Documented · segregated · single-trip

Food-grade totes, and the paperwork that makes the claim mean something.

Anybody can call a tote food grade. We can show you the intake record, the prior product, the wash procedure and the photographs. If we cannot, we sell it as industrial — and we do, every week.

Short answer

A food-grade IBC tote has an FDA-compliant HDPE bottle, an edible-only prior-contents history and a documented wash. We stock single-trip 275 and 330 gallon food-grade totes in Norristown, PA at roughly $225–$300, sold with the record attached.

Prior contents: Edible only
Resin: FDA-compliant HDPE
Price band: $225 – $300
Record: Supplied in writing

Work order · 90-second form

Reserve food-grade stock

Food-grade inventory moves fast and is quantity-limited. Tell us what you're filling and we'll match the prior contents sensibly.

The three tests, in order

Food-grade is not a finish or a smell. It is a chain of custody, and it breaks at the weakest link.

1. The resin

The bottle must be moulded from HDPE that complies with FDA 21 CFR 177.1520 for food contact. Virtually all name-brand IBC bottles are, but bottles moulded from recycled content or from unmarked offshore resin may not be, and cannot be assumed to be.

2. The history

A tote that has held one non-edible product is permanently disqualified. Polyethylene is semi-permeable: surfactants, solvents, glycols and ag chemicals migrate into the wall and leach back out into the next fill. No wash reverses that. This is the rule that costs us the most inventory and the one we are least willing to bend.

3. The wash

A repeatable procedure with a retained record — hot caustic for sugars, degreasing for oils, sanitising rinse, air dry, new gasket. Our procedure and the reasoning behind each cycle are on the cleaning guide.

Food-grade stock — what we hold and what we will not sell
Prior contents	Wash cycle	Sold as	Potable use
Fruit juice concentrate	Hot caustic + sanitise	Food grade	Case by case
Corn / rice syrup	Hot caustic + sanitise	Food grade	Case by case
Vegetable & olive oil	Degrease + hot rinse	Food grade	No
Vinegar / brine	Hot rinse + neutralise	Food grade	Case by case
Liquid egg	Caustic + sanitise	Food grade	No
Food-grade glycerine	Hot rinse	Food grade	Case by case
Surfactant / detergent	Any	Industrial only	Never
Glycol / coolant	Any	Industrial only	Never
Ag chemical	Any	Grade C industrial	Never
Unknown / unlabelled	Any	Grade C industrial	Never

Who buys these

The people who actually need the record.

Food-grade stock leaves this yard on four kinds of truck.

Breweries & distilleries

Wort transfer, sugar dosing, spent-grain slurry, water treatment ahead of the mash.

Commercial kitchens & co-packers

Bulk oil, syrup, brine and sauce base, plus wash-down water storage.

Growers & hydroponics

Nutrient solution where the crop is edible and the water touches the root zone.

Emergency & event water

Non-potable bulk supply for festivals, fire crews, livestock and shelters.

Food-grade questions

Ask the hard ones.

The long-form version is the food-grade guide.

Food-grade IBC totes — FAQ

What makes an IBC tote food grade?

Three things at once, and all three are required. The bottle must be moulded from FDA-compliant HDPE resin. The container's entire prior-contents history must be edible commodities only. And it must be washed to a documented, repeatable procedure with the record retained. Miss any one of those and the tote is industrial stock, regardless of how clean it looks.

Can I store drinking water in a used food-grade tote?

For non-potable emergency supply, generally yes. For genuine potable use we recommend a single-trip food-grade tote that previously held a water-soluble edible product, plus a new gasket, a new valve and a fresh sanitising rinse before filling. We will tell you which units in stock are appropriate and which are not — and we will refuse the sale rather than guess.

What did your food-grade totes previously hold?

Typically fruit juice concentrate, corn and rice syrup, vegetable and olive oil, vinegar, molasses, honey, liquid egg, brine, malt extract and food-grade glycerine. Each unit's specific prior product is on its intake record and printed on your quote. Sugar-bearing prior contents get a hot caustic wash; oils get a degreasing cycle.

Are food-grade totes more expensive?

Yes — usually $225–$300 against $110–$165 for a washed industrial Grade B. You are paying for scarcity and paperwork: only a fraction of incoming totes have a clean, documented edible history, and keeping them segregated in the yard costs us space and discipline.

Full food-grade guide

Prior contents, resin compliance, wash validation and the three firm refusals.

Open

When plastic won't do

304 and 316L stainless bins for repeated CIP, essences and high-purity duty.

Open

Brewing & distilling

What we supply to breweries, cideries and craft distillers across PA and NJ.

Open

A single clean 275 gallon composite IBC tote on a black plastic pallet, showing the steel cage, fill lid and blue-handled discharge valve

The yard

Segregated, documented, quantity-limited

By the numbers

The figures behind this page.

3: conditions, all required; FDA resin, edible-only history, documented wash
<200: units typically in stock; The scarcest category we handle
0: industrial totes upgraded; Absorption is not reversible by washing
+$90–$140: premium over Grade B; Scarcity and segregation, not cleaning

Reference

The detail, in full.

Prior contents and what they permit
Prior product	Food grade?	Wash cycle	Potable-adjacent?
Fruit juice concentrate	Yes	Hot caustic + sanitise	Case by case
Corn / rice syrup	Yes	Hot caustic + sanitise	Case by case
Vegetable / olive oil	Yes	Degrease + hot rinse	No
Vinegar / brine	Yes	Hot rinse + neutralise	Case by case
Liquid egg	Yes	Caustic + sanitise	No
Molasses / honey	Yes	Hot caustic	Case by case
Food-grade glycerine	Yes	Hot rinse	Case by case
Malt extract	Yes	Hot caustic	Case by case
Surfactant / detergent	Never	Any	Never
Glycol / coolant	Never	Any	Never
Agricultural chemical	Never	Any	Never
Unknown	Never	Any	Never

Straight answers

When food grade is required, and when it is money wasted.

You need food grade

Anything that contacts an edible product at any stage.
Livestock and animal drinking water — the same standard applies.
Hydroponic nutrient feeding the root zone of a leaf crop.
Spent grain or by-product destined for feed.
Emergency non-potable water distribution.

Grade B is the honest answer

A container in a food plant holding floor cleaner or glycol.
Utility duty anywhere — treated water, caustic, sanitiser storage.
Anything where the product is expensive but not edible.
Non-contact process water, however clean the room.
Storage of packaged goods rather than bulk liquid.

Received wisdom, examined

Four things people believe that are wrong.

“A thorough wash makes any tote food grade.”

Polyethylene absorbs organic compounds into the wall during service and desorbs them over months. The surface gets clean; the wall does not. The rule is historical, not observational, and you cannot test your way out of it at sensible cost.

“Food-grade containers are certified.”

There is no third-party certification of individual used containers. What exists is documentation — the resin compliance statement, the intake prior-contents log and the wash record. Ask anyone offering certification who issued it and against what standard.

“Any edible prior product is equivalent.”

Vinegar into a delicate dairy base is legal and a genuine quality risk. We record the specific prior product so you can make that call against your own allergen and flavour matrix.

“Food grade costs more because it is cleaner.”

It costs more because it is scarce. Only a fraction of incoming containers have a clean documented edible history, and keeping them physically segregated costs yard space and discipline.

Asked and answered.

Further questions

What do I get with the container?

The recorded prior product, the wash record with cycle, temperature, chemistry and operator, serial-matched photographs, a new FDA-grade EPDM gasket and a new valve. That pack is what makes the claim defensible in a food-safety audit.

What if my allergen policy will not accept any prior history?

Then buy rebottled with a new FDA-compliant bottle. Virgin interior, no history to document, no carry-over argument, at roughly two thirds of new price. It is the most common recommendation we make to food customers.

When should I order?

January. Food-grade supply comes from food manufacturers finishing seasonal contracts, which happens on their calendar rather than ours, and by April regional stock is typically under 200 units across the whole category.

Go deeper

Twelve reference sheets, because you should not have to ask us for a number.

Specifications, grading definitions, prices, thread standards, flow rates, weights, gasket selection, wash chemistry, freight limits, circular-route arithmetic, failure modes and conversions. Open what you need; none of it is gated and none of it changes depending on who is asking.

Container specs16 rows

Every dimension for the two sizes that make up 93% of the market.

The two sizes that are 93% of the market
Attribute	275 gallon	330 gallon
Capacity	275 gal / 1,041 L	330 gal / 1,249 L
Footprint	48" × 40"	48" × 40"
Height	46"	53"
Tare weight	125–135 lb	140–155 lb
Gross, water	≈2,425 lb	≈2,900 lb
Max gross mass	2,800 lb	3,300 lb
Bottle mass	38–45 lb HDPE	45–52 lb HDPE
Cage + base mass	≈55 lb steel	≈62 lb steel
Stack, full	2 high	2 high
Stack, empty	4 high	4 high
Two-high stack height	92"	106"
Per 53′ van, volume	48	40
Per 53′ van, weight-limited	17 full	14 full
Fill opening	6" vented or solid	6" vented or solid
Discharge	2" butterfly, S60x6	2" butterfly, S60x6
Forklift entry	4-way	4-way

Grading standard10 rows

Our written definitions — the same ones printed on every quote.

Our written grading standard, in one table
	Grade A	Grade B	Grade C	Food grade
Wash	Documented	Documented	Rinse only	Documented + sanitise
Bottle	Clear–translucent	Light haze permitted	Heavy staining	Clear, odour-free
Odour	None	Faint, product-typical	May be present	None
Prior contents	Documented, benign	Documented	May be absent	Edible only, documented
Cage	Square, no node rust	Sound, cosmetic dings	Cosmetic damage OK	Sound
Gasket	New	New	As-is	New, FDA EPDM
Leak test	Passed, recorded	Passed, recorded	Not tested	Passed, recorded
Food contact	Only if food prior	No	Never	Yes
Price band, 275 gal	$165–$225	$110–$165	$60–$95	$225–$300
Share of our sales	18%	58%	17%	7%

2026 price bands8 rows

Published rather than extracted through a contact form.

2026 Mid-Atlantic price bands, 275 gallon
Type	Single unit	Pallet (4+)	Truckload (48)	Lead time
Grade C as-is	$60–$95	$56–$88	$52–$78	1–2 days
Grade B washed	$110–$165	$102–$152	$95–$140	1–3 days
Grade A rinsed	$165–$225	$153–$208	$140–$190	1–3 days
Food grade	$225–$300	$210–$278	$195–$260	2–5 days
Rebottled	$250–$340	$236–$316	$220–$295	3–7 days
New composite	$420–$560	$400–$530	$380–$500	5–15 days
Cage only	$35–$65	$32–$60	$30–$55	1–3 days
We pay you for empties	$15–$85	$20–$85	$28–$85	Collection ≤2 weeks

Threads & flow9 rows

Measured on our own line: full tote of water, vented lid, valve open.

Threads, adapters and gravity flow
Fitting	Specification	Initial flow	Time to empty 275 gal	Typical use
3" butterfly	3" flange, PP body	128 gpm	3.5 min	Batch dumping, viscous
2" butterfly	S60x6 outlet, EPDM seat	70 gpm	6.5 min	Standard discharge
2" camlock	S60x6 → 2″ male cam	62 gpm	7.2 min	Pump and transfer hose
2" NPT	S60x6 → 2″ male NPT	58 gpm	7.9 min	Rigid dosing plumbing
1" camlock	S60x6 → 1″ male cam	22 gpm	19.6 min	Drum filling, controlled
3/4" GHT	S60x6 → garden hose	9 gpm	45.8 min	Irrigation, wash-down
1/2" spigot	S60x6 → spigot	4 gpm	105 min	Hand filling, troughs
S60x6	60 mm OD, 6 mm pitch buttress	—	—	Modern standard outlet
S100x8	100 mm OD, 8 mm pitch	—	—	Legacy / EU — use a bushing

Weights by product10 rows

gallons × 8.34 × specific gravity + tare. The number people skip.

Gross weight by product — the calculation people skip
Product	SG	275 gal gross	330 gal gross	Stack?
Ethanol	0.79	1,940 lb	2,310 lb	Yes
Diesel / fuel oil	0.85	2,080 lb	2,480 lb	Yes — steel bin only
Vegetable oil	0.92	2,240 lb	2,670 lb	Yes
Water	1.00	2,425 lb	2,900 lb	Yes
Latex emulsion	1.05	2,540 lb	3,040 lb	With care
Brine 23%	1.20	2,880 lb	3,450 lb	No
Liquid fertiliser 28-0-0	1.28	3,065 lb	3,670 lb	No
Corn syrup 42 DE	1.33	3,180 lb	3,810 lb	No — partial fill
Sulphuric acid 50%	1.40	3,340 lb	4,000 lb	Partial fill
Sodium hydroxide 50%	1.52	3,615 lb	4,335 lb	Partial fill

Gasket selection10 rows

The cheapest decision in the specification, and the one most often wrong.

Gasket and wetted-part selection
Product family	Gasket	Valve body	Container	Avoid
Water, brine, glycol	EPDM	Polypropylene	Poly IBC	—
Dilute acids	EPDM	Polypropylene	Poly IBC	Brass, carbon steel
Caustics	EPDM	Polypropylene	Poly IBC	Aluminium
Alcohols under 20% ABV	EPDM	Polypropylene	Poly IBC	—
Alcohols over 20% ABV	Viton	Stainless	Stainless bin	Poly bottles
Vegetable and mineral oils	Viton	Polypropylene	Poly IBC	EPDM gaskets
Fuels, diesel, kerosene	Viton	PP or stainless	Steel bin	Poly bottles
Aromatic solvents	Viton	Stainless	316L bin	All poly parts
Food ingredients	EPDM (FDA)	PP (FDA)	Food-grade poly	Non-FDA elastomers
Flavour, essence, botanical	Viton	Stainless	316L bin	Poly bottles

Wash cycles8 rows

The cycle follows the residue. A default cycle is how you get a clean-looking tote that smells.

Wash cycle by residue class
Residue	Cycle	Temp	Chemistry	Water	Cost	Outcome
Water-soluble benign	Cold triple rinse	Ambient	None	22 gal	$18–$28	Grade A/B
Sugars, syrups	Hot caustic + sanitise	148–156 °F	1.5% NaOH	45 gal	$35–$55	Food grade if prior allows
Proteins	Hot caustic + sanitise	150–158 °F	2% NaOH	48 gal	$40–$58	Food grade if prior allows
Oils, fats	Degrease + hot rinse	135–150 °F	Alkaline surfactant	52 gal	$45–$70	Grade A/B
Surfactants	Extended rinse + defoam	Ambient–120 °F	Defoamer	40 gal	$30–$48	Grade B only
Latex, emulsions	Mechanical + strip	125–140 °F	Alkaline	50 gal	$50–$75	Grade B/C
Acids, caustics	Neutralise + rinse	Ambient	Counter-agent	35 gal	$32–$50	Grade B
Unknown	Triple rinse, downgrade	Ambient	None	22 gal	$20–$30	Grade C only

Freight limits8 rows

Volume capacity and weight capacity are different numbers, and weight wins.

What fits on what — volume and weight limits
Vehicle	Full, 2 high	Weight-limited full	Empty, 4 high	Liftgate
53′ dry van	48	17	96	No
48′ flatbed	40	17	80	No
26′ box truck	24	8	48	Yes
16′ box truck	12	5	24	Yes
Sprinter van	4	2	8	Yes
20′ sea container	20	17	40	No
40′ sea container	42	17	84	No
Drop trailer, 53′	48	17	96	No

Circular routes7 rows

Ranked by burden avoided. Landfill is not on the list.

The seven circular routes, ranked by burden avoided
#	Route	CO₂e avoided	Water avoided	% of new-unit burden	Share of intake
1	Reuse as-is after rinse	88 kg	190 gal	100%	60.9%
2	Wash and return to service	83 kg	163 gal	94%	22.3%
3	Rebottle	55 kg	118 gal	62%	6.0%
4	Salvage cage for another unit	36 kg	76 gal	41%	3.0%
5	Upcycle into a built product	31 kg	66 gal	35%	0.9%
6	Granulate to HDPE regrind	30 kg	62 gal	34%	6.9%
7	Landfill	0 kg	0 gal	0%	0%

Failure modes8 rows

What actually retires a container and where each one goes afterwards.

What actually retires a container, and whether it is fixable
Failure	Where it starts	Share of retirements	Fixable?	Route
Bottle stress cracking	Base radius	41%	No	Granulate bottle, keep cage
Freeze split	Mid-height, at the old liquid line	16%	No	Granulate bottle, keep cage
Contamination beyond wash	Absorbed into the wall	14%	No	Granulate bottle, keep cage
Bottle deformation	Whole wall, from overfill or heat	11%	No	Rebottle
Cage node corrosion	Welded intersections, corner columns	10%	Sometimes	Mill the steel
Missing prior-contents record	Paperwork, not the container	8%	No	Grade C only
Base rail damage	Fork pockets	—	Yes, on steel	Repair or replace base
Gasket failure	Outlet and lid seals	—	Always	Replace, $4

Delivery corridors7 rows

If you sit on a route we already run, small loads become viable.

Scheduled corridors from 800 River Rd
Corridor	Key stops	Frequency	Minimum load	Buy-back
I-76 West	Conshohocken, King of Prussia, Reading, Harrisburg	2× weekly	4 units	Yes
I-95 South	Philadelphia, Chester, Wilmington, Baltimore	2× weekly	4 units	Yes
I-95 North	Trenton, New Brunswick, Newark, Elizabeth	Weekly	6 units	Yes
NE Extension	Lansdale, Quakertown, Allentown, Bethlehem	Weekly	6 units	Yes
US-30 West	West Chester, Downingtown, Lancaster, York	Weekly	6 units	Yes
US-202 North	Doylestown, New Hope, Flemington	Weekly	4 units	Yes
Delmarva	Dover, Salisbury, Easton	Fortnightly	10 units	By arrangement

Conversions12 rows

The arithmetic that comes up daily.

Conversions used every day in this yard
From	To	Multiply by	Worked example
US gallons	Litres	3.785	275 gal = 1,041 L
Litres	US gallons	0.2642	1,000 L = 264 gal
US gallons of water	Pounds	8.34	275 gal = 2,294 lb
Pounds	Kilograms	0.4536	2,425 lb = 1,100 kg
Inches	Millimetres	25.4	48" = 1,219 mm
Cubic feet	US gallons	7.481	51 ft³ = 381 gal
Cubic yards	Cubic feet	27	1.4 yd³ = 37.8 ft³
psi	Feet of head (water)	2.31	1.7 psi = 3.9 ft
Feet of head	psi	0.433	24 in stand = 0.87 psi
gpm	Litres per minute	3.785	70 gpm = 265 L/min
kg CO₂e	Miles not driven	2.5	88 kg = 220 miles
kg CO₂e	Mature trees, one year	0.0476	88 kg = 4.2 trees

Vocabulary, in twelve lines

IBC: Intermediate bulk container — anything between a drum and a tanker, in practice 110–550 gallons on a forkliftable base.
Composite IBC: An HDPE bottle inside a welded steel cage on a pallet base. The 275 and 330 gallon workhorses.
Tare: Empty weight of the container: 125–135 lb for a 275, 140–155 lb for a 330.
Gross mass: Container plus contents. Most 275s are rated to 2,800 lb; exceed it and the bottle bulges rather than bursts.
Node: A welded intersection in the cage where load actually transfers. The correct place to inspect.
S60x6: The standard outlet thread: 60 mm OD, 6 mm pitch buttress. Hand tight only.
Prior contents: What the container last held, logged against the original label. The single most consequential fact about any used tote.
Rebottle: A new HDPE bottle fitted into an inspected existing cage — virgin interior, 38% less embodied carbon than new.
Food grade: FDA-compliant resin plus an edible-only prior history plus a documented wash. All three, together.
UN 31HA1: Marking for a composite IBC approved for liquids. Belongs to the assembly and carries a service life.
Regrind: Granulated recycled HDPE. Post-industrial IBC regrind goes to pipe, conduit, pallets — never food contact.
Avoided burden: Environmental cost that did not occur because a container was reused instead of manufactured. Not an offset.

All 58 terms

The yard, in numbers

18,412: containers returned to service, rolling 12 months
91.9%: of intake leaves as a container, not as feedstock
1.62M kg: CO₂e avoided against a new-container baseline
543,000 lb: HDPE granulated into clean regrind in 2025
318,000 lb: steel baled to a regional mill in 2025
0 yd³: container material landfilled — six consecutive years
2,600: containers on the ground at the January peak
11%: of offered loads refused, and referred on
22: people at the Norristown yard, four of them drivers
6: states served by our own trucks

Where and when

IBC Totes PA LLC
800 River Rd
Norristown, PA 19406
hello@ibctotespa.com
quotes@ibctotespa.com
No telephone line — written quotes only.

Opening hours
Mon	7:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Tue	7:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Wed	7:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Thu	7:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Fri	7:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Sat	8:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Sun	Closed

Next step

Every tote we keep alive is one that never gets made.

Get a written quote Sell us your empties

Food-grade totes, and the paperwork that makes the claim mean something.

The three tests, in order

1. The resin

2. The history

3. The wash

The people who actually need the record.

Breweries & distilleries

Commercial kitchens & co-packers

Growers & hydroponics

Emergency & event water

Ask the hard ones.

Food-grade IBC totes — FAQ

Full food-grade guide

When plastic won't do

Brewing & distilling

The figures behind this page.

The detail, in full.

When food grade is required, and when it is money wasted.

Four things people believe that are wrong.

Asked and answered.

Further questions

Related reading.

The absorption chemistry

The allergen answer

For food manufacturers

Twelve reference sheets, because you should not have to ask us for a number.

Every tote we keep alive is one that never gets made.