal.

The Lowes buckets are nice. I have a pair for cleaner and sanitizer. They would work for <5 gallon batches (I do 3-3.5 gallon batches). Haven't used them for fermenting though, just 5 gallon carboys.

 

[b-boy]

I have about 10 of them. I use them for brewing small 3-4 gallon batches. For $5 you can't beat them. The lids are great too.

I bought a few Omega lids for storing grains and dog food (not together, of course).

 

[audger]

All the buckets with a 2 in the logo are food safe.

that is absoloutely incorrect.
Resin identification code - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

does it say "food safe" under any of those designation codes?


food safe rating depends specifically on how the plastic was handled, its composition, and if it is new/virgin or recycled. a "2" simply means its HDPE. not all HDPE is food grade. i can easily mix up some HDPE that would poison you if you ate food out of it, though it would still legally carry a "2" on it.

almost any of the plastic designations codes can be "food grade", but in no way does that designation code certify that any of them are. you HAVE TO check with the actual manufacturer in order to verify food compatability. and a "food grade" rating is ONLY applicable under the circumstances that the plastic was tested. a plastic cold food container may lose its food rating if you were to put hot liquid in it.

 

[Jester]

I just recently found these buckets... and you can get Gamma lids from HD.

 

[A4J]

those lids are great! are they food safe?

 

[Mike_M]

those lids are great! are they food safe?

This is from the U.S. Plastics site:

Turn pails into reusable containers. Heavy duty, high density polyethylene construction creates a leak-proof airtight seal. Simply tap on the adapter (with #2292 rubber mallet) on the adapter ring (includes rubber gasket) and screw inner cover on. Fits 3.5 to 6 gallon plastic pails. Material meets FDA standards.

Emphasis is mine. I wouldn't treat that as authoritative, but U.S. Plastics seems to do a good job about listing such information.

 

[Landshark67]

I just recently found these buckets... and you can get Gamma lids from HD.

Gamma lids rank right up there with beer, sliced bread and single malt scotch. The lids are how I store all my grain. Buy as many as you can afford. 50lbs of grain will fill two 5gal buckets with lids.

Brew on!

 

[onthekeg]

that is absoloutely incorrect.
Resin identification code - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

does it say "food safe" under any of those designation codes?


food safe rating depends specifically on how the plastic was handled, its composition, and if it is new/virgin or recycled. a "2" simply means its HDPE. not all HDPE is food grade. i can easily mix up some HDPE that would poison you if you ate food out of it, though it would still legally carry a "2" on it.

almost any of the plastic designations codes can be "food grade", but in no way does that designation code certify that any of them are. you HAVE TO check with the actual manufacturer in order to verify food compatability. and a "food grade" rating is ONLY applicable under the circumstances that the plastic was tested. a plastic cold food container may lose its food rating if you were to put hot liquid in it.

Audger,
You seem to have an aversion to plastic. May I ask what your occupation or schooling is? There are food grade and non food grade plastics, but many times it is because of the temp range that the product is used. Maybe you know more about this, I have seen your responses in other threads and am curious.

 

[DeafSmith]

From the Encore Plastics web site FAQ:

"Q. Are your containers food grade?
A. Yes, all of our containers are made from a virgin FDA approved resin except the Econo-Blend containers which are made from regrind material and are not food grade."

I believe that only the black and gray buckets are Econo-Blend (I found that somewhere on their web site last year, but can't find it now) - currently the only buckets (Industrial Pails) that I see labeled as Eco-Blend are black.