SUMMARY: Glass containers are perfectly fine for fermentation. It's usually other design aspects of the container that create fermentation problems.
Do you have any sources that actually say glass isn't a good container for fermentation? I've never heard or read that anywhere. The only negative thing I can say about glass is that it's usually transparent, which means you should store it in a dark place to avoid growth of microorganisms that can sometimes be fueled by light.
I assume the reason your linked question mentions that glass jars are "high maintenance" is because most people who ferment in, say, your standard Mason jar may not use airlocks or weights to keep food submerged. If food stays on or above the surface of the liquid, it is much more likely to mold, especially if the container allows outside air to get in. Some people therefore tend to stir or skim their fermented foods periodically, and this agitation will prevent some surface molds from forming, sometimes even with food that floats. With a standard Mason jar, though, your only other option is to keep outside air from contaminating the container by tightening the lid, but then you have to "burp" the jar periodically to avoid pressure build-up.
"Burping" or stirring/skimming on a daily basis (or even more often) in standard jars would probably be "high-maintenance." But these would be problems with any container material (not just glass).
Of course, neither of these situations is ideal -- what you really want to do is (1) use some sort of weight to keep the food submerged (weights in a big container or a baggie full of water in a small container are typical) and (2) have an airlock of some sort on the container. If you try to ferment in glass jars -- or any container -- without those two things, you need to use "high-maintenance" techniques to try to prevent mold. And even if you do the "high-maintenance" things, you may still encounter growth of bad things, so I wouldn't recommend such a setup.
I have no idea why Alton Brown uses plastic in his recipe other than the fact that it's probably the cheapest option for someone to find a container that holds five pounds of cabbage and likely comes with a good lid. There's nothing wrong with plastic as long as it's non-reactive and doesn't leach anything into the ferment. Most food grade plastic containers should be fine (though many people avoid them anyway in favor of more traditional glass or ceramic).
The two containers you link to both include an airlock of sorts, and both have common methods to keep food below the surface. (The ceramic crock usually is used with weights, while the plastic container has an inner plastic lid that can be moved down to keep food down.) The first is similar to the container recommended in your linked question, and it's those aspects which make it more desirable and requiring less maintenance.
Anyhow, if you want to read more about these issues, you might find this link interesting, which included a microscope study to look for growth of nasty things after a 28-day ferment in 18 different fermentation container setups. Bottom line, as I said: the container material is basically irrelevant as long as it's sterile and non-reactive. The more important things are keeping outside air out and keeping food below the surface.
Chlorinated tap water.
The effect on the ferment may be negligible, but I've never bothered to test it, lest there be unwanted putrefaction.
Boil the water that you're going to use to make your brine, then add salt and let cool. The chlorine should volatilize at the boil.
Best Answer
Masi,
Given that I'm a severe allergy and migraine sufferer, I was surprised by your assertion that canned foods in general contain large amounts of histamine. As far as I can find from internet search, they do not. The canned/jarred foods which specifically have been measured to contain histamine are:
The answer is simply: don't eat the above if your sensitive to histamine. You can avoid them. Also, the histamine in the above foods already exists in the can or jar before you buy them, and will not be reduced using salt or chilling.
I am quite puzzled by the inclusion of canned tomatoes on that list, but several sites reference it.
Part of your confusion is clear with this statement:
Um, actually, no. If your can of corn is fermenting, it's bad. Throw it away before the can explodes. Canned and jarred fermented foods are fermented before they are put in the can or jar. Cans of non-fermented foods are not going to ferment on you; they are heat-treated to destroy all microorganisms which would cause fermenting.
Further, histamine is only created as the by-product of the fermentation of certain proteins or fibers, so not even all fermented foods have it. There is a larger list, though, of foods which stimulate histamine production than which contain histamines.
References on which I base the above statements:
One thing which is interesting and irritating is that while there have been numerous studies showing that canned fish can contain deadly levels of histamine (because of the decomposition of the fish before canning), several nutritional information sources have apparently taken to restricting all canned foods "to be safe", presumably since they don't think their readers can differentiate between tuna and green beans. This is presumably the source of Masi's confusion. I spent some time searching for any studies indicating the presence of histamines in canned vegetables or fruits, with no results.
If an actual nutritionist or biochemist is reading this question (I am neither), please add to what I have above or correct me. Thanks!