Rectangular Fermenter

JLo said:

I was just concerned about contamination issues during fermentation.

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What's going on inside during fermentation doesn't matter as it's all closed up and nothing's getting in, right? It just looks like that VV is a pretty ideal fit for your fermentation chamber; seems a shame to give up prematurely. I've been using VV for years and haven't had an infected batch (that wasn't intentional) yet.

One cleaning process I do suggest (I do mine 2x a year) is to remove the top ring the lid screws into. Invert the VV in REALLY hot water for 5 minutes and the ring will pull off easily. Then you can clean it and the gasket underneath.

I stuck my airlock in the recessed area of the lid, instead of dead center.



My plan is to add three, 1inch rubber bumpers to the top of the lid and then have some type of 90 degree elbow + blowoff tube.

Eventually I'm going to be able to stack another one on top.

I love my 2 55lb VVs. Was worried about the underside of the ring for the lid with cleaning but I guess after a thorough soak in oxiclean and good sanitization it should be fine. Jkarp, any reason to do more than 2 cleanings year or less? I do 10 gallon batches so I have plenty of head space. The only time trub or wort is getting under the snap ring is when I'm cleaning yeast cake out.

How are these working out for you guys?

I have 16" x 10" x 16" of unused space in my fermentation chamber (a VV will hang off the hump a bit) and its driving me nuts. Planning on doing half batches so I can alternate my brew cycle and supplement my brewing pipeline. 3 gal carboys won't fit by inches

Can you just throw the lid and ring into the dishwasher on these VVs? Or would it just be easier to use my extra fermentation bucket lid on a VV? Or will that even work?

Thanks!

The VV container is going strong. I clean it after each use in a sink full of hot PBW. I then use Keg Lube on the ring.

I am using 3 gallon Better Bottles as their square shape fits into some odd spots in my fermentation areas.

I have a wine fridge that won't fit an airlock on top of my carboy. I had done a little searching and found these. Thought they might be relevant to those trying to fit big fermenters in tight spaces. I have not actually gotten any of these to use yet but it's on my list to try out. If anyone has an experience with them I'd love to hear about it.

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/vented-silicone-stopper.html

I've actually taken a break from home brewing (the last 5 months), my VV is used for storage of odds and ends (stoppers, airlocks, tubing). Even when not used as a fermenter, it's nice to have it as a storage system.