bottling bucket for fermenter?

Does anyone use a bottling bucket as a fermenter? It seems like a good way to eliminate exposure to air since you could rack out the spigot and directly in my kegs. My only concern would be whether the spigot is high enough to not pick up the dead yeast. Thoughts?

Well, I've done it when my other buckets were full. I would NOT use the spigot, though, to avoid racking. First, you might get a ton of trub, but secondly, I would be concerned about contamination. You'd have to somehow dunk the fermenter into sanitizer to resanitize the spigot, I'd think. The fermenter would be closed, so it'd be ok but the spigot is just kind of hanging out there near the floor. Maybe I'm too worried about it, and others would say it's ok. Maybe you could spray sanitizer up into the spigot from the outside, to sanitize it. I just wouldn't do that- I'd go ahead and rack it.

I did it once for a secondary with my sweet stout. Worked out fine. I sanitized the bucket and ran the sanitizer through the spigot. After that I put a piece of plastic wrap over it and secured it with a rubber band.

I use my bottling bucket as a secondary. When it is time to bottle I add the priming sugar and gently swirl. Before I attatch the bottling wand, I take a cup of idophor solution and sanatize the spigot for at least a minute.

If you use a bottling bucket as a secondary you are defeating its purpose.

A secondary is for allowing the brew to clear. By adding priming sugar and swirling you just roused the sediment off the bottom.

Moral of the story: It's NOT a smart thing to use the bottling bucket as a fermenter.







ID-Ten-Tango...

homebrewer_99 said:

If you use a bottling bucket as a secondary you are defeating its purpose.

A secondary is for allowing the brew to clear. By adding priming sugar and swirling you just roused the sediment off the bottom.

Moral of the story: It's NOT a smart thing to use the bottling bucket as a fermenter.







ID-Ten-Tango...

Click to expand...

I didnt say I bottled from it. I racked it from my primary to the bottling bucket cause I didnt have anything else to secondary in.... When I bottled I racked back to the primary bucket and used a siphon and bottling wand from there.

Whats with the name calling? Thought most people here were above that. I see your point but there are more tactful ways of getting it across.

HoboJoe said:

Does anyone use a bottling bucket as a fermenter? My only concern would be whether the spigot is high enough to not pick up the dead yeast. Thoughts?

Click to expand...

On most bottling buckets, the spigot is mounted at the very bottom...right where the trub is thickest. I can't imagine that would work out too well, as you want to transfer as little as possible of that muck to your secondary.

I do use spigots on my fermentation buckets, but I mount them about two inches up from the bottom, just above the typical trub level. Transferring to secondary is a breeze, much easier than siphoning. I peer through the airlock hole on top, and tilt the bucket to get the very last of the clear beer. The second I see any trub heading for the spigot, I shut it down.

I take great care to sanitize the spigot before transferring (as simple as pouring star-san into and around it) and have had no contamination issues. They really aren't as hard to clean as some suggest, a good soak in hot oxi-clean and a quick spin with a small brush is all it takes.

plastic is some what oxygen permeable, so you dont want to use buckets as your clearing tank. but if you like your technique and feel you have no issues with your beer dont fix what isnt broken

I'm all about keeping things easy and reducing possible contamination sources.
so I sanitize my spigots IMMEDIATELY before using them...so no I wouldn't use a bottling bucket for primary or secondary, only for that hour long bottling session.

call me paranoid, but at least I sleep better at night

I have three fermentation buckets, all with spigots. Two were sold as fermenters, the other as a bottling bucket. Taking a spigot apart for cleaning is a bit of a pain, but they make racking extremely easy. Typically, I get a little trub at the beginning, so I run it into a 2L bottle initially, then into the keg. A hole forms in the trub and very little gets into the keg.

It will work just keep in mind that O2 will pass though the walls, so don't use it long (about 2 weeks max). You will need to disassemble, clean and sanitize every part. And if you even the smallest scratch, it can harbor stuff you don't want in your beer. So it will work, just there are better options.

Virtuous said:

I didnt say I bottled from it. I racked it from my primary to the bottling bucket cause I didnt have anything else to secondary in.... When I bottled I racked back to the primary bucket and used a siphon and bottling wand from there.

Whats with the name calling? Thought most people here were above that. I see your point but there are more tactful ways of getting it across.

Click to expand...

OK, I apologize...racking back into another vessel then back to a newly cleaned/sanitized bottling bucket is the way to go.

Others have mentioned adding priming sugar to the bottling bucket without realizing they were re-mixing the sediment. Obviously, you know better. You did good.

Have a round on me...

"It will work just keep in mind that O2 will pass though the walls"

This is not true.

I have used nothing but buckets with spigots on them. My spigots are about an inch and a half above bottom of the bucket. I ferment in primary for about 2 to 3 weeks and use the spigot to move to my bottling bucket. I mostly do stouts and pale ales so I use Safale 05 or 04. The only time I had too much trub was when I used good old Nottinghams, boy that stuff really gets to working. I may have got a little trub in bottling bucket, but very little. I just spray a little Starsan in my spigot before transfer.

homebrewer_99 said:

OK, I apologize...racking back into another vessel then back to a newly cleaned/sanitized bottling bucket is the way to go.

Others have mentioned adding priming sugar to the bottling bucket without realizing they were re-mixing the sediment. Obviously, you know better. You did good.

Have a round on me...

Click to expand...

Cheers mate

homebrewer_99 said:

If you use a bottling bucket as a secondary you are defeating its purpose.

A secondary is for allowing the brew to clear. By adding priming sugar and swirling you just roused the sediment off the bottom.

Moral of the story: It's NOT a smart thing to use the bottling bucket as a fermenter.







ID-Ten-Tango...

Click to expand...

The key word is "gently" swirl it, and it does not rouse the sediment. I probably disturb the sediment more by putting it up on the counter. My beers are all clear thanks to irish moss and my bottles are evenly carbonated.

Idiot? I read HBT every day. All three of my buckets are full every day, including my bottling bucket, which is also used as a clearing bucket. That's all I have room for, and that's all I need anyway.