Making a glass carboy shatterproof?

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I would imagine that the same technology that kids use to drop an egg from 4 feet without breaking would be necessary.

Any of the methods I see would work for an empty carboy, but not for a full one.
 
At worst, the better methods will contain the shards. I believe that's the OP's goal here. Not to prevent it from breaking, but make it so that he won't get killed by a shard from the breaking.
 
GilaMinumBeer said:
If I remember correctly, there have also been lots of threads about PET/PETE and glass carboys containing lethal amounts of dihydrogen monoxide. It's a wonder any of these things are considered safe for anything.
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I am personally not too worried about the lethality of H2O. Lol.
 
How about going really high end here?? Get some really good shock absorbing foam, wrap the outside of the carboy with it. Then get some sheets of carbon fiber, heat it up until it's pliable and form it all around the carboy. Then it will be a CARboy... :D I suppose you could use fiberglass (and resin) instead, if you can't get carbon fiber sheets. But it won't look so cool.
 
Golddiggie said:
How about going really high end here?? Get some really good shock absorbing foam, wrap the outside of the carboy with it. Then get some sheets of carbon fiber, heat it up until it's pliable and form it all around the carboy. Then it will be a CARboy... :D I suppose you could use fiberglass (and resin) instead, if you can't get carbon fiber sheets. But it won't look so cool.
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This is the vehicle wrap I was talking about before. Carbon Fiber carboy baby!

 
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How about taking some strips of fiberglass, then rolling them lengthwise into tubes, say an inch in diameter. Take one of these strips, and wrap it from the neck, under the bottom of the carboy, and back to the neck on the other side. Hold temporarily with tape or string. Repeat three more times. Now you have eight vertical strips going up the sides, several layers of fg thick. Maybe do a few around the circumference of the carboy. Apply epoxy to all of the fg.

Not going to stop all glass separating if it breaks, but should help a lot. Would protect the bottom from scratches when setting on concrete or stone. Still would allow viewing between the strips.
 
A fiber glass or carbon fiber wrapped carboy in the shape of the Linux penguin would rank pretty high on my list if most epic thing ever.

I would rhino line mine if I was worried. I have taken measures against moving any filled carboys so I am not worried at all.
 
phoenixs4r said:
A fiber glass or carbon fiber wrapped carboy in the shape of the Linux penguin would rank pretty high on my list if most epic thing ever.

I would rhino line mine if I was worried. I have taken measures against moving any filled carboys so I am not worried at all.
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But but but, you could do the R2D2 with working servo motors so it could wheel the full carboy wherever you wanted to put it.

As much as I came up with both of them, articulated R2D2 fermenter trumps penguin anyday...unless the pingu moved too.
 
Revvy said:
But but but, you could do the R2D2 with working servo motors so it could wheel the full carboy wherever you wanted to put it.

As much as I came up with both of them, articulated R2D2 fermenter trumps penguin anyday...unless the pingu moved too.
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Touché.
 
Revvy said:
But but but, you could do the R2D2 with working servo motors so it could wheel the full carboy wherever you wanted to put it.

As much as I came up with both of them, articulated R2D2 fermenter trumps penguin anyday...unless the pingu moved too.
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How about an animated wookie? You'd need to brew something epic in that. Also might need to use a larger fermenter, if you wanted it more life sized, or not look like an ewok. :eek:
 
Most effective way to make a carboy shatterproof? First and foremost....buy and use a good carboy handle! Second...place rubber anti-fatigue mats on the floor in your brewing area. IMO coatings and armor on the carboy might contain the broken glass, but might also provide a false sense of durability and lead to increased risk??

Solutions beyond safe handling tools seem silly , and unwise financially when other options are available for less $$ than a carboy that are not inherently breakable and fragile. just my opinion...seems on topic to the discussion..no matter what the mods and revvy think.
 
Revvy said:
But but but, you could do the R2D2 with working servo motors so it could wheel the full carboy wherever you wanted to put it.

As much as I came up with both of them, articulated R2D2 fermenter trumps penguin anyday...unless the pingu moved too.
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Two pages ago, you wanted to rant and play moderator about staying on topic, which is, as you said, "about how to make a glass carboy safer."

Don't ride your high horse too much longer if you're posting comments about R2D2 in the same thread.
 
highgravitybacon said:
Two pages ago, you wanted to rant and play moderator about staying on topic, which is, as you said, "about how to make a glass carboy safer."

Don't ride your high horse too much longer if you're posting comments about R2D2 in the same thread.
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Revvy's point wa to stem the flow of antiglass sentiment since it didn't directly address the OP's question. That is fair.

That was then, this is now.

Subsequest devolvement of the thread in the OP's absence mandates that we keep it going with tangents.

The R2d2 Tangent? Might just be epic.

I for one would pay A LOT for a video of R2 dumping over in the garage as the horrified dude with the remote control gapes at the broken carboy and wave of spilt beer;)

NOW.......

How do I bulletproof that chicken?????
 
highgravitybacon said:
Two pages ago, you wanted to rant and play moderator about staying on topic, which is, as you said, "about how to make a glass carboy safer."

Don't ride your high horse too much longer if you're posting comments about R2D2 in the same thread.
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Did you actually read the thread before ragging on me? ONE PAGE AGO, in THIS POST, I posited an idea for FIBERGLASS COVERED SHATTERPOOF CARBOYS shaped like R2D2, AND a Linux Penguin.

So I WAS staying on topic. If you are going to use a material that can be shaped and painted like fiberglass, you might as well have fun with it and make it cool looking.

So who's on a high horse now highandmightybacon? If you're gonna jump on my crap for something you better first make sure the ammo you're planning on using isn't blanks....

neener-43017.gif
 
highgravitybacon said:
Two pages ago, you wanted to rant and play moderator about staying on topic, which is, as you said, "about how to make a glass carboy safer."

Don't ride your high horse too much longer if you're posting comments about R2D2 in the same thread.
Click to expand...

I actually thought he was carrying on the thought of working towards a shatterproof carboy and improving further by incorporating some form of design or artistic element on top of his fiberglass wrap.
 
Subsailor said:
I actually thought he was carrying on the thought of working towards a shatterproof carboy and improving further by incorporating some form of design or artistic element on top of his fiberglass wrap.
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I agree... Making the protection more artistic than just functional isn't a bad thing. With fiberglass, you're only limited by your skills. :D

cheezydemon3 said:
GOT HIM!!!!!!!

now what?

No wait.....we'll make him bigger, faster, stronger, and.....BULLETPROOF!!
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Shoot him. After the first hit, he should be bulletproof and a lot more relaxed. :D
 
Golddiggie said:
I agree... Making the protection more artistic than just functional isn't a bad thing. With fiberglass, you're only limited by your skills. :D



Shoot him. After the first hit, he should be bulletproof and a lot more relaxed. :D
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Great! But wait....that is what I said about the carboy (hammer etc.) and I was accused of being off topic........hmmmmmm
 
Neat ideas! I wonder if a non permanent solution would be better in order to see if the inside is clean?

Ive got a mix of better bottles and glass carboys. I know those shoulders can be a pain to clean sometimes after several weeks of use with caked on krausen and whatnot. If you could take off the protective cover, it would be easier to see when cleaning.

...or just don't cover the neck with the protective coat...
 
zilch said:
Neat ideas! I wonder if a non permanent solution would be better in order to see if the inside is clean?

Ive got a mix of better bottles and glass carboys. I know those shoulders can be a pain to clean sometimes after several weeks of use with caked on krausen and whatnot. If you could take off the protective cover, it would be easier to see when cleaning.

...or just don't cover the neck with the protective coat...
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Yep....no practical way to make a chicken bullet proof.
 
cheezydemon3 said:
Yep....no practical way to make a chicken bullet proof.
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Well, not if you want to keep it alive... :eek:

As for the other post about inspecting the covered carboy... I suppose you could make the cover hinged, with clasps so that when you want it, it's on there. When you want to clean it, you just open up the holder and remove it. Although I'd be a bit leery about doing so.

For the previous comment about being careful with the glass carboy... There's been enough cases where people have had accidents where they drop it, or it just shatters in their arms/hands without reason. IMO, it's a good reason to want to make it so that you won't get hurt if that happens.

For the original idea of making it like safety glass... You might be able to get some thin plexiglass/polycarbonate (1/16" thick or thinner) and use a heat gun (don't use a torch) to mold it around the carboy. You'll probably need a helper, or two, to do this, but you could go all the way up to the bunghole that way, with a clear layer of protection. I would use something to seal up the top edge of it, and trim the excess off as you go. Make sure you also fully cover the bottom of the carboy. Something to think about at least.
 
Golddiggie said:
:off:
Don't take this the wrong way but that pingu looks 'beyond gay'... I mean, I'm surprised it's not engulfed in flames. :eek:
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Pingu *is* way beyond gay. He's like... out there ..****ing awesome.. balls. 'Course, the only way you'd know Pingu at all is if you were a mom or a dad.
 
I don't even like reading your guys' threads anymore.

Seriously though, just get better bottles.

Ok actually serious this time. I'm curious to see how bed liner spray would work. Is it thick enough to alter the balance of a glass carboy? My guess is no, but maybe something to think about if using some heavier adhesive material.
 
cheezydemon3 said:
the rest of the post is interesting, but it comes down to this.

OK If I used glass, I would put the carboy in an Ale Pale or similar bucket and squish in a lot of rubber cement or some other slightly viscous material.
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This^^ but I would use expanding foam.
 
If you are just looking to protect your limbs from shattered glass you could just use Flex Seal. A $12 can should be enough for two carboys.

flex_seal__62415_zoom.jpg
 

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