Olive barrels, remove taste?

[dpe.ahoy]

I need to get some water storage barrels for the cabin and can get food grade 60 gal barrels that olives were shipped in.  They are perfect except they still smell like olives and as much as I like em, I don't want the water to get that taste.  How would be a good way to remove the smell/taste from the barrels?  DP

[blind ear]

Make a batch or two of wine in them. Just kidding. Don't know if it would work but the experiment would be interesting. (Would be an interesting way to store grapes and water.)    ear

[Empty Quiver]

Pack them with herring .
For what it is worth, we used to use a special cleaner to clean sprayer tanks in the fertilizer business. Unfortunately it had an orange scent, maybe not all do.
 
Those tanks were of three different types of poly. 1st being open cell, picture a styrofoam cooler ( infinitely more dense but still as porous). 2nd was closed cell , it was tighter than open cell and then finished to seal all the pores picture a wrestling mat. 3rd was cross link, and that stuff was like a fiberglass where it was layered up as it was molded. The latter was used in our bulk chemical tanks and anywhere high strength was needed. The first was a water tank only, because chemical would penetrate the pores and could never reliably be removed. The second could be washed out and was generally used as mix tanks for fertilizer and chemicals.
 
All that was to say you need to contact the outfit that made the tank and ask if it can be cleaned or if you are wasteing your efforts.  Last thought, If I had access to a hot water pressure washer ( steam may be ok ) I would take that rascal to it. You can do a lot with a good hot water pressure washer. And then sit it in the sun open for a couple weeks.

[Ranger99]

the only do-able solution would
be hot bleach water.


i still don't believe that would work.
i always use new containers for potable
water, and i would say that you would be
better served to do so also.


i've not used a used water container since
my buddy used some mil-surp water jugs
some years back and got very sick way
back in the bush. we were lucky i always
carry imodium ad and pepto biz. he was
very sick with vomiting and diarrhea and
had a mild fever.


you might try the bleach water just to see

[dpe.ahoy]

Thanks for the replies.  Before I quit drinking, the wine may have been a good idea , but now, not so much.  The steam cleaning followed by bleach water soak and then setting open in the sun for a couple of weeks may do it.  At less than $30 a barrel, worth trying for one barrel to see.  If not, guess I have a rain barrel for a down spout.  DP

[FPH]

I did a smoke rehab for a school many years back.  What we could send off(loose book), we sent to a professional ozone cleaner in Dallas.  For perminate fixtures like the metal decking and steel columns we used a solution of water and bleach.

[FPH]

Took about three attempts, fairly liberal with the solution.

[GEMSTATE]

Might try a baking soda/water mix. Don't know if it works but if it can get odors out of a fridge seems worth a shot.