Glass carboy vs plastic bucket primary fermenter

[mikek]

Going to get a kit to be devoted to sours only and wondering if a traditional plastic primary fermenter bucket is ok with a glass carboy secondary OR should I be using glass carboys for both stages. Thanks for info and opinion....

 

[bobeer]

I've brewed lots of different kinds of beer using plastic carboys and all my beers have come out fine. I think glass vs plastic really comes down to personal preference. Glass wont scratch when cleaning it, like plastic can, but plastic wont break if you drop it like glass will. For aging/clearing glass is easier to see through than plastic so glass has an advantage in that sense. As far as the finished product goes I really don't think it makes any difference but that's just IMO. Cheers!

 

[mikek]

A bit more info to aid with responses... I am going to pitch by Wyeast blend immediately to aid with increased souring effect and so will want it in the primary a fairly good amount of time before racking into secondary for a VERY extended time to allow souring and then oaking. Not sure if too much time in plastic will allow to much O2 in thru the permeable plastic resulting in off beer. For my regular beers it will undoubtedly be a plastic bucket primary. This applies really only to the sours... Thanks.

 

[mikek]

I've brewed lots of different kinds of beer using plastic carboys and all my beers have come out fine. I think glass vs plastic really comes down to personal preference. Glass wont scratch when cleaning it, like plastic can, but plastic wont break if you drop it like glass will. For aging/clearing glass is easier to see through than plastic so glass has an advantage in that sense. As far as the finished product goes I really don't think it makes any difference but that's just IMO. Cheers!

Does my second post change your opinion at all regarding allowing the primary to be extended a bit with the Wyeast blend in it? Discussed with another forum member and their technique is a 90 day primary and then racked into secondary for remainder of time to sour etc.. They pitch the ale yeast and Roseale Wyeast right at the beginning to increase sour production and so this is what I think I am going to do as well. Plastic should be ok for this type of primary fermentation in your opinion??

 

[bobeer]

I left an IPA in a plastic carboy for 3 months once. 1 month fermentation and 2 months on a white oak spiral and I had no issues. I've heard of a lot of folks who tossed their glass out just for safety reasons and have used nothing but plastic since and make great beer. If it were me I'd just use what I had on hand and see how it goes then hone in your setup if you think you need to.

If you're really worried about oxidizing your beer because of permeability of plastic read this thread. It breaks down the amount of oxygen allowed into beer while in a plastic container, per month.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f163/oxygen-permeability-plastic-298055/

 

[neo71665]

My primary is all done in plastic. If I do a secondary (rare) it depends on which is empty at the time I need it.

 

[Darwin18]

No one cares whether you ferment in plastic or glass, especially the yeast.

 

[FuzzeWuzze]

It wont effect anything. If you really care to secondary transfer it to a better bottle. Start with a bucket though i'd say. That's going to give you a big surface area for the bugs to take up shop.

 

[Beernik]

I use glass for funky and fruity beers and wines. Easier to clean and leaves no residual odors.