Trying to solve the carboy problem

So, there has been a lot of talk lately about breaking carboys and the dangers involved. I recently started a thread here about how I recently came across a cheap one and some people advised about dangers. That got me thinking, what if we coated a glass carboy with something like this on the outside. There's actually a pic on the website of glass bottles covered. I was thinking to make a carboy still effective and be able to see inside someone could tape of a 2 inch or so wide strip all the way down and be able to still see inside. This stuff will add a lot of strength, keep it from shattering into pieces if it did break, provide some cushioning, provide some insulation, and just make your carboy look cool and custom. What do you guys think? If it seems worth it I might try this and post about it with lots of pics.

Sounds cool, man. Give it a try and let us know what you think. I like the fact that it gives slip resistance, as carboys can get slippery when wet.

There's been a couple threads about this over the years, and they haven't really gone to far..

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/carboy-protector-12749/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/clear-plasti-dip-glass-carboys-119405/

I think it's a great idea, especially since it can also if you use the red, render the glass opague and protect the beer from light damage.

SO go for it and report back!!!

A lot of times these threads die on the vine, because no one actually tries it....you'll get a ton of speculation about why it won't work (half the time that from simple jealously, that it wasn't THEIR idea-that's the nature of the web.)

So realizing that our opinions are like a$$holes, just in the words of Nike..

Just do it!!!!

There is nothing wrong with your idea...you won't ruin your beer....so make it happen.

Then take pictures and report back, rather than waiting, having a bunch of speculators shoot it down and give up...It is a great idea is you wanna give up a carboy to experiment.

What I have found around here, is that if the person presents a completed project with pictures, everyone digs it....if it is a thread like this, (and like the two previosu) it etiher dies on the vine, or the idea gets shot down...

So make it happen and if it works it will become "canon" on here, like so many other ideas where the stuff actually gets done.....

The idea is awesome, just keep in mind the logistics. Have you ever used plasti-dip? You are gonna need a way to hang the carboy upright until it dries, multiple times for 3 or 4 dips. If you can figure that out, you got it made!

Turn it upside down and place the neck in a coffee can or better yet a christmas tree strand to support it, and brush multiple coats of it on...you will go through a ton of brushes to paint with it (in other words you don't HAVE to just dip it) When I used to make bamboo flutes I would paint over the waxed upholstery string bindings with plasti dip....it's thick and rubbery but it can be painted on stuff...We also used to make drum mallets with it as well...again painting on rather dipping in....Heck I betcha those sponge paint applicators would work beautifully...in fact I might have even used those rather than brushes. It's been 10 years since I played with that stuff...but I very well believed I used foam applicators instead of brushes....no hair on the object that way.

IIRC we used gasoline to rinse the applicators and brushes out, and even dilute it a bit..but don't quote me on that part, google around to see what artists and craftsmen have done using that stuff....they will know how best to apply it in no traditional ways.....I am not sure if a cheap garden pump compression sparayer would work as a one off way to spray with it...but it might be worth investigating.

You can buy Plasti-Dip in spray cans also. That may make it easier to coat your carboy.

Amazon.com: Plastic Dip Intl. 11209 Plasti-Dip Spray: Home Improvement

Sawdustguy said:

You can buy Plasti-Dip in spray cans also. That may make it easier to coat your carboy.

Amazon.com: Plastic Dip Intl. 11209 Plasti-Dip Spray: Home Improvement

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Yeah, I saw the spray cans and that is the way I'm going to go. I was thinking about putting a pole in the ground and turning the carboy upside down over it and spraying as many coats as I can out of the can. If I can only find the brush on stuff I'm going to use Revvy's ideas of the foam brush, good tip. As far as testing the adhesion during a break, I don't really want to destroy my first and only carboy. I was thinking of just spraying a couple beer bottles, smashing them, and seeing how they hold together.

feedbag said:

Yeah, I saw the spray cans and that is the way I'm going to go. I was thinking about putting a pole in the ground and turning the carboy upside down over it and spraying as many coats as I can out of the can. If I can only find the brush on stuff I'm going to use Revvy's ideas of the foam brush, good tip. As far as testing the adhesion during a break, I don't really want to destroy my first and only carboy. I was thinking of just spraying a couple beer bottles, smashing them, and seeing how they hold together.

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I didn't know they came out with it in spray form now...Like I said I haven't used it in prolly 10 years. I would try it first with multiple coats of the spray version..unless it is too thin and would require multiple cans of it, and if the cans were then pricey. I would then use the liquid and the foam brushes....

If I can track this stuff down at home depot or lowes, I'll try it out on a growler to see how it works. Heck I might even do a few drop tests. Does anyone know if big box stores sell a clear coating like this? I'm sure I've seen rubberized coatings in color, but never a clear one.

When we buy 1L jugs (basically growlers) of strong acids (hydrocloric, sulfuric) for the laboratory, they are frequently coated with a similar rubberized plastic coating...so you might be onto something here.

I don't think the coating will prevent breakage, but prevent glass being thrown everywhere and maybe slow leakage of the carboy contents.

Good luck...take pictures!

I think this is a fantastic idea in response to a real danger that many homebrewers face every day. Only way to know if it will work is to try. If it does work, just think, this might become the next "must do item" on thousands of homebrewers todo lists. Putting my $$ where my mouth is: I'm going to try to search this stuff out and try a batch on a growler or some bottles or something. If I can find it and do it, I'll report back as (if nothing else it will be another data point). I'd do it on my 6.5 gallon glass carboy now, but it will be in use for the next year on my Flanders Red.

This seems to imply that it will in fact "shatterproof" glass.

http://www.plastidip.com/docs/plasti dip new tech brochure 2-25-09.pdf

Damn! Now I'll have to do this, but it will cover up the gallon markings I painstakingly etched into each of my carboys...

Subscribed.

I especially love the idea of opaque coating, with a slit left uncoated; the best of both worlds.

I'll be following this closely. I've been shying away from glass for a while since I've heard so many horror stories.

mattmcl said:

Damn! Now I'll have to do this, but it will cover up the gallon markings I painstakingly etched into each of my carboys...

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Not sure how it will affect "shatterproofness" of the glass if areas are left unexposed, but couldn't you just cover up those etches with some painters tape to keep them intact?

Yeah, but that's a lot of work. I marked gallon, half gallon, and quart from 1 gallon through 6.5 (in once case through 7.5) on four carboys...

I'm just bitching and moaning.

At first I thought of doing the slit for a site gauge type idea. This would still provide alot of protection, but would cause a stress point that could still be broken. Opaque would be nice to solve the light problem, but I don't like the idea of not being able to see inside at all. When someone mentioned clear I did a quick search and plasti-dip does indeed make a clear rubber coating that is recommended for glass and it comes in the spray version! I'm going to Lowe's this weekend to pick up a can of the clear since I think that will be best. For anyone intersted in purchasing online, check this out. I will spray a couple of beer bottles and bust them to see how the glass reacts. My thoughts are it will be harder to break the glass and when it does it will hold like laminated glass on a car windshield. I will report back with pics once my experiment is rolling. Ya'll keep the ideas rolling too, this is really exciting.

Munsoned said:

This seems to imply that it will in fact "shatterproof" glass.

http://www.plastidip.com/docs/plasti dip new tech brochure 2-25-09.pdf

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If you look at the website you can get it in a "Clear".

From the website:

NEW! Create Your Color Clear! Our new 22 oz. package utilizes the same redesigned container as the Create Your Color Kit and can be used as a clear dip coating or in combination with the specially formulated tints to create a multitude of colors for a multitude of projects.

Feedbag, what a great idea. If your beer bottle test is successful keeping the shards inclosed, I'll sacrifice one of my carboys for further testing. Let me know how thick you applied it, how you did your break test, and the results. I'll have to apply it a little thicker on the carboy since the glass is heavier.

homebeerbrewer said:

Feedbag, what a great idea. If your beer bottle test is successful keeping the shards inclosed, I'll sacrifice one of my carboys for further testing. Let me know how thick you applied it, how you did your break test, and the results. I'll have to apply it a little thicker on the carboy since the glass is heavier.

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Sounds great, my dad has some Newcastle bottles we are going to use, because who wants to save clear bottles anyways. Saturday or Sunday we're going to try a couple, maybe one with one coat and maybe one with two coats. Then we will drop each and an uncoated one, compare how they break and see if the coating actually makes them harder to break. I'll take pics of the entire process and probably post Saturday or Sunday evening, stay tuned!

FWIW, my guess is that it'll make things only slightly harder to break. Unnoticeably so, probably.

I'd venture to say, though, that there are at least two real upsides to it: more "grip" when either the carboy or your hands are wet (or both), and, if you should break it, less glass flying everywhere / lower flow rate of spilling beer. Those two advantages alone would probably be enough for a clear coat of the stuff on my own carboys.

This is a fantastic idea! I will be watching to see how it all turns out and would love to here how you get it done. Lets see pics!

I've often thought that maybe wrapping a carboy with several bands of duct tape would help reduce the sharpnel hazard from a broken carboy. I may try it using a gallon jug as test subject. I know it won't make a carboy completely safe, but it may keep someone from getting killed. I wonder if anyone in recent modern history has ever died from a home brewing related accident. Sooner or later it's inevitable I suppose.

I picked up a can of the clear plasti dip spray on my way home from work today. I'll post results later. More than likely it will be tomorrow as I will have to do several coats.I

Catt22 said:

I've often thought that maybe wrapping a carboy with several bands of duct tape would help reduce the sharpnel hazard from a broken carboy. I may try it using a gallon jug as test subject. I know it won't make a carboy completely safe, but it may keep someone from getting killed. I wonder if anyone in recent modern history has ever died from a home brewing related accident. Sooner or later it's inevitable I suppose.

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A guy at my HBC could have if he didn't think quick. He was carrying a full carboy when he tripped on something. As he was falling forward, he threw the carboy away from him so he didn't land on it.

I can't wait to see the results of these tests. I'm going to buy some Plasti Dip tomorrow and start coating the sacrificial carboy. For those testing on other bottle types, please post your results here.

My carboy broke open with just a small bump on my granite countertop, and the edges of the countertop are radiused. It chipped the granite and the glass went everywhere. Luckily it had only trub in it so the weight was negligible, and I suffered no blood loss.

For those making bottle tests: please fill the bottles up with water, as this will add a considerable amount of weight, as well as bringing the test closer to a real life type situation.

LandoCalrissian said:

For those making bottle tests: please fill the bottles up with water, as this will add a considerable amount of weight, as well as bringing the test closer to a real life type situation.

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I thought about that to, but I'm not sure I want to do that with my carboy. I'm more interested to see how well it holds the glass shards. After my carboy incident, I want to make sure it doesn't happen again.

Well I have to say that neither my wife or I think the four sprayed on coats did anything to help the grip. Actually we both think it is harder to hold on to. I have only tried it with water, but plan on trying starsan and oxy clean tonight. I'm still debating if I want to do a drop test to see if it will hold together, but I doubt it will at this time. The coating is still very thin and peels off without too much trouble. If someone wants to try this with the dip or brush go ahead. The Ace hardware near me only had the spray when i went. I will post a full report with pictures later.

I've used the spray on some other stuff and it does not go on anywhere near as thick as dipping would, but it would be hard to dip a carboy.

Hound_Dog said:

Well I have to say that neither my wife or I think the four sprayed on coats did anything to help the grip. Actually we both think it is harder to hold on to. I have only tried it with water, but plan on trying starsan and oxy clean tonight. I'm still debating if I want to do a drop test to see if it will hold together, but I doubt it will at this time. The coating is still very thin and peels off without too much trouble. If someone wants to try this with the dip or brush go ahead. The Ace hardware near me only had the spray when i went. I will post a full report with pictures later.

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If the grip is not that great we could always sprinkle some sand on maybe the first or second layer and then seal with another layer or two. This would give some nice texture to grip to. I am more interested to see if it holds together when dropped, if not it will be back to the drawing board. The grip can always be worked on.

I use rubber gloves when handling glass carboys. They grip the glass well and reduce the slippery factor considerably. The gloves also protect my delicate skin from the harsh cleaning agents. Oxiclean is really tough on skin.

While this is a good idea I don't hold much hope for it. I have used it and it takes several dips with dry time to achieve any type of thickness.Dipping a Carboy would take a lot of plastic dip. If you are worried about handling a wet carboy might I suggest these. I use them when I clean the glass carboy . I don't carry a wet or full carboy anywhere. I think they were like 5 bucks at Lowe's.

What about the rubber truck bed coating stuff? You can spray or roll that on. I know it works great when my truck bed is wet.

MSUConrad said:

What about the rubber truck bed coating stuff? You can spray or roll that on. I know it works great when my truck bed is wet.

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Not a bad idea, my main issue with carboy safety isn't really the grip, that can be fixed with a good pair of gloves. My main issue is still the way they shatter into several razor sharp knives. My ideas is the coating will cause them to hold together like a car windshield. Hopefully some tests will prove that this happens.

Alright here it is. As I said earlier I bought a spray can of clear plasti dip because it was what I could find. I applied 4 coats to a plain growler per the instructions on the can.

I set the growler into a small paint can to in effect tape off the top and to hold it while it dries.


You can see what the top looks like after four coats.


Here it is next to another clear growler.


As I stated earlier I tried dipping them both in water, starsan and oxyclean. As it turns out the plasti dip did NOTHING to improve the grip in any substance. I would show you pictures of this but it wouldn't actually show you anything so on to the next part.

After being filled with water and bounced around I noticed that the top edge had started peeling off.



I decided that I would have to do the break test when empty (because SWMBO said so). I found a large box and decided to break it with a hammer to prevent the potential mess of just dropping it.



I tried to use the side of the hammer and hit the corner of the growler, because I thought this would simulate it falling on the floor best. Well I hit it four times and it didnt break, it just bounced around, thus I decided to just smack it dead on in the side, and here are the results.





As you can see barely a small shard escaped. It did successfully contain nearly all pieces. Sorry I couldn't try this with it full, but she said it would be too much of a mess.


To be honest it you dropped a full carboy I'm not sure it would contain the breakage as well due to all of the liquid trying to escape, but I'm sure it would be much better than an uncoated one. Now if it just broke in your hands I think it would do well. It is still fairly solid in its broken state. If you have any questions please ask.

-Jonathan

Thanks Jonathan, great results. I bought a 14 oz can of the dip version. I painted my sacrificial carboy, but only applied one coat so far. The stuff dries quickly, and by the time I had gotten about half way down the side, the sponge brush I was using wouldn't brush well anymore. I'll buy several more tomorrow to finish it and do my test this weekend. I like your idea of using a cardboard box, and I'll do the same. I will fill it about half way with water to see what it does. I'll have to do it in the driveway, but with your results, I'm confident that I won't have to worry about causing any flat tires.