[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
[APD] Re: Continuous Water change system
I don't actually have a rain barrel at this point. I'm just getting
started and looking for a reservoir (50-100 gallon capacity range) that is
easy to find locally, safe and cheap... a rain barrel seemed like it might
work really well, would probably be easy to find locally and convenient
since you can get them already plumbed with a bottom drain... what about
other plastic trashcans, would they work?
Yes, most trash cans will work. It would be best to use FDA-approved
containers since those will be food safe which should also make them
tank-safe. The only common garbage cans I know of that are FDA approved are
the Rubbermaid "Brute" containers -- with the notable exception of the red
ones. There is apparently something about the red pigment that prevents the
red containers from getting FDA approval as I've seen many lines of
containers where all are FDA approved except for the red ones.
My real question is whether one of these things is likely to leach
chemicals into the water... is there a particular type of plastic I should
try to get/try to avoid?
Polyethylene should in most cases be safe. It's also common and is one of
the cheapest plastics out there. Lots of water pipe is made of this material.
Otherwise, any recommendations for a reservoir (and where to get it)? I
live in the city (San Francisco Bay Area) so it would need to be commonly
available. I'll check the local hardware stores for food grade plastic
barrels (will they be specifically marked as "food grade"?).
They'll be marked as "FDA approved" in most cases, or will be sold for food
service use. For the size containers you are looking for you'll probably
have to look in the commercial supply houses since the hardware stores
usually don't have much beyond 5-10 gallons except for flimsy trash cans.
You might try a water well supply house or contractor -- they will
frequently use large tanks.
I've tried web searches... but if you don't know what to search for... it
is often hard to find ;-)
There is a lot of info and products at http://www.usplastics.com. The
shipping costs are pretty bad for the larger containers though due to the
size. If you have water well or farm/ranch supply places around those will
be the best places to check.
-Bill
*****************************
Waveform Technology
UNIX Systems Administrator
_______________________________________________
Aquatic-Plants mailing list
Aquatic-Plants at actwin_com
http://www.actwin.com/mailman/listinfo/aquatic-plants