# 55 gallon steel drums



## Wags (Jun 2, 2002)

> Clean 55 gallon steel drums that have removable lids with locking ring........food grade...barrels have a polymar coating inside them for protection against rust...... $12.50 each (on my local Craigslist)


They claim they are food grade, do you think I could use something like that to store wheat, beans or rice in? If so, how would you suggest I go about doing long term storage with them? And is there anything else I could store in them?

Thanks


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## Guest (May 5, 2011)

Boy, I'd love to have a dozen of them for feed storage.

Not sure about if they'll seal air-tight or not. IF they will they'll be good for long-term storage. If not you'll need to come up with some sort of bag or liner that can be sealed that way. Seeing as how you're in a cool climate they might be good for storage even if they can't be sealed air-tight. You'd just need to go with a shorter rotation.


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## bourbonred (Feb 27, 2008)

Wish I were close to you!!! I'm looking for some now. My plan is to store 5lb vac sealed mylar bags of grain in them. Rodent proof and have the storage capacity of 11- 5 gallon pails. (deep sigh!!!!)


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## radiofish (Mar 30, 2007)

Here is a different idea for using 55 gallon barrels, for storage of home canned goods. 

I live in way too humid a climate to try this method, but it does look interesting. The images and description are found at the bottom of the linked page..

http://www.omick.net/food_preservation/food_preservation.htm


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

i would still put the food in indivigual plastic bags 

barrels with banded lockable removable tops would be ideal

say you pack a 55 gallon drum with 10-20 pound bags of oats , wheat rice , and other grains, sugar ,salt then you can pack it in layers if you know about how much of each you use in a month then your only opening it every few weeks or months and you don't need a barrel for wheat , a barrel for rice , abarrel for beans , you get the idea you have a barrel that gets packed now and used a layer at a time and used over time say you pack up 2 barrels to start then each time you empty a barrel you fill it back up while you work on the next

if something gets into the barrel like an insect the plastic bags should keep it out but even if it gets into one hopefully you only loose one bag not 55 gallons worth 

also with your primary used items packed in what you use for the month in layers you crack open only one barrel leaving the other barrels sealed 

the only thing better would be if you could pack a barrel that had 2 banded removable ends so that you could pack it a little at a time and then flip it over and use what went in first - but that wouldn't be as tight and not a common barrel

radio fish i like the idea of storing jars liek that but i would make each shelf so that it could come out exposing the one below to make access much easier as you work youe way down


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## Ernie (Jul 22, 2007)

Forerunner gave me a bunch of these and I use them for grain storage now. I just seal them up. Long term storage around here is about a year and they don't seem to have any problems holding things that long.


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## Farmerwilly2 (Oct 14, 2006)

Bourbon,

If Lexington isn't too far a drive for you there's a place sells used ones. Actually they sell containers of all types, from the big ICB totes to plastic pail and gama seals. I've even seen old bourbon barrels sold there. Ammo cans, plastic carboys, open or closed head drums---plastic or steel. 

My preference would be to store in mylar bags, pack them into a 15 gallon, open head epoxy lined drum with the locking band (yep, they have them, o.d. green with mil spec #).


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## bourbonred (Feb 27, 2008)

Hey, thanks Farmerwilly! I'm out a little further than you, close to the state park, so Lexington's a drive, but not too bad. What's this place's name so i can google it? We moved out here about 5 years ago from Louisville, and I still haven't explored much of Lexington yet. DH still drives in to Louisville daily to work and I have family there, so I tend to do most my city-business there when I can't get what I need in Maysville. My experience is that Louisville is easier to navigate than Lexington.


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## Wags (Jun 2, 2002)

Thanks for all the ideas! Think I'll have to run up and pick up a few.


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## bourbonred (Feb 27, 2008)

Wags, if it helps to know prices, I just googled the local place that Farmerwilly was rccommending in KY and they're selling for $15 here. $12.50 sounds like a good deal if it has a removable lid that fits tight.


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## texican (Oct 4, 2003)

If I were doing long term storage, I'd have stuff in individual bags, and 'seal' the lid... I'd put a small band of silicone on the rim, press or tap the lid down, then put the lock band on. We've got a couple metal barrels here now, there holding bulk grain for the critters.


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## Guest (May 6, 2011)

Barrels are available from a guy about 45 miles away. I bought 2 with lever lids, 2 with bungs, and 3 open top for burn barrels. The lever lid ones are for food storage. The ones with bungs are for future stove applications. The price you mention seems very good.


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## Farmerwilly2 (Oct 14, 2006)

Glad you found them. Not hard to get to. Funny, I found Lexington easier to get around than louisville, only one circle to deal with. My heart goes out to your fella if he has to commute from Maysville to Louisville every day.


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## tab (Aug 20, 2002)

That is a great price. It was Forerunner who posted the idea of lighting a candle in the top of the grain when sealing. Helps get rid of the oxygn. Do a search on this forum. Wish there was a place around here to get items like that.


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

Wags, where are you getting the drums? I'd like to pick up more of them for animal feed storage and, if they have bung holes, for fuel storage.


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## Lilbitof4 (Mar 2, 2011)

We have three that we store treated water in. Ours came from the local farm store and had previously had corn syrup in them. I'd like to pick up a few more and use one on an elevated stand of some sort to use for watering the garden this summer. $12.50 seems like a really good price. I think we paid $20 a piece for ours with the locking lid.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

tab said:


> That is a great price. It was Forerunner who posted the idea of lighting a candle in the top of the grain when sealing. Helps get rid of the oxygn. Do a search on this forum. Wish there was a place around here to get items like that.



as i recall it , you make a hollow in your grain , then place a bees wax candle in light and seal it burns up the oxygen then goes out being bees wax it doesn't leave petrol soot on your grain


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## rod&chas (Jan 17, 2011)

WOW at that price you better jump on them! We give $20 for them here and $30 for the food grade plastics!


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

I'm in Virginia and have not been able to find any of those storage units locally that you all are talking about. I suspect having them shipped would cost a fortune.


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## Wags (Jun 2, 2002)

manygoatsnmore said:


> Wags, where are you getting the drums? I'd like to pick up more of them for animal feed storage and, if they have bung holes, for fuel storage.



They are on the Salem Craigslist, there are some listed on the Pdx one too, but the prices are higher.


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## marinemomtatt (Oct 8, 2006)

Hubby was on craigslist this morning, he must have missed that ad. Last Fall we picked up three drums with locking lids for free, used to have Corn syrup in them, we still haven't filled them (guess I'm not nagging loud enough?...~lol~...)
We've been getting barrels, buckets, gamma lids and the like from a guy out Camp Adair way (Corvallis), he's got decent prices.
Glorybee foods is another great place to get barrels/drums...used.


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## tinknal (May 21, 2004)

The main concern for dry goods would be condensation. As suggested I would put the food in plastic bags. I would also try to create a false bottom (like a little pallet), especially if you are going to set the barrel on concrete.


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

I saw the ad for Beaverton (?) - I think it was - $15 for one or $25 for 2.

I'm picking up a load of 55 gallon blue plastic drums for $10 each tomorrow in Vancouver. Wonder how many I can get on the back of my F-150 with side racks on it?  It'll be nice to have more water storage, but I'd sure like to get some fuel storage options, too, as well as more feed storage for the critters.


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## Wags (Jun 2, 2002)

marinemomtatt said:


> Hubby was on craigslist this morning, he must have missed that ad. Last Fall we picked up three drums with locking lids for free, used to have Corn syrup in them, we still haven't filled them (guess I'm not nagging loud enough?...~lol~...)
> We've been getting barrels, buckets, gamma lids and the like from a guy out Camp Adair way (Corvallis), he's got decent prices.
> Glorybee foods is another great place to get barrels/drums...used.


I got some stuff from the guy in Camp Adair but he has raised his prices a lot since I was out there a few months ago.

There is also someone in Monmouth that frequently posts for buckets and barrels that has decent prices.

this is the add for the 55 gallon drums: http://corvallis.craigslist.org/grd/2355599260.html


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## cmcon=7 (Mar 7, 2010)

I lost some beans in 55 gallon drums, they were sealed but the large volume and temperature swings condensed water at the bottom of the barrel and rotted a 25# bag of beans, if you go this route I suggest small sealed bags. 10% humidity in 375# of grain = quite a bit of water to migrate, a 5# bag not so much.


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## Wags (Jun 2, 2002)

cmcon=7 said:


> I lost some beans in 55 gallon drums, they were sealed but the large volume and temperature swings condensed water at the bottom of the barrel and rotted a 25# bag of beans, if you go this route I suggest small sealed bags. 10% humidity in 375# of grain = quite a bit of water to migrate, a 5# bag not so much.


I think I will go that route and put in a pallet at the bottom to keep stuff an inch or two off the bottom.


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## Wags (Jun 2, 2002)

For those of you living in this area. I was only going to get 4 barrels, but came back with 6.  A little dinged on the outside, but the insides are nice and clean. They reportedly held tomatoes in plastic previously. Location is just outside of Stayon.


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

I get mine from a guy in Greenville, TN, who gets them from a local Con-Agra food plant. 

They are green, nice coating of something inside, have plastic lid w/locking ring, and often still have the plastic liner that held the tomato powder that was shipped in them. Guy was getting 10 bucks/barrel last of them I got. I use them for feed, but have some stored people foods in them too...in smaller bags.

He also sells the blue plastic barrels that fruit juice comes in....closed barrel with a 3/4 and 2" bung opening.

( Having dehydrated some tomatoes over the years, and "vita=mixed" them into powder, it MUST take about a tractor trailer load of tomatoes to get enough to fill a 55 gal drum with powder )


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