Broken Glass Carboy Horror Stories Compendium

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Complete_Amateur said:
With all the improvements in materials (available), it is a shame that we don't see more quality products at affordable prices. The aluminium oxynitride is likely going to cost a small fortune to make a carboy out of it.

Even a borosilicate glass carboy made with an external coating (pvc coated pyrex) will cost you over $500 for a 5-gallon from Corning.

On the other side, something like the Carboy Shield might be a more reasonable investment. Anyone try these?
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Googled carboy shield, and came up with this.

Many homebrew stores carry a product called a Carboy Shield. Its intended use is for insulating carboys, minimizing temperature swings. At $8, it's a pretty cheap piece of kit.

Until you realize that it's just a 5' piece of this stuff which costs $10 for a 15-foot roll.

Don't be silly, homebrewers. If you want to insulate your carboys, just go buy a roll of this stuff and make yourself 3 or 4 carboy shields for the price of one.
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augiedoggy said:
The worst part about my whole ordeal is the carboy that exploded belonged to a friend of mine which got it from his departed father and I havent had the heart (or guts) to tell him it exploded... It looked to be a 100 years old and was formed with the old system with air bubbles in the glass which likely contributed to why it gave out so easily before blowing the airlock off the t op.
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The two old 5-gal water cooler carboys I use are downright scary if you examine them closely. The thickness varies dramatically and there are air bubbles everywhere you look, some of them extending for several inches.

So why have they survived 50 or 60 years anyway? In a word, overkill. They're almost ridiculously thick and heavy. I've never weighed them, but they're probably at least half again as thick and heavy as the 6.5 gal bottles I've seen for sale at my LHBS.....
 
From here:

Quaker said:
My number has been called
182954d1393693623-official-broken-carboy-count-imageuploadedbyhome-brew1393693615.625703.jpg


No wort, beer, or blood loss; it happened as I was pouring rinse water out post-PBW soak. This was about the best possible scenario.
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Mine broke while I was racking out, saved the majority of the stout. I went to tilt the carboy and it sheared off. A little scary, a little wet, but no one is hurt

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Home Brew mobile app

1393954777548.jpg
 
Tilting and filling seems to be a somewhat common component of breakage.

Maybe it puts too much stress on a weak point in the design of these bottles.
 
My roomate broke mine by moving it when it was soaking. He was worried id be mad, but i has more happy that he broke it and that he didnt get hurt in the process.
 
stonecutter2 said:
Tilting and filling seems to be a somewhat common component of breakage.

Maybe it puts too much stress on a weak point in the design of these bottles.
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Tilting a full glass Carboy on a hard surface is stupidity. Ok on grass wood or a shower matt i think though. Not good on stone steel ceramic or cement i would also suppose.


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TimelessCynic said:
Tilting a full glass Carboy on a hard surface is stupidity. Ok on grass wood or a shower matt i think though. Not good on stone steel ceramic or cement i would also suppose.
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Do you wonder at the level of honesty it takes to come into these forums and post your disasters and mistakes, knowing someone (!) will call you stupid?
 
passedpawn said:
Do you wonder at the level of honesty it takes to come into these forums and post your disasters and mistakes, knowing someone (!) will call you stupid?
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Sometimes I think this is kinda like a private thread just for us guys (gals) who learned the hard-way that these glass carboys can be dangerous - even if no blood is shed.

I still use a couple when I'm out of plastic, but I'm definitely wary when washing, refilling, etc. Maybe I should film a short video where I take a sledge hammer to a bunch of them (with proper PPE) as a tribute to all of those fallen soldiers out there who have nearly lost a finger, half an ankle, etc. Really not sure what to do with them, and I have 6.
 
Ive used one particular glass carboy for 11 years now, think its time to replace it then? Reading all this makes me think theyre fine if used properly and replaced every so often

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Home Brew mobile app
 
Irishpenguin13 said:
Ive used one particular glass carboy for 11 years now, think its time to replace it then? Reading all this makes me think theyre fine if used properly and replaced every so often

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Home Brew mobile app
Click to expand...


If yours is that old, I would trust it better than a new one. A flaw would have shown up by now.
 
passedpawn said:
Do you wonder at the level of honesty it takes to come into these forums and post your disasters and mistakes, knowing someone (!) will call you stupid?
Click to expand...

Not really, you can post how you've broken 4 hydrometers in a year and get sympathy. Break a carboy for the first time in 20 years and you can expect to be called stupid.:rolleyes:
 
passedpawn said:
Do you wonder at the level of honesty it takes to come into these forums and post your disasters and mistakes, knowing someone (!) will call you stupid?
Click to expand...

Well, I have only broke one carboy because the carrier strap handle broke. Are glass carboys an injury risk? yes they are. Can one taste the plastic of better bottles? Yes one can. But I prefer Better Bottles because of convenience. They are light weight and safe to handle. Yet I can still taste the plastic.
 
passedpawn said:
Do you wonder at the level of honesty it takes to come into these forums and post your disasters and mistakes, knowing someone (!) will call you stupid?
Click to expand...


I did not. I just added my opinion. I'm insensitive. I'm sorry now if i offended.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew
 
sudbuster said:
Well, I have only broke one carboy because the carrier strap handle broke. Are glass carboys an injury risk? yes they are. Can one taste the plastic of better bottles? Yes one can. But I prefer Better Bottles because of convenience. They are light weight and safe to handle. Yet I can still taste the plastic.
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I call b.s. on the "I taste plastic" comment. Why would all those fancy spring waters come in PET bottles if you could taste plastic from them?
 
I've been handling glass carboys in various sizes for 15 years. I've been lucky to have never had an accident. Lucky and careful. You can be as careful as you can be and still have accidents, though. So I do what someone before suggested and I always wear jeans, closed shoes, and long sleeves when I move them. Would this assure my safety? Of course not, but it decreases somewhat the risk.

We take risks everyday. We cross the street, we drive, but we try and be careful to reduce the risks.

I love driving. When I was a kid, I got into a terrible accident and got beat up pretty bad. Didn't want to drive again, but my mother literally made me drive home from the hospital when I was discharged. I love glass too, but I completely understand why someone else would say: never again.

Everyone is different, everyone prioritizes safety and fear differently, and there is nothing wrong with that. I'm glad that there are alternative fermentation options available for those who aren't willing to take the risk, otherwise there would be a lot fewer homebrewers out there.

Be safe, be careful, brew on.
 
Risk is what you are willing to expose yourself to . . . glass is less porous and typically has a longer life than plastic as long as it is handled properly. That doesn't mean that accidents don't happen, but I for one is willing to take that risk and I will continue to use glass carboys, ride motorcycles, skydive, flirt with scandalous women and do anything else that I feel is in the best interest of satisfying my desires . . .
 
Irishpenguin13 said:
Ive used one particular glass carboy for 11 years now, think its time to replace it then? Reading all this makes me think theyre fine if used properly and replaced every so often

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Home Brew mobile app
Click to expand...
If it's lasted 11 years, it's a good sturdy one. Keep it.... One of mine is from 1960, the other is from 1970, and if they haven't broken by now there sure as heck aren't any hidden flaws or stresses in them.
 
I've got an "acid carboy" and let me tell you... that thing is MASSIVELY heavy! I think it must be extra thick glass. I still prefer my better bottles, but it's the only thing I have that holds more than 6 gallons, so if I have something that's likely to need a lot of head space to ferment, I've got to use that.
 
Newsman said:
I've got an "acid carboy" and let me tell you... that thing is MASSIVELY heavy! I think it must be extra thick glass. I still prefer my better bottles, but it's the only thing I have that holds more than 6 gallons, so if I have something that's likely to need a lot of head space to ferment, I've got to use that.
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Where did you find that? Have you been raiding old gold mines? :)
 
HB_brewer said:
Risk is what you are willing to expose yourself to . . . glass is less porous and typically has a longer life than plastic as long as it is handled properly. That doesn't mean that accidents don't happen, but I for one is willing to take that risk and I will continue to use glass carboys, ride motorcycles, skydive, flirt with scandalous women and do anything else that I feel is in the best interest of satisfying my desires . . .
Click to expand...

Do you find that scandalous women like glass or plastic carboys?
 
...

tduro said:
It's not only the clumsy that can be hurt by glass carboys. I've used glass carboys exclusively for over 15 years, for both primary and secondary fermentation. I brew about 20 batches per year. That's 300 batches X 2 = 600 times I've handled, sanitized, and rinsed a carboy. I have always been careful and never had an issue until last weekend. While lifting the carboy to pour a small amount of rinse water into the sink (one hand on the neck and one hand under the bottom, just like always), the bottom fell out of the carboy without warning. There was nothing I could do to prevent the broken glass from doing significant damage to my hand. I have 2 other carboys which I'll continue to use, but I'll be switching to plastic for primary. Now I just need to decide between plastic bucket and plastic carboy.
Click to expand...
 
I switched from glass to using sanke's. Part of the deal when I sold my carboy's was the buyer come over for a brew day and I give them to him full. I was freaked out carrying the 70lbs (X4)of carboy to his car. I thought,"this is it, I'm going to get bit the last time I handle them" I was glad to see them go. No glass in the brewery, my cup is even made of SS. I played carboy roulette and won.
 
Just had a guy come over and drop a carboy out of his slick fingers, shattered, cut his hand, ankle, trip to ER, stitches.

For Sale: 6 glass carboys.

I'm going all better bottle.
 
I use Brewhaulers on my glass carboys. Except for my nine-gallon carboy. It stays put when it's full. Wearing an apron while moving them might just be a good idea now that I think about it.. All of my threes, fives, and sixes are older Italian and Mexican manufacture. Avoid the Chinese carboys like the plague. I even have an old O-I two gallon glass carboy, wish I had two of them.
 
Yeah, PM me if you want them, $25 each, you can have the bungs and airlocks, too. I'm going to probably do plastic buckets, maybe try to find stainless steel for aging.
 
Just bumped my carboy on a ceramic tile on the way down to the basement! I got off easy not a scratch and yes I was wearing sandals! Had to watch my 5 plus gallons of Scottish Ale wash down the steps though. Even though I did think I would see a blood trail next ! Back to plastic for me!:(

10363325_10152202816343667_5254368954016264799_n.jpg
 

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