Ebay Stainless Drums

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Fermentanator
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Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Fermentanator »

Howdy dudes, been some time.

I am moving away from plastic in my fermentors, even though it is classed as safe for wines.

I have found some "201 stainless" steel drums on ebay for a great price. Wondering if these have a reputation for being unsafe or contaminated with heavy metals etc?

I beleive they come from asia, although they ship from within my country.

Thanks team.
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Yummyrum
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Yummyrum »

Got a link . I’m thinking about getting one .

A few guys have them . Some have mentioned possible glue of some sort in the crimped on ends . Some have talked of running a bead of solder around to seal it in . Personally I’d have to see one first to make my own call on that .
Fermentanator
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Fermentanator »

Hmm, glue would be a worry.

Will grab a link later and put here.

I will alos see if any of the photos show the joint(s).

Thanks
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Danespirit
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Danespirit »

I share the concerns of Yummy...
Also, 201 stainless is what we refer to as low grade stainless.
So if you intend to store your ferment or low wines for a longer period of time rust will be a problem (believe me it will!).
if I were you..I'd be looking for some HDPE drums instead OR a real stainless steel tank (304 or better).
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by HDNB »

some food stainless barrels also have an interior coating i dunno what it is tho..
i use 304. just had to passivate where the spigots were welded on. actually used star san, worked a charm. the end bead is just rolled, no glue. the lid does have a foam gasket that i wouldn't want to mix with high abv, but for beer, no problems so far.
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Fermentanator
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Fermentanator »

hmmm, seems I will need to spend alot more $$ to get suitable stainless.

Feels like I can't win lol! The plastic really bugs me, even 'safe' plastic as I feel we may learn down tha track that some of it was never really alcohol safe.

Seems I will need to suck it up and follow the advice of danespirit and HDNB and look for 304.

In regard to the rusting of 201, if I was to polish after use to prevent rust build up (alot of work but I will use a wire brush on drill) would this be satisfactory or would there be other concerns in terms of iron oxide contamination? How quickly can 201 rust assuming I am running UJSSM and all grains?

There is no one around here that sells suitable stainless drums, so postage will be a killer. I have found a site that sells a wide variety of brand new stainless drums in various grades, but they are not cheap and postage is absurd.

Here is the ebay link; https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Stainless-S ... E-kOHwcbFA" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

And the vendor of stainless drums; https://www.australiapacificworldtraders.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

If anyone has any sources of stainless drums, let me know. I am on Mid North Coast of NSW Australia.

thanks fellers
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Fermentanator »

https://www.keg-king.com.au/50l-threade ... spear.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

Just found this, cheapest vessel in 304 that I have found yet. Not sure on postage.

Also not sure how I would go about cutting a large hole in the top......waste of time for a fermenter?

UPDATE: This one claims to be 304 and is similar price to the other ebay ones, same size too; 88L; https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/35-58-88-St ... eCvM7lCdzw" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

Cheers
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DetroitDIY
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by DetroitDIY »

Hey Fermenter,

Not sure that any of these would be the right price or good for shipping to you, but they are a few sites for such things that I know of:

https://www.usedstainlesssteelbarrels.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
http://www.bubbasbarrels.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
https://www.bascommaple.com/category/bulk/containers/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

I have not bought from any of them, and looking at them now, they do seem a bit pricey :cry:

Good luck!
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Fermentanator »

Thanks for those links buddy, unfortunately I am in Australia, so they would not be practical

I am still looking, I think the keg may be an option if I can have a lid cut into it, or the latter ebay link I put here.

Thanks! :-)
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by DetroitDIY »

There lots of DIY sites/posts/videos out there about how to nicely remove the top of your keg if that's what you're after. And the homebrew store in my area sells them already opened for mashing. You could check to see if those are options in your area.

Cheers!
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Fermentanator »

Thanks my friend.

I will do a search about removing a 50l Keg lid for mashing.

May try the ebay 304 stainless, will advise of what I do, hopefully my experience may help others; if the 304 ebay ones are good, then thats great. If not, I will be sure to let yall know!

Thanks guys.
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Fermentanator »

So guys, curiosity got the better of me and I just ordered an ebay 88L 304 stainless drum.

According to the seller, who has a poor grasp of the English language, the only rubber or plastic part is a lid gasket, which I will remove most likely.

Once it gets here I will report on what I find, I will be able to fit 3-4 20L mashes in it so that will be nice. My plastic drums that are sold in brewstores have become brittle as they had mash left in them way too long and underwent acetacious fermentation etc. Last year was so busy I abandoned the mashes.

Will report back, if they are okay, should be good value.

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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Fermentanator »

So guys,

My drum arrived yesterday from ebay.

I am quite surprised; it is alot more solid than I expected, quite solid latches on the lid and sufficently thick steel all round.

No flimsyness or flex in the drum, all seams are well closed so far. Nice and shiney outside, clean inside.

We will have to wait and see how much it rusts; worst case I will just have to clean and dry it more often I think, using oliver oil if it has to be stored away for extended periods etc.

All up; a solid win thus far and well superior to plastic....I can fit 3 and half UJSSM mashes in it, which individually take up 3+ plastic 30L drums each. When we factor in that these cost upwards of $40 in my town, $134 (roughly) for a stainless 88L drum is good in my view.

Any questions etc let me know. PS, cannot see any glue in the bottom....will look more closely tomorrow.
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Fermentanator »

Howdy pards.

So I just put down a 60L UJSSM in this stainless drum.

It appears I have not cleaned it well enough as there is a grey gritty residue on my white stirring spoon and also around the top inside of the neck of the drum where I have been stirring.

I knew this was there, but thought I had cleaned it all out. From what I can see it is polishing residue, they have polished the inside somewhat and it was in the drum and inside of lid.

So, I am gonna have to dump 8.5kg corn and 8.5kg of sugar and a couple hours work. Will need to clean again and start over.

So, if you do get one, detergent and water with a soft cloth wont clean it.

Other than that it does seem solid, just pissed off at wasting corn and sugar.
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What
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by What »

I just checked out the one I have on loan to store stripped rum wash and is seems pretty good.
Don’t know if they are on eBay though but the drum is apparently 304 SS and 1.4mm thick with welded top and bottom no rolled edge or glued seams.
According to the owner cost was about $500 which is pretty exey, but hey it,s prreeeedy
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Fermentanator
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by Fermentanator »

Thats a fine looking drum.

I would pay $500 if it was a good long term investment.

My ebay 88l is having an odd issue, any time I put anything abrasive in it, like giving it a clean with a scouring pad, I end up with a residue that looks like aluminum powder or graphit on the fingers and looks black on paper towel.

I cannot seem to scrub it enough to get it totally clean.....does anyone have any insight? I heated the seams with my propane torch to make sure there was no lead involved, the joints are good.
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Re: Ebay Stainless Drums

Post by danwbrews »

You should only use the White scrubbers to clean SS. They are softer and won't remove the oxide layer that makes SS stainless. You need to re pacify the barrel. or they will rust. Never brush stainless with anything that has been used the remove rust from iron and only stainless brushes.
I think the gray matter in your wash was the oxide layer that protects the inside of the SS. I know that everyone has seen this but, read Palmers book HOW TO BREW. He has a section on how the clean and care for SS. Its free online. Just don't read the chapter on yeast unless you are making wine.
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