Speidel or Better Bottle?

Last night I blew up my first carboy trying to starsan the inside. Scared the... you know what out of me. I immediately looked at my hands for cuts, but I lucked out. So, now I'm refusing to buy a glass carboy to replace my 6.5. I've looked at the Speidels today and the better bottles and trying to decide which way to go... If Speidel was in stock I would probably order. Not much more that the glass carboy was; in my case this is purchasing another, so its cheaper. I know the argument on plastic buckets, but for some reason I just don't care for that option. Any other suggestions?

I use both plastic buckets and better bottles. They both produce the same beer imho. The only difference is I can clean the bucket a bit faster.

I have 3 Speidels and 4 Better Bottles. While I like the Better Bottles, I am a huge fan of the Speidels. They are a breeze to clean. The air lock that comes with the Speidels is huge and will reduce if not eliminate the need for a blow off tube for even the most vigorous fermentations. The spigot is optional. If you don't want it, you can screw on the included cap instead. The cap also fits the top of fermenter so that you can seal it up if you want to wait to pitch your yeast or need to transport it. The Speidels have 2 handles that make carrying it around easy. The opening at the top of the 30L is approximately 5 inches and give you ample room to clean the inside. I have 2 30L and one 60L.

The Better Bottles are inexpensive and you don't have to worry about shattering them if you drop them. They can be a pain to clean if you have a thick krausen. A hot Oxyclean soak is sometimes sufficient to get all of the dried krausen off but there have been several occasions where it did not do the trick and I had to use a brush covered with a towel to clean up the krausen.

I would recommend the Speidels. They are great and very easy to use.

HUGE fan of the Speidels here. I just used my 30L yesterday for the first time. I'm a previous user of glass carboy and plastic buckets. While there isn't anything profoundly superior about them, you just instantly love it the first time you use it.

-lightweight
-has handles for carrying
-large opening to clean
-optional use spigot
-over sized airlock won't clog
-volume ranges are perfect for 5/10gal homebrew batches with headspace to eliminate need for blowoffs.
-small size (for my 30L ~8gal, it's compact, not too tall or wide)
-cost (yes more expensive 6.5 gal bucket but try to find an 8Gal bucket)

Probably the best part for me is it's all designed to work together. After many years of homebrewing and DIY it's nice every once in a while to use something that's components were designed as one.

The biggest problem with the Speidels is finding them in stock anywhere :-(

scottkct said:

-cost (yes more expensive 6.5 gal bucket but try to find an 8Gal bucket)

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There are bigger buckets made for fermentation out there. Most wine buckets are 7.5-8 gallons. Here is an 8 gallon one sold for winemaking for $17.50:

http://www.winemakersdepot.com/8-Gal-Fermenting-Bucket-No-Lid-P264.aspx

Here is the brewcraft one with lid (8 gallons) for $32 from amazon.

There are also 7.9 gallon buckets for fermentation... see this one:
http://labelpeelers.com/fermenting-...tU4AodcUEAxQ&zenid=fl1g5qiovsmpievv8iukhbkao5

and googling for wine fermentation buckets will also show you some 12 gallon models.

I can't comment on the speidels. But it is possible to acquire the same or similar volume for fermentation for much less than the speidel.

Yes, there are being imported from Germany by MoreBeer only that I'm aware of. They're not being pushed to the US market by a distributor so it's hard to get. What little paperwork there is not in english.

I definitely recommend signing up to be notified when in stock on the MoreBeer product page and be prepared to buy as soon as it's available.

scottkct said:

Yes, there are being imported from Germany by MoreBeer only that I'm aware of. They're not being pushed to the US market by a distributor so it's hard to get. What little paperwork there is not in english.

I definitely recommend signing up to be notified when in stock on the MoreBeer product page and be prepared to buy as soon as it's available.

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Not if I beat you to it!

But seriously, I am DYING for Speidel to come back in stock. I neeeeeed one!

I used my 60L over the weekend for my first 10 gallon batch of Irish Red. I will be ordering more when they come back into stock.

Back in stock

http://www.homebrewfinds.com/2013/03/german-made-speidel-fermenters-back-in.html

scottkct said:

Back in stock

http://www.homebrewfinds.com/2013/03/german-made-speidel-fermenters-back-in.html

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Was just about to post this myself. Just received an email from B3 saying the 7.9s were back in. Get 'em while they're hot!

I ordered 3 more 30L ones. Now I just have to keep an eye out for when the 60L ones come back into stock.

Wow these look awesome! I have never seen these before but I am glad they're back.

Can anyone using them for primary comment on the height of the spigot as far as transferring off of the trub is concerned?

Anybody try the "Cavern" from Deep Woods Brew? Stainless steel drum fermenters they refer to as being carboy style. Way pricier but I imagine quite a bit more durable.

prohl84 said:

Wow these look awesome! I have never seen these before but I am glad they're back.

Can anyone using them for primary comment on the height of the spigot as far as transferring off of the trub is concerned?

Anybody try the "Cavern" from Deep Woods Brew? Stainless steel drum fermenters they refer to as being carboy style. Way pricier but I imagine quite a bit more durable.

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They're essentially selling olive oil futsi with a hole drilled in the top for a heck of a mark up. Here is an example of another store selling the same thing (essentially) for $50 less http://thevintnervault.com/product/2881/Fusti-30-liter.html At the price DWB is charging, you can buy a brand new keg and ferment in that and still spend less. Their business model makes no sense to me.

As for the Speidel, I ordered a few yesterday when they went up on sale. If you happen to get a shipping notification from MoreBeer, please speak up. I'd love to know when they start to roll out.

Yes they certainly are to be used for primary. In fact I stopped doing 2ndary a while back. I've found that for the effort required, there was little to no return in quality. Others say the same on this board. Only exception would be for long aging or adjunct additions.

I use mine with single fermentation and I dump the hot/cold break/whirlfloc in too. I strain hops. I'm able to draw samples fine. The very first draw is dumped until clear and then runs clear after.

FYI my Speidel fermenters just shipped! Anyone who ordered on this round should have them soon!

Alright, I am convinced. I am going to assume that if I want to make full 5 gal batches I should go for the 30L? Or will that .3 gal accommodate a large krausen? If I decide I can convince SWMBO (I bought two carboys a month ago; and a blichmann burner for the craigslist kettles I found ) I will get the 30L since it is a $6 difference... space is a factor.

How often/ long do these fermenters go 'out of stock'?

prohl84 said:

Alright, I am convinced. I am going to assume that if I want to make full 5 gal batches I should go for the 30L? Or will that .3 gal accommodate a large krausen? If I decide I can convince SWMBO (I bought two carboys a month ago; and a blichmann burner for the craigslist kettles I found ) I will get the 30L since it is a $6 difference... space is a factor.

How often/ long do these fermenters go 'out of stock'?

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You want the 30L for 5gal batches, at least for your primary. .3gal is nowhere near enough for a vigorous krausen. I'm getting a couple of 20L too, but they're mostly for secondaries/partial batches.

I'm surprised they aren't already out of stock. These things tend to fly off the shelf. When you compare the price to a Better Bottle with port/racking arm/dry airlock, you'll know why.

When you use these for primary and transfer to a keg, is it as simple as putting a length of hose on the spigot and opening the spigot slowly?

That seems too simple almost! And there's minimal trub transfer? Or does it help to put a strainer on the end of the hose?

forstmeister said:

When you use these for primary and transfer to a keg, is it as simple as putting a length of hose on the spigot and opening the spigot slowly?

That seems too simple almost! And there's minimal trub transfer? Or does it help to put a strainer on the end of the hose?

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That's how I do it. The spigot is slightly higher than the bottom of the fermenter so the yeast and trub settle out and don't come close to the spigot. I have noticed that a small amount of yeast will settle out in the spigot due to gravity but the amount is very small and it has stayed in place during racking. If you don't want to use the spigot, it comes with a screw cap so you can remove the spigot and cap it off. You would then use an auto siphon or some other method just like a carboy. I can't emphasize enough how easy cleaning these things is. I love mine.

Ordered the 30L + spare airlock (never seen them but based on the pic I estimate fist sized!?). So excited I am going to clean my work spaces thoroughly. It is a freakin' awesome day for cleaning a garage while enjoying a homebrew! SWMBO will be appeased by my cleaning efforts.

EDIT: Holy Crap just got an email saying my order has shipped! That took all of about 4 hrs.

Just used my 30L for the first time 2 weeks ago today. Still fermenting. It's a work of art.
Of course, I can be sure the beer will be no better than in my buckets but this is easy to carry and clean. I'm sold on it. Wish it were cheaper but it's 100% quality built.

uberg33k said:

They're essentially selling olive oil futsi with a hole drilled in the top for a heck of a mark up. Here is an example of another store selling the same thing (essentially) for $50 less http://thevintnervault.com/product/2881/Fusti-30-liter.html At the price DWB is charging, you can buy a brand new keg and ferment in that and still spend less. Their business model makes no sense to me.
.

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If I was to buy some new SS fermenters I'd probably go with the 1/4th barrel kegs from here: http://www.geemacher.com/pricing.php

$111 + shipping at 7.75 gallons, rig up a gas vent for primary, switch to the standard spear, cold crash, and transfer it out under pressure or use it like a carboy and use an autosiphon. Cheaper than the Fusti 30 liters and the deep woods SS carboy.

Got my Speidel; can safely say w/o having used it that I will prefer it over my better bottle.
Going to make a huge RIS to celebrate!

Have 2 better bottles (6.5 gallons, ported) for 2 years. Love them. Just do a soak in oxyclean and usually that's good. Have 2 30L speidels I just got couple months ago- put my first batch in last week- so far so good. Huge air lock and larger opening up top are a nice plus. Will let all now how it went after fermentation is done

I am really interested in upgrading to the 60L. What is the exact size> I see on more beer's site they state approximate dimensions at 15.75" diam. Does this include the handles? I have 15.50" in my fermentation fridge and am wondering if this will fit. Thanks for help.

My only complaint with the better bottles is the amount of flex in the larger(5,6G in particular) bottles. It's not an issue if you don't need to move your brew often/far but if you're not expecting it you can drain your airlock into the brew.

Chillifoot said:

I am really interested in upgrading to the 60L. What is the exact size> I see on more beer's site they state approximate dimensions at 15.75" diam. Does this include the handles? I have 15.50" in my fermentation fridge and am wondering if this will fit. Thanks for help.

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The 60L is about 17 inches wide at the handles. It is 24.5 inches tall.