Are blue plastic barrels at all safe and suitable for aquaponics / aquaculture?
If you are planning to build your own aqua or hydroponic system, the blue plastic drums quickly come up in the search for suitable material.
The blue plastic drums, often seen in DIY stores, food production and agriculture, are usually 55 gallon drums (208.20 litres / 1 gal = 3.7854 L) and relatively safe to use for aquaponics / aquaculture as they are often food grade. The markings with the numbers 1, 2, 4 or 5 are all technically suitable. Class 2 offers a particular advantage. This stands for HDPE or high-density polyethylene, which is used for long-term food storage as it is the most stable form of plastic. It is also a UV-stabilised plastic, which means it can withstand full sunlight for longer without breaking down.
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When choosing barrels for aquaponics, you should always opt for a food-grade barrel. Be sure to look for this symbol (glass and fork) - all other markings do not provide any certainty in terms of suitability for our purposes. Quote: |
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Barrels suitable for our purposes are identified by the numbers 1, 2, 4 and 5 on the labelling on the side of the container.
This means that when used in an aquaponics system, only very small amounts of plastic compounds enter the water system and it will last a very long time without decomposing.
By the way
Have you ever looked at a product or its packaging and noticed one of the symbols shown on the right? Have you thought that the material is recyclable because the symbol consists of three arrows following each other? Unfortunately, that is not necessarily the case. These symbols are called Resin Identification Codes (RICs), see illustration.
The RICs were developed by the Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) in 1988 and are now implemented as law in 39 US states and most EU countries. According to How2Recycle, RICs aim to "facilitate the identification of plastic types for the recycling and plastics industries". In other words, RICs serve the plastics and recycling industries, not necessarily the consumers of these industries. The American Society for Testing and Materials states that RICs are not "recycling codes", do not imply inherent recyclability, and should not be in close proximity to environmental claims (including recyclability). Consumer testing by GreenBlue and other organisations shows that the majority of the public does not understand RICs. Consumer interpretations range from the "grade" of a plastic, to its popularity, to the number of recycling returns, to the assumption that a RIC means something is recyclable. Furthermore, RICs are not universally found on bags, films or other product packaging, as legislation and interpretation of guidelines vary widely.
Have you ever looked at a product or its packaging and noticed one of the symbols shown on the right? Have you thought that the material is recyclable because the symbol consists of three arrows following each other? Unfortunately, that is not necessarily the case. These symbols are called Resin Identification Codes (RICs), see illustration.
The RICs were developed by the Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) in 1988 and are now implemented as law in 39 US states and most EU countries. According to How2Recycle, RICs aim to "facilitate the identification of plastic types for the recycling and plastics industries". In other words, RICs serve the plastics and recycling industries, not necessarily the consumers of these industries. The American Society for Testing and Materials states that RICs are not "recycling codes", do not imply inherent recyclability, and should not be in close proximity to environmental claims (including recyclability). Consumer testing by GreenBlue and other organisations shows that the majority of the public does not understand RICs. Consumer interpretations range from the "grade" of a plastic, to its popularity, to the number of recycling returns, to the assumption that a RIC means something is recyclable. Furthermore, RICs are not universally found on bags, films or other product packaging, as legislation and interpretation of guidelines vary widely.
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