Will Any Trash Can Do?

[usvi diver]

When it comes to storing water, will any plastic trash can do?

I ask this because I bought three 32 gallon Mighty Tuff trashcans and they have a strange smell. I bought them new from Lowes and I rinsed them out today but they still have a weird smell. I would hate to start this tank off with RO/DI water that has been tainted by the wrong kind of container.

 

[picoreefguy]

not sure if that brand has anything wrong with it but i would not use any container that is not fda approved to hold food and water. and the rubbermaid brute trash cans are approved for that and have been proven save for use in our applications.

 

[heathlindner25]

food grade only...

 

[jeffmuse]

I am not sure what the deal is with the smell... is it a chemical odor? I wonder if it is something that the manufacturer uses to treat the plastic.

I use rubber made products and have never had a problem. You can pick up a brute for fairly cheap at Lowes or Home Depot.

 

[heathlindner25]

JeffMuse;897224 wrote: I am not sure what the deal is with the smell... is it a chemical odor? I wonder if it is something that the manufacturer uses to treat the plastic.

I use rubber made products and have never had a problem. You can pick up a brute for fairly cheap at Lowes or Home Depot.

+1 brute!!

 

[stevhan]

You will see Brute cans used in all of the LFS for water changes. You can also buy wheel dollies for them to move them around if needed.

 

[ichthyoid]

That smell is due to plasticizer and processing aids.

Rinse well with clean water, and once or twice add a little vinegar then scrub using paper towels (a cup or two of vinegar per gallon of water). Then a final rinse with DI water and you will be fine.

I used them for years without any issues.

FWIW- I worked for several years in polymer R&D.

 

[outdrsyguy1]

I bought a Sterilite container at target (needed a 20gallon or less so brute was too much). I contacted the manufacturer and they said that their products qualified as food grade fyi.

In case you need something smaller like I did.

 

[sewer urchin]

I have used on in the past and would use one again in the future ( especially with the one with wheels). It's hard to argue with the fact that so may experienced reefers use them. With that said, when you come across write ups like this

http://forum.marinedepot.com/Topic101230-9-1.aspx">http://forum.marinedepot.com/Topic101230-9-1.aspx</a>

It makes me think twice, I know that a lot of plastics will use a chemical to stop bacterial growth - I think it's called MicroBan, or something like that. I guess the moral of the story is not to keep 55 gallons of sperm ( coral sperm that is, or even the fertilized gametes ) in them!

 

[containerman1]

ichthyoid;897239 wrote: That smell is due to plasticizer and processing aids.

Rinse well with clean water, and once or twice add a little vinegar then scrub using paper towels (a cup or two of vinegar per gallon of water). Then a final rinse with DI water and you will be fine.

I used them for years without any issues.

FWIW- I worked for several years in polymer R&D.

+1
Worked great for me

 

[usvi diver]

Thanks for the help. I will take these back for food grade containers.