Olive drums?

[tat2z_21]

So I just recently picked up to 55 gal drums, they are the brown plastic barrels. I have searched all through the forums here, and found several posts about food grade barrels. My question is when I clean these out should I go with a bleach, or a vinegar. I iknow that it is alright to use bleach as long as it is rinsed thoroughly, would that be better to get the original garlic olive smell out of it. Or is using a fresh rinse with new vinegar the way to get this smell out of here. Really looking for any one that may have come across this and had success with it. Let me know.

 

[holdendaniel]

me too i just picked up some with westchosere* sauce they dont smell too good i know you have to put new seals on them

 

[tat2z_21]

I do not have any holes drilled for mine yet. I plan on fitting a float valve for the shut off side of the RO system, and I need to get a heater in there. The problem I am having right now is just getting that smell out of it. I think that I am going to go ahead and just use bleach. Somebody correct me if I am wrong but the food grade barrels should not hold the bleach, if rinsed thoroughly.

 

[ac7av]

Bleach will not hurt the container. I would just put the bleach or vinegar in the container with a power head and fill it all the way to the top till the water starts over flowing the container and just let it run for 15 minutes like that since the is about all the longer the bleach will be affective from what I understand. Then empty it and rinse rinse rinse.

 

[mwalker0420]

anybody have any diagrams/pics of there water storage barrels. i plan too plumb my two barrels together 1 ro water and 1 for when i wanna premix water.( went to my old winery i worked at and getting some nice black 55gal barrel with screw lids for 15$ he has about 70 if anyone is looking

 

[gothunder3022]

Here's my set up:

http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=52510

Just ignore the second RO/DI unit water saving part. Each tank has it's own circ pump, plus they're cross connected to transfer RO/DI to the Salt water mixing tank. I also run a Mag 9 on the bottom of the sw tank to mix and heat the water more.

I recently added plastic quick disconnects for RV/Marine grade drinking hoses. I have 125 feet of hose and can run SW or RO/DI anywhere in my house.

 

[fishoutofwater]

I have used v8 juice to help remove the odor. I have a few 15 gallon dr pepper drums and the one I did not use v8 juice in and just bleached it still smells a little like dr pepper. I also have a pickle barrel that I use for my ro water and all I did with that one was rinse with fresh water.

 

[dogfrog]

I bleached mine and let the water sit for a day. Then let them air dry for 2. Mine were used for tomato paste and had no smell just a lot of mold.

 

[tat2z_21]

Thanks guys, I am pretty sure that I am just going to bleach and rinse. I do appreciate the quick responses.

And hey, Gotthunder, I am not sure what size tank you are running but those water storage tanks are freakin humongoloids.

 

[DolphinLVR]

anybody have any diagrams/pics of there water storage barrels. i plan too plumb my two barrels together 1 ro water and 1 for when i wanna premix water.( went to my old winery i worked at and getting some nice black 55gal barrel with screw lids for 15$ he has about 70 if anyone is looking

You can come over and look at mine Matt, its all hooked up and running

 

[gothunder3022]

Thanks guys, I am pretty sure that I am just going to bleach and rinse. I do appreciate the quick responses.

And hey, Gotthunder, I am not sure what size tank you are running but those water storage tanks are freakin humongoloids.

hehe...yeah, a little overkill maybe. The plan is to have ~560 gallons of DT spread over 7 tanks (ranging in size from 11 to 180 gallons). Between water changes and top off, I figure I'll need 600+ gallons of water a month. 4 of the 7 are currently running.

Oh,and I bleached and power washed those containers (mold issue in two of them)...a thorough rinsing and a couple of days of airing out and all good.

 

[holdendaniel]

anybody have any diagrams/pics of there water storage barrels. i plan too plumb my two barrels together 1 ro water and 1 for when i wanna premix water.( went to my old winery i worked at and getting some nice black 55gal barrel with screw lids for 15$ he has about 70 if anyone is looking

i was on matts cpu logged on his account on accident...but i would like to do that whats your schedule like

 

[ac7av]

I got my 2 from the guy in Bellingham that advertises them or CR every so often, they were full of come kind of sugar water and didn’t smell like anything. I just rinsed with water real well and let dry in the sun for a couple of days before using.

BTW does anyone check the TDS after the water has been sitting in your storage tanks for a while? Is anybody getting an increase in TDS over time? Just wondering. I read that stuff can leach out of the containers because of purity of the water.

 

[tat2z_21]

I figure with the frequency of water changes, it shouldn't be that bad. Again it is only 55 gal drum if I do my math right it is roughly 36 gal for a 20% water change for my system, and I have to pretty much do a fresh water top off every 2 days.

 

[DolphinLVR]

i was on matts cpu logged on his account on accident...but i would like to do that whats your schedule like

Give me a shout, I am home all this week

 

[holdendaniel]

i have a hook up if anyone is looking for 55gal barrrels with screw top lids(had olives,jalepanoes) cleaned up great $$$$$$$$15$$$$$

 

[tat2z_21]

So I picked up two of them and want to plumb them together, Is there a way that I can plumb them and only need the one float valve.

 

[NWDiver]

Sure, connect them together via bulkheads and make sure the shut-off valve activates before water reaches the lowest point you want to keep water.

 

[tat2z_21]

So would the bulkhead be at the bottom so that it would equilize both sides or would it be better for it to flow in from the top . I just feel that if I do it at the top it leaves more room for possible flooding issues.

 

[NWDiver]

The water doesn't care
Both have advantages, up high there is much less water pressure on the fitting, but the input side has to be near full before it fills the second barrel, down low is of course the reverse. I have one above the other, so it is not really an issue for me.
I do have a double float switch just in case, and I plumbed a drain above the water level, and below the rim so if the switches fail the excess will just drain away. Not an option for everyone I know.