Questions about Brett

Hey guys, I'm looking to start using Brett in my Saisons, and was just looking to pick peoples brains about its usage.

Should I add at bottling, in Primary, use a secondary?
If I do use a secondary, do i need to get a carboy, or will my buckets be ok?
how long should i let it go to town?

if anyone has any links to great threads about Brett, those would be greatly appreciated as well

I may not be of much help but I used Saison yeast in the primary and Brett in the form of Belgian Sour in my secondary. The Brett didnt make any difference I could tell so far but it has only been a month. My fermentation has hit the final gravity I was looking for so I am hoping that the long term affects of the Brett happen inside my bottles. I have heard people say that Brett changes every 3, 6, 9 months and so on.

You can really do it either way, primary or secondary. I wouldn't recommend adding brett at bottling as it can be very inconsistent. If you decide to add it in secondary, get a carboy. Buckets are not ideal as there is too much head space and can allow too much oxygen to contact the beer.

Adding brett in primary or secondary can lead to different outcomes depending on the strain or blend. Generally, you get more fruity notes from primary and more funk/barnyard from secondary so it kind of depends on what you are looking to accomplish with the beer.

You can use it in primary, secondary, or even bottling. It's a matter of what you're trying to get from the brett and it's intended purpose. If you looking to get some of the often described characteristics from it then pitched late in primary or in secondary, and allowed to age for a few-to-several months should give those characteristics. Brux and Lambicus moreso than Clausenii.

I would feel comfortable with buckets if the lid seals reasonably well and you don't move it around, and don't open the lid for the duration. Okay, maybe once is okay. As far as cleaning buckets/plastic of Brett yeast, you should be fine there also. I have a bucket I use for both clean and brett fermented beers with no unwanted bretted beers. The key is good cleaning practices and good sanitation. Bacteria is a different story (mostly).

Brett for 3-6 months is a nice contribution as long as there was some decent complex sugars/dextrins remaining after sacc finished. If your sacc attenuates nearly all of the sugars (3711, Belle Saison, etc) then the time for Brett to really impart it's character may take longer due to less readily available food sources. Simple solutions are usually mashing high and/or using some dextrin malts (carapils, crystals, carafoam, maltodextrin, etc).