the secondary

[pitt100]

My question is: Does a 6.5 gal glass carboy leave too much headspace as the secondary fermentor for a 5 gallon batch when racking to it after a week or so? Is this too much oxygen to potentially leave the beer exposed to? Reason is- it is all I have to use as a secondary right now or should I just leave everything in the primary for another 7 to 10 days and bottle it then? Thanks,
Pitt

 

[voodoochild7]

I have a 6.5 that I use as a secondary. I've had beer in there for 4 weeks to no ill effect. My bubbler always had pressure coming out of the carboy so I think the oxygen levels were pretty low in there. Not sure scientifically if this is okay but my experiece showed me it was not a problem

 

[loopmd]

It's been discussed here before and no one has really had any ill effects caused by the headspace in a 6.5 gallon carboy. The thought was that there is still some residual fermentation going on that would "push" the oxygen out. I get some bubbling in my airlock after I rack to the secondary and this is probably what is going on.

loop

 

[pitt100]

Thanks guys,
I'm working on my first batch and it just came up about the headspace after the fact! If I would have realized it I would have got the 5 gal carboy and saved myself from worrying to death! Will let you know how it turns out.
Pitt

 

[loopmd]

Most of us opted for the 6.5 over the 5 so we could either use it for a primary or a secondary. So, you made a good choice in the 6.5.