Speidel Plastic Tanks

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
First impression of the Speidel is very positive. It is a well made piece of equipment. The inside is completely smooth, with no noticeable seam. Handles are robust. I wont worry about lifting 5 or 6 gal with them. It even fit in my Cool Brewing cooler, although I'll need to cut the ends off a 2L bottle to place over the airlock to prop the top of the cooler up.

Really looking forward to getting a batch in this bad boy.
 
How is everyone cleaning these? I have a 60L that I'll be finally using for the first time. Assuming same deal as plastic bucket.......soak in PBW then rinse and wipe with soft cloth followed by adding bit of Star-San or iodophor and shaking to ensure everything inside gets contact with the sanitizer? Any other techniques folks are using?
 
Post-fermentation: Rinse spent yeast out and wash with soap and soft sponge. Make sure to take the spigot off and clean as well. Dry thoroughly with paper towels.

Pre-fermentation: Fill entire interior with starsan mixture. Drain through spigot. Dump remaining mixture that doesn't drain. Ready for wort.
 
Mixture. It's exactly the ratio of water to starsan as listed on the package, but just in case you didn't get that:

In chemistry, a mixture is a material system made up of two or more different substances which are mixed but are not combined chemically. A mixture refers to the physical combination of two or more substances on which the identities are retained and are mixed in the form of solutions, suspensions, and colloids.
Click to expand...
 
That is a ****load of starsan mixture ^^^

I just dump about a gallon or so in, shake it up with the lid on, let a little drain through the spigot, then dump the rest back into my starsan bucket.
 
Starsan is cheap and I buy in bulk. Much cheaper than dumping a batch due to infection. I haven't had one in seven years of homebrewing. The guy asked how people were cleaning theirs and that's my process. Feel free to brew, clean, or whatever however you want. I personally wouldn't put PBW in my expensive, plastic Speidel since I damaged a few better bottles doing so. Admittedly it was because I didn't use the correct PBW to water ratio.
 
PBW in Better Bottles is actually a no no unless you're rinsing somewhat right away. A brewery told me that letting it sit in a better bottle can cause scratches or cracks because PBW is a caustic. I used to let PBW sit overnight in my plastic, I no longer do that.

As for gallons of star san being used, I too use about a gallon in my plastics, shake around for a bit, and then dump & fill with wort. I can see the point of filling a vessel entirely with a mixture, but I haven't done that yet. I don't have a reason though.
 
PBW in Better Bottles is actually a no no unless you're rinsing somewhat right away. A brewery told me that letting it sit in a better bottle can cause scratches or cracks because PBW is a caustic. I used to let PBW sit overnight in my plastic, I no longer do that.
Click to expand...

That's how I killed a couple of older Better Bottles. I soaked them overnight in what was likely a overly strong PBW solution and they developed small pin prick holes that I discovered when I went to sanitize while brewing. It's actually the reason I moved on to Spiedel - I personally will not use PBW with plastic anymore.
 
I soak overnight in oxyclean. No scrub, no problem. A good rinse and i'm on my way.

Brew day I just put a few quarts of starsan in and shake. A little drain out the spigot and upside down to drain out the excess.
 
I hose it out in the utility sink, and then add about a gallon of PBW solution and wipe all surfaces with a soft cloth or sponge. I let it sit for a few minutes and then rinse. Rinse again. Air dry upside down on a carboy dryer.

I keep a 5 gallon bucket of starsan solution mixed up at all times. On brew day I pour most of it in the Speidel, shake, shake, shake for 30 seconds or so, and dump back into the starsan bucket. After I've drained my kettle to the Speidel I spray starsan into the spigot (which is installed sideways, not straight down), and cover with foil. On kegging day I spray the spigot with starsan again and then keg.
 
Darwin18 said:
Starsan is cheap and I buy in bulk. Much cheaper than dumping a batch due to infection. I haven't had one in seven years of homebrewing. The guy asked how people were cleaning theirs and that's my process. Feel free to brew, clean, or whatever however you want. I personally wouldn't put PBW in my expensive, plastic Speidel since I damaged a few better bottles doing so. Admittedly it was because I didn't use the correct PBW to water ratio.
Click to expand...

Sorry, I wasn't saying that you're doing it wrong. I don't think Frostbrewer was saying that either. Just that since it really only needs to touch the surface, making that much Starsan solution is serious overkill. I mix up around 3 gallons at a time and use it for months. Of course, I check the pH of it every time before using it. As long as the pH is correct, it really doesn't matter how old it is. I've been doing it this way for around 4 years and haven't had an infection in that time either.
 
I'm having some issues transferring from the spigots on these bad boys. Excessive trub/yeast cake to keg or it completely blocks the spigot all together. Anyone else have this issue?
 
Fix the spigot so that it is facing up, gives a bit more room for the trub and transfers perfectly in my experience.
 
Highside said:
Fix the spigot so that it is facing up, gives a bit more room for the trub and transfers perfectly in my experience.
Click to expand...


Hmm with the spigot pointing up instead of down? Really...? Is this some snipe hunting trick and I'm going to end up with beer on the kitchen floor? Cause I'm dumb I'll do it.
 
It moves the pickup up about an inch, just enough to miss the trub in most cases. Works perfectly for me.
 
Hello said:
PBW in Better Bottles is actually a no no unless you're rinsing somewhat right away.
Click to expand...

After having broken many Better Bottles, I now use an enzymatic cleaner (a 7th Generation laundry detergent) to soften up the gunk, then rinse and refill with a warm PBW solution. It's essential that the PBW powder is already dissolved in warm water before adding it to the Better Bottle. I also use a fairly low concentration. After a day or two, the BBs are sparkling clean without damage.
 
A very low concentration of PBW may be okay. The brewer I talked to said I was probably okay as well using about a tablespoon to 5-6 gallons. I just figure I would stop doing it anyway.
 
If its been mentioned before sorry.. i only ready that last 6 pages. I am considering a few of the 30L, but I have a few things I wanted to know.

1) I have a stainless thermowell for a STC1000 controller probe.. has anyone modded one of these so that would work? or is there a differnt lid you can buy.

2) $60 for a plastic fermenter seems pretty steep.. my first thought when I looked at it online is.. "Whats so special about this thing?"
 
Mirilis said:
If its been mentioned before sorry.. i only ready that last 6 pages. I am considering a few of the 30L, but I have a few things I wanted to know.

1) I have a stainless thermowell for a STC1000 controller probe.. has anyone modded one of these so that would work? or is there a differnt lid you can buy.

2) $60 for a plastic fermenter seems pretty steep.. my first thought when I looked at it online is.. "Whats so special about this thing?"
Click to expand...

The price has really gone up a lot due to demand. When I first bought my 60L I'm pretty sure I paid less than $60 for it.

There are alternatives, but these tanks are purpose built for what we're doing (they're for wine...) and have a lot of nice little features that you'll appreciate as you use them.

But I'm not sure I would have bought them at these higher prices.
 
I own buckets, glass carboys, a plastic Big Mouth Bubbler and two of the 30l Speidels. The Speidels are always my first choice if one is available.

Here are a couple of threads where folks talk about their Speidel thermowell mods.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=388371
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=460574

For now I just tape my probe to the side with 2" foam insulation, but I may eventually drill the lid. I have found all parts but the lid itself sold separately. If anyone knows where to buy a lid separately, please do tell.
 
i was thinking you could drill a hole in the lid and then put a cable gland on it then just clamp down on the thermowell that way but.. i have never purchased a flashy piece of equipment.. (basically i made all of mine), and i may splurge to either get a bucket or a few of these.. i want the bucket just because .. but the cheapskate in me wants to get a few of these instead.
 
Do you happen to know if Speidel has any official spec with regard to how much pressure the 60L can hold? I have a wit currently split between 2 carboys that I'd like to combine into the Speidel and drop some pressure on for conditioning. Can't find any official specs on the unit with regard to pressure ratings.
 
Mirilis said:
If its been mentioned before sorry.. i only ready that last 6 pages. I am considering a few of the 30L, but I have a few things I wanted to know.

1) I have a stainless thermowell for a STC1000 controller probe.. has anyone modded one of these so that would work? or is there a differnt lid you can buy.
Click to expand...

For my 30L's I just drilled a second hole in a #8 1/2 stopper or two holes in a solid one, works perfect. I'm reasonably certain that there is only one lid style available.
 
Mordhaus said:
A note on cold crashing. Someone mentioned earlier that their Speidel collapsed when cold crashing. I thought this may be due to dropping the temp too much, too fast. I did my first crash in mine and dropped the temp from 67 to 37 a few degrees at a time over two day period and it worked just fine. No collapsing, no spigot leaking.
Click to expand...

I realize I'm replying to an old post, but I wanted to thank you for this bit of advice. I'm looking into picking up a 30L Speidel and was wondering what the effects of a cold crash might be.
 
Brew_G said:
I realize I'm replying to an old post, but I wanted to thank you for this bit of advice. I'm looking into picking up a 30L Speidel and was wondering what the effects of a cold crash might be.
Click to expand...

Hmmm... I'm not calling shenanigans, but as thick as the walls on the Speidels are, I just don't see how it's possible to collapse it during a cold crash.

I've got 4 Speidels at this point, and I've never had any issues at all with them. I've cold crashed them both in a chest freezer and a mini fridge with no problems.

Of course you have to watch out to avoid the normal cold crashing worries like sucking back airlock fluid or sucking in oxygen. For that I just replace the airlock lid with one of those kid's punch balloons filled with CO2! :ban:
 
drgonzo2k2 said:
Hmmm... I'm not calling shenanigans, but as thick as the walls on the Speidels are, I just don't see how it's possible to collapse it during a cold crash.

I've got 4 Speidels at this point, and I've never had any issues at all with them. I've cold crashed them both in a chest freezer and a mini fridge with no problems.

Of course you have to watch out to avoid the normal cold crashing worries like sucking back airlock fluid or sucking in oxygen. For that I just replace the airlock lid with one of those kid's punch balloons filled with CO2! :ban:
Click to expand...

Oh...you definitely have to keep in mind suckback, but the thing I was wondering about was actually buttoning up the Speidel with locking caps - both on the top and where the spigot is normally located - before cold crashing. Of course, that would mean you can't put the spigot on to start with, but assuming that's how you went, then the concern would then be the effect of the dropping vapor pressure inside the fermenter as the liquid cools during the crash. If the fermenter is sturdy enough, it should be able to withstand it, but if not, then its walls may crush inward as a response to the dropping pressure inside.
 
I cold crash in mine, but I replace the airlock lid with sanitized aluminum foil. If you sealed it up I highly doubt it would collapse, they're pretty sturdy.
 
I have a 60L and 120L and I absolutely love them both! I can't believe I was even thinking of buying a stainless conical fermenter at one point. I have been alternating between 20 and 12 gallon batches.
 
I cold crash in my 60L all the time. I use a spigot on the bottom and the top bung and during fermentation it acts as a blowoff, then when I cold crash I close it to avoid suck back. Going from mid 60s to 33f I've never had any issues.
 
Ya know, replacing your airlock with one of the solid caps during cold crash is a pretty solid idea!

Here I thought I was all smart replacing it with a CO2 filled balloon to avoid any oxygen intake, but that's even easier! I think I'll give it a try next time!
 

Similar threads

luke2080
For Sale Brew Magic + Equipment
Replies
0
Views
223
luke2080
luke2080
R
Refractometer
Replies
4
Views
884
CaptMogul
C
Clint Yeastwood
Low-Budget Stainless Pressure Fermenters
Replies
23
Views
3K
crazyjake19
C
MMP126
Closed Fermonster Lid Crack...:-(
Replies
8
Views
1K
Bobby_M
Bobby_M
hilljack13
Planning my setup...thoughts?
2
Replies
48
Views
3K
hilljack13
hilljack13

Latest posts

Back
Top