# Bulk Storage Containers



## Romahawk (Jul 11, 2005)

I was looking at some 5 gallon plastic pails at Lowes and Wally World today and was thinking about getting a dozen or so for bulk storage of liquid honey instead of trying to put it in bottles right from the extractor. Some of the lids had a rubber O ring seal and some were just snap ons. I was wondering if anyone uses either type lid for bulk storage pails and if they only seal one time or if you can open and reseal them several times when you want to fill bottles. I'm sure the lid with the O ring would seal at least the first time but how about the snap on lid that has no rubber seal in it. Would they seal against moisture getting into the pail? :scratch:


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## Dubhe (Jul 19, 2007)

I wouldn't use a container that wasn't sold as "food grade." Get them from the bee equipment suppliers or if you want to go on the cheap, get used containers from your local bakeries. You can buy new (sealable) tops for these if you want.


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## Romahawk (Jul 11, 2005)

Thanks Dubhe, I had thought about the issue of food grade and I had someone tell me that if the number in the triangle on the bottom of the pail is the same as the buckets Wall-Mart tosses out at the bakery then they should be food grade. I guess a little checking in the next week or so is in order. On the other hand the 4 hour ride down to Waverly from here is nice on a pleasant afternoon. May just have to call Dadants and see if they have a few in stock before I take a ride though.


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## sjbees (Jun 9, 2007)

"I had someone tell me that if the number in the triangle on the bottom of the pail is the same as the buckets Wall-Mart tosses out at the bakery then they should be food grade."

That someone is not only wrong, but dead wrong. That triangle number only identifies the primary chemicals used to make the bucket, it says NOTHING about food grade quality or not.

Do NOT store your honey in non-food grade buckets. Plastics outgas, and the leached chemicals can be toxic. Take the advice above, go visit Walmart, your local baker or bakery section of a supermarket. Take a bottle of honey with you, and ask them for buckets.


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## phil c (Jan 21, 2007)

I got 4 5 gal frosting buckets from Wal-mart yesterday. They were free for the asking, and already washed out!
I have paid 1$ each for the same buckets in the past so the price may depend on whose behind the counter.


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## Romahawk (Jul 11, 2005)

Thanks for the reply and suggestions about bakery buckets guys. We have a wholesale resturant supply businees about thirty miles away which I thought I might check into before driving down to Waverly NY but the Wally World suggestion would be even closer. 

Maybe the Wally World buckets are standard twelve inch tops that will accept the Gamma Lock lids, that would be great. I see those lids are screw tops and reusable. Off to Wally World to have a look see, thanks again guys.. :thumbsup:


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## Dye2fly (Sep 1, 2009)

i was picking a bday cake up today at @ walmart bakery asked about 2 gallon icing buckets, she said they just recycle them, brought me out 5 with lids for free. i just last week bought a couple from the local wine shop for primary fermenters for blueberry and sweet mead and paid $15 for both because they had a hole and grommet for an airlock, my husband said he could drill these lids and add a grommet. i think they should be fine for honey storage. i wish i had that much honey, i have a surplus of blueberries and grapes. oh well there is always next year. they may have larger ones, i did not ask.


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## BozoBee (Aug 31, 2009)

The free buckets are nice for sure. I would think you could use some old Bottling buckets. You probably can find some cheaper or perhaps used. The spigot and incremental measures on the sides are both fairly handy features for bottling the honey. Ask around and you might find some through a friend of a friend. I had a few laying around from when I would brew. But again, depending on your need and volume, free frosting tubs from Wal-Mart can easily suit most people. As for sealing the lids, an old friend of mine used to honey the rim of his lids, creates a cheap gasket and seals pretty well when it dries. Never done this myself but it seemed to serve him nicely enough.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Romahawk
If you are anywhere near Lowville there is a guy near there that sells buckets on a large scale. He sells new buckets. I think that they were $2.50 or $3.00 last year. I have bought them from him for the last five years or so. I have reused hundreds of these buckets over and over again for years. They last and wear well and the honey that I put in them doesn't gather any moisture, even though the tabs have been slit on many for easy opening. Some of them don't have those slits and I have to use the prying tool, a lid lifter.

I don't have his phone number w/ me. If you want me to, I could pm it to you tomorrow.


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## Romahawk (Jul 11, 2005)

Thanks sqkcrk, I'm about an hour south of Watertown driving at an old guys speed. I do believe I have got enough buckets for now though. A few from Wally World, a few From Price Shopper and a few from an ARC unit that makes a lot of pies. Now to get off my duff and get some boxes extracted as the knot weed, golden rod, and a bunch of swamp weeds are starting to produce. Bees are about out of room.


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## Ishi (Sep 27, 2005)

HDPE is FDA/USDA approved for use in food handling applications.

Does this mean that buckets from Walmart With HDPE on the bottom the same as the ones you get from there bakery?


http://www.meyerplastics.com/plastic materials/hdpe.htm


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## Romahawk (Jul 11, 2005)

If your talking about the paint department buckets I guess the answer might be Maybe and Maybe not. I had the customer service people at Lowes who have the same paint department buckets as WalMart call their national distribution represenative to ask that very question. They said that the buckets in the paint department were made of recycled plastics and that recycled plastics couldn't be used to manufacture food grade pails. He said even though they had the number 2 in the little triangle and had the HDPE stamped on the bottom they should not be used for food storage. If you look at the lids sold for the paint buckets that are made by Encore Plastics you will find a phone number there. I would give them a call as one plastic company I called said that they made only food grade buckets but sold them to retail outlets for all kinds of storage and tote uses.

I think just to be safe I would pay a bit more and get food grade buckets for my honey storage or make sure if they were used buckets that they had only been used for food storage.


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## Hormel (Nov 8, 2007)

I have been getting my buckets at Krispy Creme, usually the 35# filling buckets. Lemon Kist is my favorite, don't care for the smell of the fudge. It does not seem to transfer to the honey. Ask for the lid as they are slightly smaller than the 5 gallon buckets.

I was at Home Depot last year and they had a big stack of new white 5 gallon buckets for sale that were marked 'food grade' in big printed letters on the side. As I recall they were low priced including the lid. Of course I did not buy any and have never seen them again......
John


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Romahawk said:


> Bees are about out of room.


Aren't you the lucky one? Wanna sell it?


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Romahawk said:


> I think just to be safe I would pay a bit more and get food grade buckets for my honey storage or make sure if they were used buckets that they had only been used for food storage.


You can get plastic bags to put inside these buckets, somewhere. Maybe the bee supply companies sell them.

Years ago when I put honey under loan I was told by FSA that the honey in buckets had to be in plastic bags inside the buckets. Really, where do you get those?, I said. I don't know., said the Agent.


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## Brent Bean (Jun 30, 2005)

Check out this link, very good buckets at good prices
http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/pr...SPlastic&category_name=20327&product_id=26588


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## Romahawk (Jul 11, 2005)

Good link, thanks. It looks like they also have pail liners too but those seem a bit expensive. The price of the pails seem reasonable though.


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## dixie_beek (Aug 4, 2009)

I have owned a restaurant for the past 20 year and we get such products as beans, potato salad, BBQ Sauce, pickles, etc, etc., in 5 gallon buckets, none of which have "Food Grade" stamped anywhere on them. They have the exact same markings as the Home Depot paint buckets.


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## The Honey Householder (Nov 14, 2008)

I bought 2000 4 gal. buckets w/lids on Ebay for $2.35 ea. delivered. I had problems finding barrels this year so I bucketed it all up. The only thing I had more buckets then I had honey to put in them this year. Maybe next year.


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## Beee Farmer (Aug 11, 2008)

I use 55 gal drums from a place up the road. 20 bucks ea. they are food grade and used once. Came with chocholate syrup in them. its nice because you dont have to worry about the honey chrystalizing in them as a movers blanket and a band heater brings it back to liquid overnite without over heating and from there you can tank it and bottle as needed its already the right temp. low air bubbles and all the residual wax and debris come to the top easialy skimmed for a great looking product.


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## Romahawk (Jul 11, 2005)

Well I finely got a hold of someone at Encore Plastics at (1-800-336-2673) and asked about their 5 gallon pails at Lowe's. She told me the white pails were food grade but not the colored ones. I asked if they could be heated to reliquify sugared honey and she said they would withstand up to 180 degrees without getting soft. I said that's OK but can they be heated enough to liquefy the honey again if needed without off gassing nasties like dioxin into the honey. She told me that the production department had not tested for instability in the plastics when heated but if I was worried about that I could probably test the pails myself. Hmmmmmmmm, back to square one on those hardware store storage pails. Maybe I should just give up on that idea and go to quart glass mason jars like the folks that play around with alcohol production at home.... :no:


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## terri lynn (Apr 5, 2009)

Is there anything in particular to use (food grade) when installing a honey gate?


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