UN Plastic Drums

• 1H1 = Drum, H = Plastic, 1 = Non removable head
• 1H2 = Drum, H = Plastic, 2 = Removable head

Your required type of UN plastic drum will be based on your specific transport requirements and hazardous substances.

A 1H1 plastic drum is a UN-certified drum with a non-removable head. These plastic drums can be used for the delivery of dangerous liquids or solids depending on what they have been approved with during testing. Users should refer to the UN Mark to ascertain whether the drum is approved for Solids or Liquids. 

Each UN drum will have been tested and certified for a specific Packing Group, which will be displayed within the UN Mark, this could be X (I), Y (II) or Z (III).

You can use packaging certified for PG X when transporting substances assigned to PG I, II or III. Whereas packaging certified for PG Y can only be used for PG II and III substances and PG Z can only be used for PG III substances.

The UN Marks do not provide full details of all the tests undertaken, these can be confirmed by referring to the test certificate.

A 1H2 plastic drum is a UN-certified drum with a removable head. Again these plastic drums can be used for hazardous liquids or solids depending on what they have been approved with during testing. As with the 1H2 drums each drum will have been tested and certified for a specific Packing Group X, Y or Z).

The UN marks alone do not provide full details of the test levels undertaken, these can be confirmed by referring to the test certificate.

Read more about understanding UN Specification Marks here

If your substance of article is on the dangerous goods list typically you would need UN Approved Packaging. UN packaging tends to be higher spec that everyday packaging. To receive the UN certification, plastic drums will need to go through rigorous testing set out in the transport regulations to ensure the drums are capable of retaining contents within the packaging.

The type of dangerous goods you are transporting will dictate which type of drum you can use.  Reach out to our team of packaging experts to get the right packaging for your business today.

Our 1H1, and 1H2 plastic drums are made from high-density polyethylene (HDPE). These are all suitable for use as single-packaging and come in a range of different sizes.

What makes HDPE suitable is the resistance to both high and low PH levels. This makes it a great choice for a lot of different dangerous goods.

It is the shippers responsibility to check the suitability/compatibility of the UN packaging material for the dangerous goods in question. For example, some contents such as specific solvents are not suitable for use in HDPE plastic drums. In this case, a UN steel drum may be a suitable choice for your products.

As the drum has a UN Specification Mark this identifies that the drum is UN Approved and can be used to transport dangerous goods without the need of outer packaging. Users must refer to the relevant transport regulations to ascertain whether their substance is permitted in single packaging or requires combination packaging.

Single packaging can also be used as inner packaging for those transporting dangerous goods where regulations state combination packaging is required.