# crock jugs...do you use them??



## beaglebiz (Aug 5, 2008)

I have a couple of the brown and tan 1 and three gallon jugs (I call them whiskey jugs). I have an opportunity to get a lot of about 20 crocks and jugs for a good price (all old). Im not one to resell, although Im sure I could If I wanted to. 
My question is, do you use these? and for what?? Sad to say, the ones I have are pretty much decoration. I know in the old days they held everything from molasses to water to whiskey. I also think they look pretty on a shelf.
The crocks, I can think of a million uses for (sauerkraut, pickles, pickled spicy turnips, with the smallest lidded one being perfect for sourdough starter.
I like old things. I tend to buy antiques, not for their antique value, but by their ability to make things by hand without electricity. I know the clay will keep water a few degrees cooler than the outside. 
So any ideas?


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## bee (May 12, 2002)

I love all kinds of old crockery..the bigest draw back to actual use of the jugs is that they are not clear like glass and how in the world would you know you got them clean/sterile?? I also believe that to have the cooling effect(brought on by some evaporation) you need unglazed crockery?


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## beaglebiz (Aug 5, 2008)

bee, I planned on cleaning them with the same stuff as we use to sterilze our big 6 gallon wine carboys. they appear to be glazed on the inside. 
To be truthful, I think they are not going to work well for a long time storage, because they are so breakable and heavy.


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## bee (May 12, 2002)

such a small opening in those jugs..how would you know if a mouse got in and could not get out??? Not enough left of a dried mouse to rattle thru all that thick stoneware...:shocked:


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## ovsfarm (Jan 14, 2003)

I would suggest a big dose of caution in using old crocks or jugs for food storage. One of the things that tends to happen to them over time is that the fired glazing tends to form little cracks, called crazing. Those little cracks can collect dirt and hold it down where you cannot scrub it out. It can be very difficult to disinfect them because of whatever might be down in those cracks. As the piece continues to age, the cracks often become even larger and let more stuff get down into the porous part of the pottery. Crocks that have been kept outside are especially prone to this. Also, if a crock has held liquids, minute bits of which has seeped into the porous part, and that crock freezes, they will often break due to the expansion of the ice crystals.

I agree that they are beautiful and they can make very attractive bins to hold potatoes, onions, etc. short term. But I would not count on them to hold food for long term storage.


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## Spinner (Jul 19, 2003)

I have a couple of crocks in my kitchen that hold my spatulas, whisk, etc. They look nice setting on the counter top and keep the utensils at hand. If I was going to use crocks for food storage, I'd buy new ones. No way of knowing what might have been stored in old ones at one time.


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## Old John (May 27, 2004)

I have a couple, but I don't use them. I use Glass carboys for my brewing. I have 5 of the big 5 gallon size. I have about a dozen or so of the glass 1 gallon jugs, that I rack Mead into.
I can see if the Glass jugs are clean. I can't with the crockery jugs.
I like to be sure.
Oh, and I use closed, 1-step fermentation in the carboy, with a blow-off tube when fermenting Beer or Ale. When it is done, I just siphon it into my bucket with the sugar water and bottle it. I have several cases of recycled beer bottles.


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## beaglebiz (Aug 5, 2008)

thanks for the advice. I think Im going to skip this lot, and keep the ones I have for decoration


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## unregistered29228 (Jan 9, 2008)

I don't have any crocks like Beaglebiz is talking about, but I'd also be careful about lead in the glaze. 

I use glass carboys for anything I'm brewing, and I bought 1/2 and one gallon glass jars from fillmorecontainers.com for food storage, etc. They're pricey, but last forever, and they're easy to clean.


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## RebelDigger (Aug 5, 2010)

I have a 3 gallon crock with a wide mouth and lid I used to brine cucumbers in and a five gallon churn I use to make sourgraut in but, the only reason I use them is that I know without a doubt that the purposes I use them for are what they have always been used for since they were my grandma's. The only other thing the churn has ever had in it other than sourgraut is to actually churn milk. I do not use DH's grandma's churns at all because I do not know what has been in them. I would pass on anything that has such a small neck I could not see inside it to make sure the glaze is still good for sure. Same reason I would not take the big cast iron spider kettle out of grandma's yard and use it, I happen to know that it is the one she made lye soap in so, even after all this time I would be leary of using it to process food.


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## D Lynn (May 26, 2008)

I agree they aren't much good for storing food in (crocks) I have a no. 4 & a no. 5. Thought they would be great for onions and potatos... they now house the hats and mittens! :grin: DH2B threatens to someday make sauerkraut in them, but this is a guy who eats moldy cheese and bread... so I dunno if I wanna be in town when that happens..... :bash:


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