Is a 14G Conical Fermenter worth it?

[MrEggSandwich]

As of now, I have a 7G Brew Bucket (love it), and a 6.5G glass carboy. My system is a 10 gallon Blichmann Breweasy......I brew 7/10/12 gallon batches with it. Temp control is chest freezers (2).

A 14G Spike/SS Brewtech conical with temp control would run me $900-$1000. For me, it doesn't make sense to buy a 7G conical, as the price difference isn't much ($100 difference between 7G and 14G).

That being said, dropping a grand on homebrew equipment is a big item.

Sell me on a 14G Conical. (Leaning SS Brewtech BME edition)

 

[mongoose33]

Sell me on a 14G Conical. (Leaning SS Brewtech BME edition)

Sell you on it? Sounds to me like you've already decided.

Here are some pros and cons for a 10-gallon fermenter (I own the Spike CF10).

1. You can brew 5- and 10-gallon batches. The spike is better set up to do the half-batches.

2. You're already figured out one big advantage: for about $100 more, you can have double the capacity. I looked at that and decided I wanted that higher capacity.

3. It's not going to be just $1000.

4. The smaller 5-gallon fermenters can fit in a refrigerator or upright freezer; the CF10 really cannot. How you control temp is crucial here. I have the temp control kit on my CF10, and even then, you need a way to pump cold liquid through the chilling coil. This is perhaps the largest single consideration with these types of fermenters: how are you going to control temp? If you can't do that, it's a huge waste of stainless steel.

5. There are add-ons you're going to want to have, even if at the moment they dont' seem important. One example is the pressure manifold on the CF10. You will really want that--it shows the pressure, has a PRV, and you can add CO2 to it to either carb in place or pressure transfer.

6. Unless you want to keep it in place full of 12 gallons of beer, you'll want the casters so you can roll it around.

7. You'll probably want the leg extensions too.

8. You'll have to decide what kind of connectors for hoses that you want. I use Camlocks. Wish I could afford the stainless quick disconnects, but those things are PRICEY.

9. You don't have to have a sight glass, but I'm glad I have one.

10. It won't be $1000.

11. How will you clean it? Will you need a pump? There's that, plus the hoses and connections.

*****

I realize that as I describe all this, it seems less a list that will sell you on this, and more a list that makes it seem just expensive.

I'm glad I have mine, it's great. But cheap these things are not. BTW, I'm not dissing the SSBT here. It can also ferment great beer. The advantage to the Spike is it's made specifically to do both half- and full batches, and the very large opening on top makes it easy to clean.

In the end with my Spike CF10, I had about $1500 into it--that's fermenter, leg extensions, casters, temp control kit, pressure manifold.

Now, can you make the Spike work for $1000? Sure. But if you can't pressure ferment, or pressure transfer, then you've removed one of the compelling arguments for these things.

Now, one thing you *can* do is this: buy the stripped-down version and if you want to add leg extensions, casters, shelf, etc. you can always do that at a later date.

 

[Dland]

If you brew a lot, I'd say it is worth it. If you brew 10-12 gallon batches, 14 g is the right size. I have two 12.5 gallon conicals, for 10+ gallon batches. Makes brewing easier, for sure.

 

[mongoose33]

Here are a few other things related to that CF10. In the pics below, you can see that I have a MkII pump mounted vertically below the fermenter; I use this for recirculating cleaning solution up through a CIP ball that goes into the same fitting as the pressure manifold.

If you have a single pump you can use that for everything, but I primarily use my Riptide for moving wort around. It finally dawned on me to set up the system so I could easily connect the MkII on the bottom and go from there. Works great. BTW, another couple of fittings.

You can also see the advantage to being able to move it around. I roll it over to the sink, easy to fill with cleaning water, easy to spray out. Depends on your setup and available room and floor surface what will work best in your context.

 

[MrEggSandwich]

Thanks for the feedback....Yup. I've got the Spike CF10 with Temp control package, casters, racking arm, clear cap in cart now. Ooof. That's a lot of coin.

 

[Jrang]

I agree with Mongoose about the advantage of the added accessories. However, when I bought my first one I bought the leg extensions but decided to put mine on SS tables instead. It just felt more stable that way and I don’t use the sight glass. Pressure transfers are the best!

 

[Bordy]

I just recently got back into brewing, and my first purchase was the SS Brewtech BME 14 gallon chronical. I had to pay $115 in shipping because I live in Hawaii, and before my add ons, it was $935. If you live on the mainland you should get free shipping. This includes a temperature controller that includes a pump and lines. You’ll need a cooler for your cold water, and I use the freezer that use to be my fermentation chamber to freeze and keep 1/2 gallon water jugs that you’ll use to keep your water cold.
I bought a 1.5 TC to 1/2” hose barb on amazon for $10, a 2 pack of 1.5 tri clamps with gaskets for $12, and a 1.5 TC sight glass for $32. I was going to get leg extensions, but SS Brewtech won’t ship to Hawaii, so I use a couple cinder blocks for now. I’m not worried about it being stationary during fermentation, and I’m strong enough to move it when it’s empty to clean it, no problems.

It was just emptied, but this is my setup. I never did closed pressurized kegging before, and honestly I don’t notice the biggest difference, but it gives me more of a piece of mind and is much easier.

 

[mongoose33]

Thanks for the feedback....Yup. I've got the Spike CF10 with Temp control package, casters, racking arm, clear cap in cart now. Ooof. That's a lot of coin.

You don't need the clear cap. Dump it from your cart.

I suppose it's worth it if you don't have the temp control kit, but if you do, that 4" opening is filled with the chiller coil.

BTW: If you have the pressure manifold--including the gauge, PRV, and Gas Post--you can bleed off CO2 easily by simply attaching a Gas QD to the post, have tubing from that to a blowoff jar, and there you are. You can monitor fermentation just as easily that way, by watching the bubbling.

Here's how I do that (4 second video):

 

[mongoose33]

BTW, and I hope Spike sees this. I was looking at getting a second fermenter, a 5-gallon one so I can do two batches at the same time.

You end up paying for stuff with the second fermenter that you don't need. For instance, if you get the temp control kit, you don't need the analog thermometer--the temp probe from the controller goes in the thermowell, rendering the thermometer useless. So why pay for it?

Same with the leveling feet. If I buy the casters, why do I also have to pay for the leveling feet? Especially since I already have three from my CF10 that are just sitting in my parts box.

And that 90-degree elbow that fits on the bottom of the fermenter--I already have one, and stopped using it after about two fermentations. I just dump in a bucket. I already have one 90 degree elbow I don't use, why do I have to buy the second one?

And the 90-degree barb for blowoff on top--if i buy the pressure manifold, why do I need that? I already have one.

I contacted them and chatted about this--they say their inventory control system can't deal with this. Well, maybe. I'm a little confused that a company that can produce such great equipment can't handle returns of useless items for credit.

It actually stopped me from buying the CF5--I have to pay for stuff I don't want or need, and I wish there was a way not to do that.

 

[Jrang]

BTW: If you have the pressure manifold--including the gauge, PRV, and Gas Post--you can bleed off CO2 easily by simply attaching a Gas QD to the post, have tubing from that to a blowoff jar, and there you are. You can monitor fermentation just as easily that way, by watching the bubbling.

I personally wouldn’t recommend venting CO2 through the gas post on the pressure manifold during fermentation. It’s not designed for that purpose. That’s a pretty small orifice that could easily get clogged. I’ve had some pretty aggressive fermentation’s that would have likely clogged it. Another concern, and more important, is clogging the pressure relief which could result in damage to unitank.

 

[mongoose33]

I personally wouldn’t recommend venting CO2 through the gas post on the pressure manifold during fermentation. It’s not designed for that purpose. That’s a pretty small orifice that could easily get clogged. I’ve had some pretty aggressive fermentation’s that would have likely clogged it. Another concern, and more important, is clogging the pressure relief which could result in damage to unitank.

If you had a very large krausen, perhaps. With a 5-gallon batch it's not a concern at all, and with a 10 gallon batch, there's still a lot of headspace.

 

[augiedoggy]

Thanks for the feedback....Yup. I've got the Spike CF10 with Temp control package, casters, racking arm, clear cap in cart now. Ooof. That's a lot of coin.

If cost is really a concern, there are less expensive options but they are not as pretty (neither is the pretty options such as the spike or ss once you properly insulate them though). You can get 12.5 gallon conicals for about $400 from places like stout and use a cool zone velcro brewing jacket (about $70) and wrap it in a blanket or make a jacket with some foil faced bubblewrap insulation. buy an old window ac unit and cooler and aquarium pump and make your own chiller... there are some threads on it here from others who have done it.

I use a stout 12.5g conical with the jacket myself as well as other off brand stainless conicals with great success.. I had an SS brewtech conical with the cooling coil kit and did not like it as much due to the coils being a pain to clean vs cooling with a jacket which actually helps insulat as well. I also did not care for the non sanitary weldless fitting and at that pricepoint felt they didnt belong.
Id post a picture but im to lazy to resize my photos to comply with the new forum file size limit. there are some in my build thread below in my signature.

 

[augiedoggy]

I personally wouldn’t recommend venting CO2 through the gas post on the pressure manifold during fermentation. It’s not designed for that purpose. That’s a pretty small orifice that could easily get clogged. I’ve had some pretty aggressive fermentation’s that would have likely clogged it. Another concern, and more important, is clogging the pressure relief which could result in damage to unitank.

I had a glass carboy literally explode once from a clogged air lock... its no joke.

 

[Spyderbyte07]

Thanks for the feedback....Yup. I've got the Spike CF10 with Temp control package, casters, racking arm, clear cap in cart now. Ooof. That's a lot of coin.

What advantages do you see with that set up over, say, https://www.morebeer.com/products/kegmenter-fermentation-keg-153-gal.html? You could get a dedicated moving or plant stand dolly and build a hoist to lift it into/out of your fermentation freezer and still be at a fraction of the cost.