what's the worst thing that can happen to a homebrewer?

bottle bombs? stuck fermentation? Two ruin batches in a row?

Those are nothing. The worst thing is when you go to set your carboy down and it drops about 3 inches to the floor and shatters! It happened to me about an hour and a half ago and it sucks!!!

Been cleaning almost the whole time and probably have more cleaning to do. Out $20 for a new carboy, $35 for the ingredients and the labor and time until I can get a new one ready. The only good thing is that it happened on my vinyl floor. it got the edge of my hall carpet. Hopefully I can save the carpet, it hasn't dried yet but I've been spraying it with vinegar. This was going to be a good batch, too.

I've had a crappy week. I lost a promotion to an @$$kisser on Monday, found out someone had told a co-worker I was running them down when I wasn't and now this. Gotta work in the morning, but tomorrow night I'm getting deeeeerrrruuuuunk!!!

cheers brotha, life goes up and down....

have some brews tomorrow night and forget your troubles.

life is a rollercoaster, hold on in the lows and love the highs...

btw: the worst thing that can happen is death or incarceration..., relax and live life my friend, it's all we have...

I hate to hear it. I raise my redhook IPA to you it'll get better, no where but up from here.

sounds like you need to get back in the saddle ASAP and put this behind you.


but yea, drinking it all away tomorrow sounds like a great plan. sorry for your loss man.

maybe some dancing bananas will cheer you up



....or not

God Emporer BillyBrew said:

The only good thing is that it happened on my vinyl floor.

Click to expand...

After what happened to a friend of mine when he dropped his glass carboy, I would say that the only good thing that happened to you was that you did not sever any arteries, tendons and nerves like he did. He is fortunate that he was with someone, because if he was alone he would have surely bled out and died.

He now uses Better-Bottles after a year of surgeries and rehab to get back in the game. I'm glad you were not hurt.

John

Billy Brew man, I'm sorry. That sux sux sux... and a crap end to a crap week. Sorry to hear it.

Friday for you tho tomorrow, and yeah, drink up, and shut the nonsense OUT... :rockin:

I'll be rootin for ya, and let us know tomorrow how the buzz is rolling if ya feel like it...

And for what it's worth, you just sealed the deal for me buying the damn BrewHauler straps... I'll be lugging mine down 13 stairs so that just basically sold me on getting one...


Ize

Sucks man. Owwwwww. Man, my SWMBO would be P.O.d big time.

Time for the Better Bottle. I sold all my glass carboys for $15 and bought Better Bottles for $18.95 at Morebeer.com. I bought 4 so shipping was free and no tax. I use a bucket for a primary and rack to the Better Bottle. They are so easy to clean, lift and you can drop them 3 inches and only spill a few ounces depending on how well your #10 rubber stopper is set.

I have a 6 gallon Better bottle that I just filled with 5.5 gallons of Tree Top Apple Juice along with 2 pounds of Dextrose for some kick ass Apfelwein in about 5 weeks.

Better Bottle man. What a name. Sorry.

Thanks, guys. I appreciate it. I hate to sound cheesy, but that really does make me feel better.

At any rate, good advice. My next carboy will be plastic!

Boy, after all the horror stories and stitches sewed into the skin of fellow homebrewers...I'm seriously considering phasing out the glass carboys...to much fear of gutting ones-self while carrying those blasted things.

God Emporer BillyBrew said:

Thanks, guys. I appreciate it. I hate to sound cheesy, but that really does make me feel better.

At any rate, good advice. My next carboy will be plastic!

Click to expand...

How were you carrying it? I've got one of those carboy handles that goes on the neck. I'm nervous as hell when I pick it up by that thing.

I really feel for you bro. During the hot whether last week I had my carboy wrapped in a wet towel and sitting in a basin with a few inches of water in it.
After a few days of that it was very slippery getting it ready for bottling, drying it was a little scary. The point is, I was thinking about what just happened to you. I was picturing losing my grip and the mess that would create. Especially in the space where I keep my carboy. Looking at all that beer suddenly became looking at all that "work."

I can imagine how you felt.

Tommy

fezzman said:

How were you carrying it? I've got one of those carboy handles that goes on the neck. I'm nervous as hell when I pick it up by that thing.

Click to expand...

Those handles are not for lifting when your carboy is full.

All my carboys are in milk crates for that purpose...then I place 2 on a dolly if I need to move full ones to another room.

Use a Brew Hauler:

http://www.austinhomebrew.com/product_info.php?cPath=178_53_148&products_id=1079

Works great.

Sorry to hear about your misfortunes. Must say that you're lucky you weren't injured.

God Emporer BillyBrew said:

At any rate, good advice. My next carboy will be plastic!

Click to expand...

Ive been seriously considering switching over to better bottles for my fermentors. Ive heard all the horror stories of deep lacerations, cutting tendons, etc etc. Ive come close to dropping one once while cleaning, and it really started to get me thinking more about the whole safety issue.

ah thats a trick (or rhetorical) question...i was gonna say cirrhosis of the liver.

That sucks but at least that will most likely NEVER happen again...thats one good thing to come of it.

Wow...glad you are okay man.

Countdown to glass carboy phaseout....5...4...3...

Think positive:

You sacrificed 5 gallons (??) of Beer to Farley, the God of Homebrew. Farley is happy. Now, he and JoBu can kick back in the nether regions and hoist a toast.

And don't waste an opportunity! When this happens, you have to immediatley validate it by giving respect to your homies who ain't around no more or who are in lock-up. Mourn them till you join them. You made the ultimate "Tip your 40 on the curb" and don't you forget it.

About the only thing I can think of that would be worse is cracking the carboy & being severely injured in the process. I'm so paranoid around glass, I rarely bottle. I stepped on a broken bottle as a kid and lost most of the summer limping around. All healed up by the start of school!

I even have plastic steins & stemmed wine glasses for around the spa.

I have lost a glass carboy as well during a transfer session. Glass is really nice, they look cool in the fermentation frige and if I was going to do wine I would probably buy another, but its Better Bottle for me all the way.
During times like these you must do as Cheesefood suggests toste it to your hommies, chalk it up as a learning experianceand most of all... Remember not to take this life thing to seariously its not like any of us are getting out alive....
Cheers
JJ

Fatabbot said:

Use a Brew Hauler:

http://www.austinhomebrew.com/product_info.php?cPath=178_53_148&products_id=1079

Works great.

Sorry to hear about your misfortunes. Must say that you're lucky you weren't injured.

Click to expand...

as my wife just said when we looked at that picture.

Its a CarBra

The worst thing that can happen to you is to have your wife leave you for a loser, your dog run away, your 13year old get knocked up, and an infected batch of hombrew ..all in one week

Cheesefood said:

Think positive:

You sacrificed 5 gallons (??) of Beer to Farley, the God of Homebrew. Farley is happy. Now, he and JoBu can kick back in the nether regions and hoist a toast.

And don't waste an opportunity! When this happens, you have to immediatley validate it by giving respect to your homies who ain't around no more or who are in lock-up. Mourn them till you join them. You made the ultimate "Tip your 40 on the curb" and don't you forget it.

Click to expand...

Well said.

I guess I am pretty lucky. I was at home with my 2 and 5 year old while my wife was out. If I had been cut it could have been bad.

BTW, I have kept my promise. I've been drinking Wild Turkey 101 and homebrew since I got home at 3:30. Gobble, gobble.

oh man
the turkey!

Thats gonna hurt later.

God Emporer BillyBrew said:

BTW, I have kept my promise. I've been drinking Wild Turkey 101 and homebrew since I got home at 3:30. Gobble, gobble.

Click to expand...

:rockin: :rockin: :rockin:

Ize

homebrewer_99 said:

Those handles are not for lifting when your carboy is full.

All my carboys are in milk crates for that purpose...then I place 2 on a dolly if I need to move full ones to another room.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip...and for saving a potential disaster. *runs off to find a milk crate*