Are detergent (etc.) barrels safe to use?

[Converse]

Hi All,

    I found a source of smaller barrels that have  had cleaner and sanitizer in them.  This is the stuff that is used in commercial dish washers.  Would well washed barrels that used to contain these types of solutions be okay for use in aquaponics?

 

Sincerely,

 Converse

[TCLynx]

get the MSDS sheets for the contents of the barrels and read up on them so you can figure it out.

Soaps and detergents and some of the sanitizers for commercial dish washers are pretty nasty stuff so you would really want to make sure they were well cleaned.  A note about soap, it can be nearly impossible to rinse soap completely out of a container (just think about when you try to wash a bottle and you have to rinse and rinse and rinse and it is still foaming and that was only with a drop of soap.)

 

Also keep in mind that smaller barrels will mean more cost in plumbing parts so it might not be such a huge cost savings unless they are paying you to take them.

[Converse]

All very good points~  Thank you!   I had not considered the cost angle...The MSDS sheets are an easy find.  Maybe this is not such a good deal after all.  Thank you for the perspective, and voice of experience!

 

Sincerely,

 Converse

[Edward Pozek]

Hey, barrels are hard to come by so I just add water and some goldfish and see what happens. If the barrels are clean and the fish stay alive I would use them myself.

[David Waite]

To break the soap down use ammonia and water and make it strong. Wash it and let the ammonia sit in the barrels for a couple of days. Then rinse and fill with water and let sit in the full sun. If it grows algae you are good to go.

[TCLynx]

Before adding ammonia to anything, make sure that bleach or chlorine are not one of the key ingredients.  If they are you better be sure to rinse very well before using ammonia since ammonia and bleach should never be mixed.