better bottle vs glass carboy

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valicious

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I've been trying to decide whether to get a glass carboy or a better bottle. BBs seem so much better because they won't break if you drop them and aren't as heavy. Is there any real advantage in going glass?

Is getting a ported Better Bottle with the extra $44 you'd spend on getting the racking adapter w/ highflow valve?
 
Lots of pros and cons on this subject. I am a glass man always have been always will be. But I did buy a BB in a 3 gallon to so what the other side is like for my meads. So far so I like the light weight, so I will report back later as see how things go.
 
Love glass but I gave up on hauling a 6.5 gal carboy up and down 3 flight of stairs due to the weight. Also found glass much more difficult to turn upside down and hold steady when cleaning the inside with a blast of water to get the oxy residue out. Never had one shatter on me (thank God) so that was not a factor in my switching.

I primary in the 6 gal BB and secondary in the 5 gal BB. they clean up easily with oxy and I have not had any residual deposits. I think that the ported BB's are overpriced once you add the racking and the blow off adapters so I have the unported BB's.

Don't like the fact that the BB is only good up to 140' F but you just need to keep that in mind when washing them I guess. In the long term BB needs to come out with a higher temp model or there is a market for another individual/company out there. Have not dented a BB yet but that is also something that is disconcerting - the plastic should be strong enough not to dent, and should pop right back out no? BB's are the best situation for me at present but there is room for improvement. Montanaandy
 
I gave away my glass carboy, too heavy and did not like the near miss with that slippery bottle. Prefer the BB although I only use it for Apflewein at this point. Much prefer using Corny kegs for fermentation.
 
I have both,and an ale pail... dont really have an opinion. I did get lucky one of the water stores was using 6 gallon bottles for a while and every time I went I would trade my 5 gallon for a 6 gallon and kept the six gallon bottles and it cost me 6.99. They wonder why I dont have a trade in now, but they stopped carrying the 6 gal.
 
I would check the plastic number on those water bottles....

not all plastic is created equal and it may be allowing oxygen into your beer (Better bottles are not penetrated by oxygen - but something with a #7 Other on the bottom might be!)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resin_identification_code#Table_of_resin_codes and then look up the type of plastic it is for penetration data.

I never even gave that a second thought, guess I will have to look in to that. Thanks
 
my favorite drawback of the BB is scratching. with glass unless your using a diamond tipped brush your not going to scratch it. if you scratch a BB you might as well take it down to the recycling center and buy a new one.
 
I've been trying to decide whether to get a glass carboy or a better bottle. BBs seem so much better because they won't break if you drop them and aren't as heavy. Is there any real advantage in going glass?

Is getting a ported Better Bottle with the extra $44 you'd spend on getting the racking adapter w/ highflow valve?

I've never tried glass but one advantage is most are 6.5 instead of the max 6g for BB. That extra space can be nice for when your brew foams over.

I think biggest advantage of glass is that it's glass and you just know for sure no matter what it's not going to mess up your brew. Only way glass fails you is when it's busted in pieces. That isn't to say that BB isn't just as safe, just that it's way more obvious with glass.

IMO the ports are worth it if you have the right set up. If you can use them how they are intended, and have a totally closed system, it's worth it.
 
Moved from pails to BB for fermenting..now have 4

Love the BB, light and easy to work with..except for some challenging cleaning routines ... you can't just start wailing with a carboy brush, so I soak in Oxiclean, and mostly it works overnight. Vigorous rocking usually does the trick.
 
"my favorite drawback of the BB is scratching". I am always puzzled when I read about someone scratching the inside of their BB because of cleaning. I simply add 1 cup of oxy to a BB filled with hot water, allow it to sit (overnight if the BB is really dirty) and then empty it via the carboy stand. Rinse until all the oxy residue is gone. Nothing to clean out and it sparkles. I then hit it with Star San, allow the SS to sanitize, empty the BB out and cover the top with loose fitting Saran Wrap. Ready for the next batch. I followed the same procedure when I cleaned my glass carboys. Montanaandy
 
+1 on not scrubbing your BB. Oxyclean does just fine, if you even need that. Just rinsing it with some hot water after I'm done bottling/racking is usually enough to keep mine clean. I don't even own a carboy brush.
 
+1 on not scrubbing your BB. Oxyclean does just fine, if you even need that. Just rinsing it with some hot water after I'm done bottling/racking is usually enough to keep mine clean. I don't even own a carboy brush.

You can put a few qts of hot water in it and vigorously shake it (not recommended with glass) and that will clean the BB well for the most part. Often there is some krausen stuck to the upper part of the BB. I put in a gallon of hot water and one oz or so of PBW. I invert the BB into a bowl in the sink and let it sit for an hour. Rinse, and you're ready to go. Definitely, no brush.
 
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