Buckets Vs Carboys Vs Conicals, Vs Everything else

[MaxStout]

Another good use for 5 gal plastic bucket: Mix up a bucket of Starsan and use that for sanitizing all those little hardware items. Afterwards you still have 5 gallons of Starsan to keep on hand for the next time.

 

[Cavpilot2000]

It will only keep for a while. If you aren't using RO or distilled water, the mineral content will eventually neutralize the Star San and it will grow mold and nasties (might take weeks or months, but generally within a month or two or three you will probably start to see signs of mold).

 

[hopjuice_71]

Kegs also make great and affordable SS fermentors. I have an SS Brewbucket but started fermenting in kegs for spunding and pressure transfers. I have since scored two 10 gal ball lock kegs for dirt cheap. Fitted with floating dip tubes these are awesome as fermenters.

 

[Cavpilot2000]

Kegs also make great and affordable SS fermentors. I have an SS Brewbucket but started fermenting in kegs for spunding and pressure transfers. I have since scored two 10 gal ball lock kegs for dirt cheap. Fitted with floating dip tubes these are awesome as fermenters.

Indeed. I started my stainless journey using kegs as fermenters. The only real downside is that if you are using 5 gal kegs, but the time you leave behind sediment and maybe blowoff for ales, you end up with somewhere less than 5 gallons in the final keg.
These days, I am making 7 gallon batches post-boil, so I can leave a gallon of trub behind and put 6 gallons into the fermenter to end up with 5 in the serving keg. There is some waste involved, but it ensures clear wort into the fermenter and a full keg even after blowoff, yeast sedimentation, SG samples, etc...

 

[Jon Goswick]

It will only keep for a while. If you aren't using RO or distilled water, the mineral content will eventually neutralize the Star San and it will grow mold and nasties (might take weeks or months, but generally within a month or two or three you will probably start to see signs of mold).

I do this, but I have an aeration wand I keep in it. Fire the pump up and wait for bubbles. No mold, but I cycle it out once a month.

 

[hopjuice_71]

Indeed. I started my stainless journey using kegs as fermenters. The only real downside is that if you are using 5 gal kegs, but the time you leave behind sediment and maybe blowoff for ales, you end up with somewhere less than 5 gallons in the final keg.
These days, I am making 7 gallon batches post-boil, so I can leave a gallon of trub behind and put 6 gallons into the fermenter to end up with 5 in the serving keg. There is some waste involved, but it ensures clear wort into the fermenter and a full keg even after blowoff, yeast sedimentation, SG samples, etc...

Yes, the volume is a downside. Solved that with the 10 gal kegs

 

[Cavpilot2000]

Yes, the volume is a downside. Solved that with the 10 gal kegs

Yeah, I saw some 6 gallon ones out there somewhere, but they were expensive.

 

[LittleRiver]

...The thought of just tossing the bucket out after a few brews doesn't sit well with me either, I don't like the idea of dozens of buckets sitting in a landfill. I've never liked any other type of plastic fermenter for the same reason (PET carboys, plastic conicals, ect.). Cheap and safe, yes. Durable, no.

PET fermenters are durable. I've got 4 years on my Big Mouth Bubbler, and my Better Bottle is probably ~6yrs old. These things are going strong, they're going to last a long time. Both look great, neither fermenter is showing any signs of internal scratches. I've never had an infection.

Inexpensive? Yes.
Safe? Yes
Durable? Yes.
Ability to see what's going on with the yeast? Yes.

 

[BarleyStanding]

Another good use for 5 gal plastic bucket: Mix up a bucket of Starsan and use that for sanitizing all those little hardware items. Afterwards you still have 5 gallons of Starsan to keep on hand for the next time.

+1 on this. I'll mix up a bucket of Starsan and a bucket of PBW on brew day to use for all the hoses and parts, and often have a little collection of other stuff that accumulated the previous weeks, maybe clean a faucet or two, etc. I'll usually keep it around for another day or so for whatever else comes up.

 

[bracconiere]

Ability to see what's going on with the yeast? Yes.

you know, now that you mention it....i've seen miller lite clone recipes, all kinds of clones actually...but never a heineken one.....or st. pauly girl for that matter.....

 

[LittleRiver]

you know, now that you mention it....i've seen miller lite clone recipes, all kinds of clones actually...but never a heineken one.....or st. pauly girl for that matter.....

...and your point would be?

 

[Cavpilot2000]

you know, now that you mention it....i've seen miller lite clone recipes, all kinds of clones actually...but never a heineken one.....or st. pauly girl for that matter.....

It's hard to replicate that skunky taste that all Heinekin in the US has...

 

[bracconiere]

...and your point would be?

lol, because for that skunk!



skip to ~3:00

 

[LittleRiver]

lol, because for that skunk!

What? With people putting who knows what in their soured habanero bitter fruit additive 100IBU hazy as a storm cloud beers these days, you're worried about a little skunk?

Seriously now, skunk is not an issue with clear fermenters. If you're fermenting inside a refrigerator or chest freezer you have a completely dark environment. If you're fermenting in an open room all you have to do is put a dark T shirt over it.

I intentionally selected a fermentation fridge with a clear door, so I can see through it to see what the yeast are doing inside my clear fermenter without even opening the door. To block the light I just pull up the window shade.

 

[hezagenius]

30 responses, and nobody has mentioned fermenting in a keg? I'm surprised.

I've never done it myself, but I have some Top Draw systems coming soon and I plan on fermenting and serving out of the keg. With Fermcap, I should hopefully be able to fit about 4.5 gallons in there.

I've fermented in a short quarter barrel keg (aka pony keg) and a Kegland Kegmenter (7.6gal) and it's awesome. They use tri-clover connections (pony kegs take 2", keglands takes 4") and you can get very creative in how you ferment, dry hop, crash and pressure transfer. I have no idea what the psi limit is for these but you will never need to go that high. My only gripe with them is that you can't dump the yeast out of them, which is why I recently switched to a conical unitank.

 

[Hwk-I-St8]

I use a Big Mouth Bubbler (plastic, clear, shaped like a wide mouth carboy, has a spigot). There is only one thing I switch to from that: something stainless that I can ferment under pressure. The big issue then is usually temp control. I use a freezer with an inkbird. Most SS vessels are conicals that won't fit in there. That means that moving to SS involves not only the cost of the vessel, but the cost of changing to a different temp control mechanism. I just don't see it happening anytime soon.

To get the fermentation under pressure, I plan to do initial fermentation in the BMB, then closed transfer to a keg with several points left in the fermentation, and then put a spunding valve on the keg. With my kegs set up to draw from the top, I can naturally carbonate and serve from that keg or transfer to a serving keg if desired.

That does everything I want with no need to invest in SS fermentation vessel and upgrade my temp control.

 

[bracconiere]

What? With people putting who knows what in their soured habanero bitter fruit additive 100IBU hazy as a storm cloud beers these days, you're worried about a little skunk?


View attachment 633818 View attachment 633819

whoa, now....that's 'craft' beer, they want $10 for a 4 pack of that stuff! lol

 

[Blazinlow86]

whoa, now....that's 'craft' beer, they want $10 for a 4 pack of that stuff! lol

No kidding I hate when breweries stop making the same stuff over and over and try something new. Cheers

 

[bracconiere]

No kidding I hate when breweries stop making the same stuff over and over and try something new. Cheers

lol, and when they figure out ways to work less for more money....in the process draining my wallet....making me work harder for less....

edit: and damn it, i just came here to play music match.....

 

[Blazinlow86]

lol, and when they figure out ways to work less for more money....in the process draining my wallet....making me work harder for less....

edit: and damn it, i just came here to play music match.....

You confused me on that one. You mean that by trying new things with more steps and ingredients used there actually doing less for more? Seems like it's doing more for more no? Cheers

 

[yowzers]

30 responses, and nobody has mentioned fermenting in a keg? I'm surprised.

I've never done it myself, but I have some Top Draw systems coming soon and I plan on fermenting and serving out of the keg. With Fermcap, I should hopefully be able to fit about 4.5 gallons in there.

I've gone to kegs for all my hoppy beers. You can do 4 plus gallons with a little fermcap. I typically cover the opening with foil for the first three days to be safe and then add the lid when it just starts to slow. I don't use a floating diptube, but I did cut off the diptube an inch or so. My latest IPA is still in that keg getting carbed up. I'm going to try to drink it right out of the same keg on the yeast since we typically drink an IPA in 4 weeks or so. So far it tastes awesome and I only had to pitch the first glass of beer. Taking lazy to a new level I guess.

 

[augiedoggy]

Out of curiosity whats your definition of "home brew levels"? I ask because I found my unitank a very practical addition to my home brewery. Cheers

I have 4 stainless conicals and I t

I have two 12.5 gallon stainless conicals. Two are needed for frequent lager production.

I like the stainless over plastic, and the dump and racking valves keep the trub out of finished beer and allow for easy hydrometer readings. I put in 10-11 gallon batches and have never had anything but CO2 come out the blow off tube.

They were not cheap, but not too bad as I bought them on ebay. I do not know the makes, they are similar to each other but not like anything I have seen for sale lately(one might be a first gen Spike), I brew a lot and for me they were worth the investment, but of course are not needed to make good beer.

Used to ferment in heavy old glass carboys, and still have several. I'd use them for cider or mead experiments, but am glad I do not have to use them regularly, I'm sure I would have dropped one by now.

Sounds like you have the same conical I have one of.(chinese spike clone of the original american Toledo spinning made spike conicals before spike switched to china themselves) I've got a few different kinds of stainless and plastic conicals and prefer the stainless conicals. Ives used them all 6.5g buckets, carbons both glass and plastic, fast ferment conicals.. they all work but some have advantages over others.

 

[Blazinlow86]

I have 4 stainless conicals and I t

Sounds like you have the same conical I have one of.(chinese spike clone of the original american Toledo spinning made spike conicals before spike switched to china themselves) I've got a few different kinds of stainless and plastic conicals and prefer the stainless conicals. Ives used them all 6.5g buckets, carbons both glass and plastic, fast ferment conicals.. they all work but some have advantages over others.

I was referring to Jtvanns comment that conicals are a waste at the homebrew level which of course is a pretty vague statement similar to saying buying a truck isn't practical for people then clarifying afterwards for a old lady for example. He clarified that homebrew level= a few gallons so it was just a odd way to word it.Very small batch brewers would have been a better way to word it imo as a homebrewer can be doing 1bbl batches or larger and as long as there doing it a home there homebrewing. In the case of a few gallons I agree it's not a practical purchase. Cheers

 

[augiedoggy]

I was referring to Jtvanns comment that conicals are a waste at the homebrew level which of course is a pretty vague statement similar to saying buying a truck isn't practical for people then clarifying afterwards for a old lady for example. He clarified that homebrew level= a few gallons so it was just a odd way to word it.Very small batch brewers would have been a better way to word it imo as a homebrewer can be doing 1bbl batches or larger and as long as there doing it a home there homebrewing. In the case of a few gallons I agree it's not a practical purchase. Cheers

I actually didnt mean to quote you at all.

 

[Hwk-I-St8]

I was referring to Jtvanns comment that conicals are a waste at the homebrew level which of course is a pretty vague statement similar to saying buying a truck isn't practical for people then clarifying afterwards for a old lady for example. He clarified that homebrew level= a few gallons so it was just a odd way to word it.Very small batch brewers would have been a better way to word it imo as a homebrewer can be doing 1bbl batches or larger and as long as there doing it a home there homebrewing. In the case of a few gallons I agree it's not a practical purchase. Cheers

In theory, if you're a home brewer and doing 1bbl batches you really only should be brewing about 6 or so batches a year. Unless things have changed, most states limit homebrewing to 200G per household or less per year if there are at least two legal age adults living in that household.

When I look at the batch sizes and frequency with which some people brew, I find it hard to believe that they're drinking all that beer. That being said, some people drink an astonishing amount of beer.

 

[bailey mountain brewer]

i have 2 15 gallon stainless conical fermenters, i love them for ease of use as far as the volume i brew and dump valve and yeast harvesting not to mention they look cool sitting in my basement brewery. but i sure do miss watching yeast churn away when i would sneak a peek during fermentation. as for the amount, i brew about once a month on average, puts at 180 gal per year. give or take. i have a 4 tap keezer for serving, i live on the side of the mountain and my beer gets consumed by me, my fiance, friends and family that live nearby. i do bottle some with a beer gun to take places occasionally and yes i still hit up the beer store. in the past i used buckets, big mouth bubbler, and glass carboys, out of those the big mouth bubbler was my favorite.

 

[LittleRiver]

In theory, if you're a home brewer and doing 1bbl batches you really only should be brewing about 6 or so batches a year. Unless things have changed, most states limit homebrewing to 200G per household or less per year...

That's the theory.

The reality is that some folks run a nano brewery out of their home. People "pay for ingredients" and receive beer. I don't do it, but I don't have a problem with those that do.

 

[specialkayme]

I didn't even realize there was a market for that kinda thing. I can't throw a rock without hitting a brewery, and half of them are financially struggling (even before COVID) to keep the doors open. Craft bottle shops are a dime a dozen. With that much competition, it never would have crossed my mind to offer to buy a keg off a buddy brewing in his garage, let alone multiple times.

Guess that shows how ignorant I am.

 

[Hwk-I-St8]

That's the theory.

The reality is that some folks run a nano brewery out of their home. People "pay for ingredients" and receive beer. I don't do it, but I don't have a problem with those that do.

My point is that, at that point, they're no longer a home brewer. They're now running a brewery. A rose by any other name and all that...