Best Small Batch Fermenters

[MikeCo]

I have an Anvil 4-gallon stainless bucket fermenter that works great for 2.5 to 3 gallon batches. Price on the Anvil web site is $131.

 

[Immocles]

I have been trigger shy on the tilt but maybe I should just bite the bullet. My 10 gal spike conical’s probe sits at about the edge of a 5 gal batch and I just had to top up my lager so the probe would be submerged. I was not happy about my gravity going down as a result. Do you find the tilt to be accurate with its temperature readings? I’ve read a fair amount on gravity but not a lot on temp.

I have two tilts. Love em. Are they necessary? Nope. But I like being able to monitor gravity ( as @Knightshade stated, I wouldn't trust it during fermentation, but it will show you that its going down, leveling off, where you're at for attenuation etc etc. It gives you a nice ballpark. I would never trust it for FG) and temperature, which I find to be extremely accurate. My tilt, ink bird, and the deal I have taped to the side of the fermonster always match. For gravity readings, that ballpark allows me to catch the tail end of fermentation to add my dry hop, better idea on a D rest if I'm doing one, or just raising temp to finish off an ale. I am not sure how well they perform inside stainless steel, however.

If you go that route, I do recommend linking it with a raspberry pi. The logging and charting is nice to look back to, plus you can check the spreadsheets on any device, anywhere, at anytime. The tilt has a pretty decent built in range (again, I use plastic. Not sure on SS or glass), but its great just checking progress from my MacBook in the back room, which is too far for the tilt app to connect.

Plastic leaches in acidic conditions so I’m always worried about flavour transfer, plastics leaching and health issues down the road, and infection.

Are you planning some long term storage? Because theres tons of us using plastic with no real issues. I wouldn't let a mead, wine, or long term store a beer on plastic though. But for the regular 2-3 week fermentation, it doesn't seem to be a big deal*.

*I am not a chemist.

Yes, these are mine, and yes, I use them regularly. Sizes are 1 gallon for the 4-inch OD vase and the pickle jar (actually I have several), and about 2.3 gallons for the 6-inch OD vase. Vases are about 24 inches high. Source for the vases:

https://vasemarket.com/26-x-6-inch-clear-cylinder-glass-vase

I have seen stuff like that randomly in stores and in other peoples houses and have regularly thought, "I bet I can ferment SOMETHING in that thing..."




And as far as the original question. I love ported Fermonsters. I do have a little big mouth bubbler as well, which at this point only really gets used for mead.

 

[Knightshade]

All the mentions of LBMBs makes me feel like I need to use mine. It has been neglected at the top of a cabinet in the garage for...a year and a half at least. I lent a second one to a friend of mine as he expressed some interest in trying to make a cider probably about 2 years ago and he hasn't done anything w/that either....

 

[Yesfan]

Sure, I use a Torpedo 6G keg. Got it from MoreBeer.
https://www.morebeer.com/products/torpedo-ball-lock-keg-6-gal.html
Clawhammer actually just released a 6.5 keg fermenter too a couple of months ago. I emailed them a couple of weeks back and it would be .25" too tall for my FC utilizing their blow off tube via the 1.5" TC on the lid. I'm really bummed as when I saw the vids for this thing..I'll admit I got SUPER excited. Still doing some mental gymnastics to try and figure out how I might make it work.

https://www.clawhammersupply.com/co...ucts/stainless-steel-keg-fermenter-6-5-gallon

I like that keg from Clawhammer, but man they're awful proud of it with that price tag.

 

[bwible]

I brew 3 gallon batches almost exclusively. I use a 5 gallon carboy as a fermenter. I have 3 gallon carboys if I need to secondary or age. I have one 3 gallon Fermonster, love it for the big opening and more versatility to dry hop, age on oak, etc.

If I want to go smaller like a 1 gallon batch of mead, I have 2 of the Little Big Mouth Bubblers, pretty sure they are 1.5 gallons. And 1 gallon glass jugs. I haven’t done those often but am considering doing it more.

 

[Knightshade]

I like that keg from Clawhammer, but man they're awful proud of it with that price tag.

Agreed, didn't stop them from selling out their first batch.

If it was an inch or two shorter, I'd have been in that first round too I suppose.

 

[Christoff]

I have two tilts. Love em. Are they necessary? Nope. But I like being able to monitor gravity ( as @Knightshade stated, I wouldn't trust it during fermentation, but it will show you that its going down, leveling off, where you're at for attenuation etc etc. It gives you a nice ballpark. I would never trust it for FG) and temperature, which I find to be extremely accurate. My tilt, ink bird, and the deal I have taped to the side of the fermonster always match. For gravity readings, that ballpark allows me to catch the tail end of fermentation to add my dry hop, better idea on a D rest if I'm doing one, or just raising temp to finish off an ale. I am not sure how well they perform inside stainless steel, however.

If you go that route, I do recommend linking it with a raspberry pi. The logging and charting is nice to look back to, plus you can check the spreadsheets on any device, anywhere, at anytime. The tilt has a pretty decent built in range (again, I use plastic. Not sure on SS or glass), but its great just checking progress from my MacBook in the back room, which is too far for the tilt app to connect.


Are you planning some long term storage? Because theres tons of us using plastic with no real issues. I wouldn't let a mead, wine, or long term store a beer on plastic though. But for the regular 2-3 week fermentation, it doesn't seem to be a big deal*.

*I am not a chemist.


I have seen stuff like that randomly in stores and in other peoples houses and have regularly thought, "I bet I can ferment SOMETHING in that thing..."




And as far as the original question. I love ported Fermonsters. I do have a little big mouth bubbler as well, which at this point only really gets used for mead.

Thanks. I am pretty close to pulling the trigger on the tilt. Seems to be a good option. I primarily want more accurate temps and the ability to track the end of fermentation so I know more precisely when to keg/bottle it, rather than taking multiple samples.

I unfortunately know too much about the research behind plastics and leaching which is why I try to limit it to under a month, three weeks, though even that is too much. The leaching flavour part just makes me wonder when I can still smell the last batch in my fermenter. Kind of like putting whiskey in your nalgene and then, from there on out, your water tastes like whiskey. But this could be splitting hairs and I haven't noticed this one yet.

 

[mashpaddled]

I have a small army of four liter wine jugs I use for one gallon batches. A little fermcap solves issues of blowoff unless they get filled almost up to the mouth.

For 2.5-5 gallon batches I use a standard brew bucket or now that I am spunding batches that go in kegs I'm brewing in a five gallon keg (I serve out of three gallon kegs).

 

[CascadesBrewer]

I have a good number of small fermenters.

I really like my 3 gallon Fermonsters. It is nice to be able to see activity and they are so versatile. I have a pair, both with spigots (and I have a 7 gallon and a 1 gallon).

I also have a 1st generation of the Ss Brewtech bucket. I could not pass up the price...free! I do really like how easy the stainless is to clean and I am sure it will long outlast any of my Fermonsters. I do miss not being able to visually monitor fermentation (guess I need a floating hydrometer!). The base of the 1st gen is awkward since it does not attach. Overall a really nice fermenter if you have a few extra $$. Mine has a thermowell on the side for a temp probe, but it looks like that is not part of the current model.

I purchased a pair of the glass Little Big Mouth Bubblers with spigots. There are several flaws with the glass ones. Once the PET ones were back in stock, I picked up a pair of those. Besides some small flaws with the lid not wanting to stay in place during vigorous fermentation, these are awesome small fermenters.

As I mentioned, I have a 1 gallon Fermonster. I picked that up mostly just to evaluate it. If the PET LBMB were not so great, this would be a great fermenter. It tops out at around 1.2 gal to the lid, so maybe enough for 1.0 gal of wort. It is very thin (the 3 gallon Fermonsters are quite thin as well). It is nice that the same lid fits all the sizes.

I have used some other 1 gallon fermenters without spigots (like a glass jug & jar or some PET jugs that distilled water comes in). It is just so awkward for me to bottle when I am by myself trying to use a racking cane or auto-siphon. I pretty much only use my fermenters with spigots.

 

[beersk]

This is probably the best solution, but not the cheapest. You can ferment with or without pressure, do closed transfers or ferment and serve in the same vessel. They are made from stainless steel and last forever. You can use a floating pickup in them. They are easy to clean. Easy to sell later if not used. Brilliant.

This is what I do too, 3 gallon batches in 5 gallon kegs, ferment under pressure if I want. Brewing the best beer I've ever brewed. Would love to be able to do 5 gallon batches this way but the jump in cost for fermentation equipment is steep.

 

[beersk]

Thanks. I am pretty close to pulling the trigger on the tilt. Seems to be a good option. I primarily want more accurate temps and the ability to track the end of fermentation so I know more precisely when to keg/bottle it, rather than taking multiple samples.

I have one that I'm not using that I'd be willing to sell. I've only used it maybe 3 times.

 

[hout17]

My Brewbuckets have the cooling coil, thermowell, and controllers so I have some degree of control over temperature especially during summer. Overall the probes sync pretty well with my Tilt devices. No regrets here for the investment. View attachment 810003

I just wanted to comment that this is a really nice setup and very organized to boot. Thanks for sharing!

 

[Cisko]

I make mostly 1 gallon batches. I use a glass Little Big Mouth Bubbler as my primary since it is 1.4 gallons, it provides room for the krausen. Generally I will fill this slightly over 1 gallon, maybe 1.1 or 1.2 because when transferring to secondary you will always lose some. Then I transfer to a glass 1 gallon Carlo Rossi wine jug for secondary. I usually get 9 or 10 bottles out of each batch.

I've used this system for about a dozen batches now, works great.

 

[Pehlman17]

Speidel fermenter!

I’ve been looking at the Speidel 12L/3.2gal fermenter. Looks to be of better quality than the 3gal Fermonster to me. Worth it? Any of the accessories worth getting, or just best to keep it plain and simple?

 

[Miraculix]

I’ve been looking at the Speidel 12L/3.2gal fermenter. Looks to be of better quality than the 3gal Fermonster to me. Worth it? Any of the accessories worth getting, or just best to keep it plain and simple?

I have a Speidel 20l fermenter. Best fermenter I've had so far. Using it since years.