Broken Glass Carboy Horror Stories Compendium

[bctdi]

Have you ever tried glass or seen it in action first hand?

yep, I've used it before. Could not tell the difference in the finished beer between glass and plastic.

 

[bctdi]

It certainly is, and if you don't see that, then you're quite naive.

Just because you're a klutz doesn't mean everyone else is.

I think the key word you may have missed is "eventually". maybe you brew once a month for 10 years.... have you even brewed that long? How about 40 years? If you think that you will go 40 years of brewing on a regular basis and never break a 60LB piece of glass filled with beer, well good luck with that. You seem to have a crystal ball and walk on water at the same time, and somehow through the internet you can tell wether or not I am a klutz. Most people on here that like glass realize that it could break, but are ok with that, or willing to risk it, and I can respect that because they just like using glass for whatever reason they want to use. But you seem to feel that you are so untouchable by your perfect process that it won't ever happen to you...talk about naive. Well if it should happen to you eventually, and I hope it doesn't...I wouldn't post it on here after you have reduced this down to name calling.

 

[bleme]

I am lost now with all this back and forth. Bleme you use glass? Bctdi you use plastic?

When I first started brewing, I went in 50/50 with a friend. Somehow he ended up with the glass carboy, probably because I get free buckets from work. I have used both. I like both. I defend the right of anyone to use what works best for them.

 

[bja]

I think the key word you may have missed is "eventually". maybe you brew once a month for 10 years.... have you even brewed that long? How about 40 years? If you think that you will go 40 years of brewing on a regular basis and never break a 60LB piece of glass filled with beer, well good luck with that.

I didn't miss anything. If you're careful, pay attention to what you're doing and what's happening in your surroundings, you don't need luck.

 

[Johnnyhitch1]

That very much appears to be a result of thermal shock.

I see a conical in your future!

Wine glasses are fragile and prone to break. I've been married 12 years and still have the full set given to me as a wedding gift. I also have all the plates and bowls, as well as my grandmothers china.

Some people are more prone to break things than others.

Right, because your china weighs 50-80pounds and is just as awkward to hold as a full 5gal glass carboy...

 

[passedpawn]

Let's be careful when using our glass carboys.

Is there someone here who disagrees with that sentiment? If not, what the heck are you all talking about? This isn't a plastic vs. glass thread - those exist in abundance elsewhere on this forum.

 

[TimelessCynic]

I didn't miss anything. If you're careful, pay attention to what you're doing and what's happening in your surroundings, you don't need luck.

I approach things with the same level of hubris.

 

[IvanBrew]

Add me to the compendium...

I spent 4 hours in the ER today after dropping a carboy full of oxyclean and slicing up my thumb pretty good. We don't think there's tendon damage, but I see a hand surgeon on Monday to be sure.

I'm exceedingly careful with my carboys. I've been brewing since '91, and this is the 1st one I've broken. I had one hand around the neck and the other under the base as I tipped it to pour sanitizer out. I don't know if the neck was wet, or if I just slipped, but either way, I dropped the front of the bottle, which exploded when it hit the floor.

I already own four Better Bottles. This will be my last use of glass. I'm done.

To each their own, but I am dead certain of my preference now...

 

[beersk]

Add me to the compendium...

I spent 4 hours in the ER today after dropping a carboy full of oxyclean and slicing up my thumb pretty good. We don't think there's tendon damage, but I see a hand surgeon on Monday to be sure.

I'm exceedingly careful with my carboys. I've been brewing since '91, and this is the 1st one I've broken. I had one hand around the neck and the other under the base as I tipped it to pour sanitizer out. I don't know if the neck was wet, or if I just slipped, but either way, I dropped the front of the bottle, which exploded when it hit the floor.

I already own four Better Bottles. This will be my last use of glass. I'm done.

To each their own, but I am dead certain of my preference now...

Yikes. Hope your hand is okay. I've never broken a carboy, but I think I'm going to buy a better bottle to see how I like it. Mainly just wanting something lighter, but the unbreakable part is a bonus.

 

[troy2000]

I think the key word you may have missed is "eventually". maybe you brew once a month for 10 years.... have you even brewed that long? How about 40 years? If you think that you will go 40 years of brewing on a regular basis and never break a 60LB piece of glass filled with beer, well good luck with that.

Why not? Before the water companies went to plastic, there were plenty of people who spent a lifetime picking up full 5 gallon glass jugs, flipping them upside down and sticking them into water coolers, then pulling them back out and setting them on the floor when they were empty.

You might as well say, "if you think you can go 40 years driving cars without getting into a wreck, good luck with that." Lots of people do....

 

[bctdi]

Why not? Before the water companies went to plastic, there were plenty of people who spent a lifetime picking up full 5 gallon glass jugs, flipping them upside down and sticking them into water coolers, then pulling them back out and setting them on the floor when they were empty. You might as well say, "if you think you can go 40 years driving cars without getting into a wreck, good luck with that." Lots of people do....

I don't think you have any info on how many carboys got broken by water companies.As far as the driving analagy, there are no wreck free cars available, but there are other options for carboys even if that were a good comparison the odds are that after 40 years of driving one would have been in some kind of accident. Glass is fragile / very breakable. If a casino could bet on it, they would bet on breakage. But most people already know that and are willing to risk it, and I don't have a problem with that.

 

[MaxStout]

Maybe I have a more apt analogy.

One of my old high school friends has made a nice living as a glazier, installing/replacing sheets of glass in windows. As far as I know he has never suffered a major injury. Just the usual nicks and small cuts from handling the edges. Lugging around heavy pieces of glass--whether in the form of sheets or big glass bottles--has some inherent dangers. Being prudent and using the right tools will minimize, if not eliminate, those risks.

I prefer carboys, but I give them a healthy dose of respect. I no longer use the clamp-on handles, and I schlep them around in plastic milk crates. I wash them in the big laundry basin, so that if one does break, it will be mostly contained.

 

[troy2000]

I don't think you have any info on how many carboys got broken by water companies.As far as the driving analagy, there are no wreck free cars available, but there are other options for carboys even if that were a good comparison the odds are that after 40 years of driving one would have been in some kind of accident. Glass is fragile / very breakable. If a casino could bet on it, they would bet on breakage. But most people already know that and are willing to risk it, and I don't have a problem with that.

I wasn't talking about water company employees; I was talking about homeowners and office personnel. As I said earlier, the tap water where I grew up wasn't drinkable; almost everyone I knew had drinking water delivered in 5 gallon glass carboys. We all routinely handled them ourselves because water was generally delivered once a month, and I never knew anyone who broke one - although one gal I went to school with pemanently injured her back, loading one into a water cooler at work while she was wearing high heels.

 

[Puckhead]

Nothing serious I guess I set it down on the edge a little too hard and blew out the side of my 6.5 acid carboy. I did kill 90% of my 1.097 DIPA that I was going to pitch my yeast on. Worst part for me was I had to go to work so no chance to clean it up. Whole garage smells like hops. And then I left to find it running out the door... New weekend project!!

 

[mikescooling]

I am sorry for your loss. That made me hurt. You guys ever though about switching over to sanke's, the fat 1/4 is a nice size. For me I like only having one fermenter to clean, one brew day one fermenter. If you drop this one on your foot, it's going to hurt. Thread jack over, (sorry)

 

[ChocolateMaltyBalls]

If I could get my hands on a slim 1/4 barrel sanke I would definitely do that. I might start fermenting in cornys anyway and retire some better bottles.

 

[mikescooling]

I started looking on probrewer and found a guy who had all the kegs from a brewery that closed. But no slim 1/4 (I wish). The fat 1/4 is a nice size. Keep looking for the sanke's they are out there. Even ask at craft beer festivals, they may have kegs that are about at the end of their usable life or they may let you or your brew club get in on the next order. It's seems like 1/4's of any size are 65$ new or 35$ used. I don't think anyone likes using the slim because you can't roll them easy. Now the thread jack is over, this time I mean it. OVER!!! sorry

 

[ffd520]

I usually clean my carboy outside in the yard but it was below freezing so I decided to do it in the bath tub. The carboy was to tall to fit under the faucet so I tilted it to fill with some water. It was still on the ground just tilted when it all of the sudden shattered into pieces. Cut all the way through the muscle and an artery. Twelve stitches total.

 

[TimelessCynic]

All of a sudden shattered? Really? I'm not trying to be a prick. I feel bad you got such a bad injury. I know about injuries. I have paid 10k in surgery. (Not beer related - well sorta - i was buzzed when injured)

I use glass. Was scared about it spontaneously breaking on me until others in this post mentioned glass just doesn't break on its own. That calmed me down.

Do you think you had spider cracks or did you knock it hard against something while tilting?

 

[insanim8er]

View attachment 165976

I usually clean my carboy outside in the yard but it was below freezing so I decided to do it in the bath tub. The carboy was to tall to fit under the faucet so I tilted it to fill with some water. It was still on the ground just tilted when it all of the sudden shattered into pieces. Cut all the way through the muscle and an artery. Twelve stitches total.

damn... I swear I'm going to start a Public Service Announcement on the dangers of carboys and the glory of fermenting in a Keg.

I started messing around with a DIY cheap and easy conversion kit for sankey kegs. No major tools needed. For a few bucks and you can ferment and force transfer from any sankey keg. Hopefully I'll have it complete tonight.

 

[ffd520]

It was a used carboy. It definitely didn't bang on anything. I agree glass just doesn't break on its own. It had to have some unseen damage. I guess the weight of the water with it tilted just right one of those one in a million things.

 

[insanim8er]

It was a used carboy. It definitely didn't bang on anything. I agree glass just doesn't break on its own. It had to have some unseen damage. I guess the weight of the water with it tilted just right one of those one in a million things.

According to the images on this forum, It doesn't seem to be a one in a million sorta thing...

Was the glass outside or in the garage with the freezing temps? Maybe it was thermal shock?

 

[ffd520]

I had just finished kegging an ipa and was cleaning out the trub and what not. It had been at a steady 67.

 

[insanim8er]

I had just finished kegging an ipa and was cleaning out the trub and what not. It had been at a steady 67.

Well good news is you didn't lose the IPA. I guess it goes to show just how unpredictable glass can be.

 

[IslandLizard]

This thread is like a horror movie.

I feel really bad for those who got injured handling these carboys. Jeez, I'm seriously rethinking how to use and handle them and have gained utter respect for the glass beasts. There are some stainless solutions out there, that maybe not as costly as one would think... Then there's always plastic.

Glass carboys on hard surfaces are not a good match. I keep em off concrete, metal racks, etc. and place them on wood, cardboard, or commercial carpet. I only handle them on soft padded surfaces, like multiple layers of towels or foam cushions. Particularly when full. Tilting a full carboy puts a lot of pressure on that 1/16 square inch of glass that actually touches the floor (> 1200 pounds/sq inch).

 

[MaxStout]

It was a used carboy. It definitely didn't bang on anything. I agree glass just doesn't break on its own. It had to have some unseen damage. I guess the weight of the water with it tilted just right one of those one in a million things.

True, it doesn't just break on its own, but there could have been stresses built up, or perhaps some unseen hairline cracks, etc. Right on the edge of structural failure. Could have just been some "tipping point" thing, like the force of tilting it, or a slight temperature difference, and that was all she wrote. That glass is not tempered, just plain old flint glass.

I still prefer glass, but after reading some of these posts, I now handle those things with gloves and milk crates. A healthy dose of fear and respect is a good thing. I'm following that keg conversion thread. Maybe a marketing opportunity for insanim8er to produce some kind of keg conversion kit? Someday, I will want to move away from glass to something safer.

 

[jay_mack1]

Enough for me to give up on the two glass ones I have. I have numerous Better Bottles and love them.

 

[mikescooling]

When they are full of water at 8pounds a gallon, 5-6 gallon carboy, and the weight of the carboy. Would you go the the bench press at the gym and pick-up the biggest plate and set it on a glass carboy? The biggest plate is only 45lbs. They don't break by themselves.

 

[troy2000]

Well, once more I successfully cleaned one of my old water company jugs (this one from 1960), filled it, and got it safely tucked away in my fermenter.

But you better believe I was thinking of this thread every time I touched it, and handled it more carefully than I used to...

 

[TimelessCynic]

Well, once more I successfully cleaned one of my old water company jugs (this one from 1960), filled it, and got it safely tucked away in my fermenter. But you better believe I was thinking of this thread every time I touched it, and handled it more carefully than I used to...

That's the problem. I'm handling mine soo bloody carefully I'm bound to make a mistake. I liked it before when I was ignorant.