horaceunit
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- Apr 3, 2015
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I have been brewing for just a few months and today I brewed my third 5 gallon extract batch. Since I started I scored a Holiday 5.2 Cubic Foot chest freezer that I turned into a fermentation chamber using an STC-1000 temperature controller. One of the limitations I quickly figured out with this set up is that I could only fit one 5 gallon bucket in the main portion of the freezer. There is also a shelf that 2 one gallon jugs will fit on, including air locks, or about 18 12 oz. bottles. In looking for a solution to this I found information online about Better Bottle carboys and after measuring the freezer figured I would be able to fit at least 2 or 3 of the 3 gallon ones into the main area of the freezer.
This also indirectly led me to another very nice discovery! The Better Bottles have been pretty scarce online and so I tried to find them locally. I had heard there was a Local Brew Shop near me, but I hadnt been able to find it so one Saturday I really set out on a mission a couple of weeks ago and I finally figured it out! They actually rent out the front of an antique store that is less than 4 miles from my house. It isnt a huge shop, but they have all the basics, and they had 4 of the 3 gallon Better Bottles in stock. Price was $24 each and without having to pay shipping it was a pretty good deal. At first I bought two so I could see how they would fit, and once I was able to place them in the freezer I realized that 4 would fit without a problem so I naturally snatched the other two up a couple of days later. Ive also learned a couple of interesting things about the 3 gallon Better Bottles that might help others. First Here is a shot of the four carboys in my freezer.
Being the inquisitive type I looked all over the bottles, but I couldnt actually find any measurement marks on it. So I used a 32 oz. glass measuring cup and accurately measured a gallon of water into a gallon water jug I have used for mixing sanitizer. I marked the jug and then filled the Better Bottle with 3 gallons of water. Here is a picture of the Better Bottle with the 3 gallons of water in it.
Kind of hard to see but with 3 gallons in it the water level is right up to the bottom of the neck. If you were to fill one up to this level with wort Id hate to think of the blow off during fermentation. Next I put in 2 gallons of water using the marked water jug and then 2 more quarts using the measuring cup to see where 2 and a half gallons would be. Here is a photo of that.
As you can see this is a more reasonable level for wort fermentation and would give a good amount of room for krausen to form and to avoid too much blow off. It also works out just about right if you figure two bottles for each 5 gallon batch that is brewed. Since four Better Bottles will fit in my freezer at the same time I could obviously do two 5 gallon batches either at the same time, or by staggering them by a week or two. Another advantage I can think of is the ability to dry hop one bottle and not the other so you can compare the two and see which one you like. Indeed I just brewed a 5 gallon Amber Ale extract today and split it up between 2 of the Better Bottles and I am planning on dry hopping one just to see what the different between them will be. Hope this might help anyone who has one of these smaller chest freezer fermentation chambers especially if you want to increase your fermentation capacity. OK now I'm thirsty! Time for a beer!
This also indirectly led me to another very nice discovery! The Better Bottles have been pretty scarce online and so I tried to find them locally. I had heard there was a Local Brew Shop near me, but I hadnt been able to find it so one Saturday I really set out on a mission a couple of weeks ago and I finally figured it out! They actually rent out the front of an antique store that is less than 4 miles from my house. It isnt a huge shop, but they have all the basics, and they had 4 of the 3 gallon Better Bottles in stock. Price was $24 each and without having to pay shipping it was a pretty good deal. At first I bought two so I could see how they would fit, and once I was able to place them in the freezer I realized that 4 would fit without a problem so I naturally snatched the other two up a couple of days later. Ive also learned a couple of interesting things about the 3 gallon Better Bottles that might help others. First Here is a shot of the four carboys in my freezer.
Being the inquisitive type I looked all over the bottles, but I couldnt actually find any measurement marks on it. So I used a 32 oz. glass measuring cup and accurately measured a gallon of water into a gallon water jug I have used for mixing sanitizer. I marked the jug and then filled the Better Bottle with 3 gallons of water. Here is a picture of the Better Bottle with the 3 gallons of water in it.
Kind of hard to see but with 3 gallons in it the water level is right up to the bottom of the neck. If you were to fill one up to this level with wort Id hate to think of the blow off during fermentation. Next I put in 2 gallons of water using the marked water jug and then 2 more quarts using the measuring cup to see where 2 and a half gallons would be. Here is a photo of that.
As you can see this is a more reasonable level for wort fermentation and would give a good amount of room for krausen to form and to avoid too much blow off. It also works out just about right if you figure two bottles for each 5 gallon batch that is brewed. Since four Better Bottles will fit in my freezer at the same time I could obviously do two 5 gallon batches either at the same time, or by staggering them by a week or two. Another advantage I can think of is the ability to dry hop one bottle and not the other so you can compare the two and see which one you like. Indeed I just brewed a 5 gallon Amber Ale extract today and split it up between 2 of the Better Bottles and I am planning on dry hopping one just to see what the different between them will be. Hope this might help anyone who has one of these smaller chest freezer fermentation chambers especially if you want to increase your fermentation capacity. OK now I'm thirsty! Time for a beer!
