55 gallon drum fermenters

[seabass]

Star-San is a no rinse sanitizer that claims to be very good at removing smells. Ya gotta remember that plastic is porous and that pickle smell is going to be persistent.

I have found that starsan removes the pickle smell from buckets, but its gotta soak. Its has taken at least 2 several day soaks switching out the pickle flavored stars an. 55gal of starsan twice would likely make it cheaper to just buy a new barrel.

[junkyard dawg]

That thought had occurred to me... It would be pricey to clean up a 55 gal barrel.

I think everyone should just buy one of these and be done with plastics...

[Rclark12]

I bet for the price of that thing I could buy enough 55 gallon drums to make a floating dock that could support my house, maybe even my whole neighborhood

[seabass]

Or get barrels that contained something that will not ruin a batch. Like malt extract.

[junkyard dawg]

That one costs $2895. Its 530 gallons, but a 53 gallon is just a little over $500. I know thats out of the range for a lot of us, but if you can swing it, a stainless variable volume fermenter is the single best piece of distillers gear around. The blichmann conical fermenters are pretty cool too.

[Rclark12]

So Im on the fence of this one and leaning toward passing it up, but a buddy dropped off a 55 gallon white drum that had soap in it because he figured Id get some use out of it. Only issue being soap Im not so sure if it will ever be ferment ready barrel? Any thoughts

[Prairiepiss]

I personaly wouldn't use it for fermenting. But it would make a nice cooling water reservoir.

[wv_hillbilly]

I agree with Mr P. I have the same thing, just ended up using it as my flake stand. Works great, I don't have to change water at all through my run.

[Rclark12]

Alright thats what I figured thanks guys

[varocketry]

If anyone's in the RICHMOND, VA area I can point you to a guy that sells food grade 55 & 60 gallons plastic and steel drums used once that held cucumbers or syrup.

He resells them for $20.00 each. I picked up two 60g plastic barrels (with screw off lids) for use as a fermenter and condenser water tank. I picked up a steel barrel to burn old firewood and yard brush safely.

Found him on Craigslist in Chesterfield, VA.

[Moose_755]

If anyone's in the RICHMOND, VA area I can point you to a guy that sells food grade 55 & 60 gallons plastic and steel drums used once that held cucumbers or syrup.

He resells them for $20.00 each. I picked up two 60g plastic barrels (with screw off lids) for use as a fermenter and condenser water tank. I picked up a steel barrel to burn old firewood and yard brush safely.

Found him on Craigslist in Chesterfield, VA.

You & I know of the same guy.
Picked up a black 60g plastic barrel from him yesterday.

[Florida boy]

Hello all,

I'm going to be getting a drum soon that has been used to hold water for the past 3 years but before that held iodine. Does anyone know if there will be any harm in using this drum?

[Jimbo]

Well Iodine is fine, we use it for sanitizing (Iodophor and others) If the barrel is blue chances are its good. HDPE 2 marking is another good indication its food safe.

[Halfbaked]

Would you think the plastic on these are safe?

[Jimbo]

baked, check the markings and do a google search. HDPE 2 is not the only food safe plastic. Could be theyre fine, could be theyre not, cant tell by lookin at a picture. I hope they are, thems some fine lookin barrels.

[Halfbaked]

Thanks. I guess I have to call they are little ways away. A little pricey but already has a valve on bottom. $60

[Pesty]

For anyone who happens to be in So Cali I can get the blue plastic HDPE 55 gallon drums with the removable tops and snap rings for free as we use them at work at the rate of 1-2 a week.

These guys pick them up bi-weekly for us as we can't get rid of them.

https://sites.google.com/site/drumsandtotes/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[ThrownOlive]

Really Pesty? Why do you have to be like that? You've already got all the nice sunny weather but now you've got free barrels too? Sheesh.

[Pesty]

That's right!

It's 72 and sunny most of the year and I get free barrels

[ThrownOlive]

Bring a barrel with you and you can bask in the overcast Oregon weather if you need a break from al that lovely weather.

[Rclark12]

any one know what temperature these are good and safe up too? I was thinking about wrapping something around one as a form of insulation and pouring 20 or so gallons of hot water (around 180) onto corn and then trying to mix a big ag in it,
also would it be better to do so with a 55 gallon steel drum and put some propane heat under it? Thanks guys

[Prairiepiss]

If you are wanting to mash the corn. You will need to cook it. And not just by pouring hot water over it. I've seen where others have used steam injection to cook corn in a plastic drum. I pour boiling water in mine all the time. But have never cooked in them.

[Jimbo]

Piss, when I make bourbon I boil the water (actually only to 205F to avoid boiling the O's out) and then shut it off and add the corn. Wrap it up and let it steep cook for 3 hours. It settles at high 180's and doesnt drop much wrapped in an old quilt. Gelatinizes just fine and I get good conversion at mash time. 1.056 and 1.058 last 2 batches with 8 lbs malt and 17 lbs corn in 12 gal.

[Prairiepiss]

How fine of a grind on the corn are you using jimbo? And what kind of corn?

[Jimbo]

Crappy grind. Its cracked feed corn out of the bag at $10 per 50lbs. Lots of whole kernals and large chunks. But I ferment on the grain and am convinced them enzymes keep working their way into the bigger chunks over the week fermenting. Also do a sugar wash afterwards with the 25 lbs grain (gumballhead, see sig recipe). By the time I squeeze that one out after another week the grain is pretty damn well empty and husky. haha is that a word?

Putting a motor on a corona mill is on the todo list to get a decent grind on the cracked corn, but spending more money to get another dollars worth of starch out of a 10 dollar bag of corn just doenst seem too sensible given this stuff is so damn cheap to begin with, and the final yield is fine with 2 batches of hooch out of it.

[Prairiepiss]

I mite just have to try something like that. When I get back into the swing of things. To see how it goes.

[Jimbo]

I mite just have to try something like that. When I get back into the swing of things. To see how it goes.

Why are you out of the swing of things sir?

Its a fun recipe. And no numb arms from stirring a pot of corn forever

Edit: you do have to unwrap the top and stir once in a while. That last batch at 1.058 I started at 8PM, stirred corn in at 10 pm. Stirred again at 11PM went to bed and in the morning dropped to mash temp and mashed in. Then dropped to pitch temp and started ferment after work I wish I could wrap them damn long stripping runs and spirit runs around sleep and work haha. That part is an all day affair.

[Prairiepiss]

Some things came up and I thought it best to pack things away for a bit. Just to be safe. Not to mention with the weather finally getting nice. I don't want to be cooped up in the basement. While I can be outside enjoying the weather. While its nice.

[Rclark12]

Piss, when I make bourbon I boil the water (actually only to 205F to avoid boiling the O's out) and then shut it off and add the corn. Wrap it up and let it steep cook for 3 hours. It settles at high 180's and doesnt drop much wrapped in an old quilt. Gelatinizes just fine and I get good conversion at mash time. 1.056 and 1.058 last 2 batches with 8 lbs malt and 17 lbs corn in 12 gal.

This is exactly what I am wanting to do in a 55 gallon drum, Im malting like 25 lbs of corn right no, I figure I could soak some regular crack corn in hot water for a day or 2, put it into a 55 or 30 gallon drum, pour 180 degree or so water onto it, mix it up and when it gets cool enough pour in the malted corn and mix as if I were doing so on the stove like a small ag (the soak corn in a bucket for 2 day method worked with my last 5 gallon ag) and then add yeast when its at temperature. It might be a good deal of work but it would be easier then doing a bunch of 5 gallons in my opinion.

So do we think wrapping a 55 gallon in a blanket or something would do the job? Or could I potentially be better off with a 55 steel barrel with propane under it?

[Jimbo]

Ive never malted corn so just relaying what Ive read here on HD from others. But it might be that corn malt only has enough DP to convert itself. Might want to check into that before asking it to convert itself plus cracked corn? Or toss some 6 row or Wheat malt in, both are very high DP 180+

Agreed on 5 gal batches. I do this 25 lbs and 12 gallons at a time. Thats a manageable batch size for a home stiller.