Clear plastic buckets.

[Jbird]

I am new to brewing and right now I have a regular plastic bucket. I was wondering if anyone new where I could find a clear plastic one. I really want to see what going on in there but I don't want to remove the lid. Thought I clear one would be nice.

 

[Lechien]

never have seen one, get a glass carboy if you want to see.

 

[badbrew]

Yeah get a 6.5 gal carboy so that you don't have to pour out wort and you can allow for expansion of the krausen.

 

[djfriesen]

Better bottles: PET plastic shaped like a carboy.

 

[HollisBT]

Better bottles: PET plastic shaped like a carboy.

Exactly this. Lighter than glass, safer than glass, all around better than glass.

 

[BetterSense]

"Shaped like a carboy" is not a feature, IMO. I never understood the point of putting a tiny little opening on such a big bottle.

I think the OP is onto something. I think a clear bucket is a great idea. Then I would have absolutely no reason left to use those stupid carboys/better bottles.

 

[Jbird]

That's what I'm talking about. I like the idea of of a carboy but they are hard to clean. If I could get a 6.5 gallon clear food grade bucket I would be set. Ummm I'll google it and if I find anything I'll post it.

 

[Waynep005]

There must be areason no one makes a clearplastic bucket, It seems like a no brainer product for the Home brew market, yet no one makes one, kind of strange.

 

[Golddiggie]

Just be sure to keep it in the dark while it's fermenting. Otherwise, you'll have seriously skunked brews. It's the same with clear carboys (glass or plastic). If you don't either cover them to keep the light out, or place them where light won't get to them, you have a very real risk of getting skunky brew.

Of course, once you get past the stage where you feel the need to see what's going on, you then have so many more vessels available to use for fermenters. I'm really enjoying using sanke kegs for my fermenting vessels...

 

[edmanster]

Look at polycarbonate buckets! They get pricy especially restaurant quality ones!!

 

[badbrew]

Look at polycarbonate buckets! They get pricy especially restaurant quality ones!!

 

[Jbird]

Those are nice I wonder if you can get an air tight lid with that?

 

[djfriesen]

I'm sure you could rig something up. Even if it was a bungee cord looped under the handles.

 

[dankev]

Look at polycarbonate buckets! They get pricy especially restaurant quality ones!!

Only problem with those would be Bisphenol-A (BPA) leaching. That's why most bottles are switching to HDPE and the like.

 

[ndsgr]

"Shaped like a carboy" is not a feature, IMO. I never understood the point of putting a tiny little opening on such a big bottle.

Easy pressurized transfers with a carboy cap, little O2 introduction in the transfer and no spigots to sanitize. Definitely a big feature in my experience.

 

[rico567]

I suppose there's no technical reason why a bucket couldn't be made from PETE (like a Better Bottle). I suspect there are economic reasons aplenty. My fermentation buckets (the 7 gal. US Plastics buckets w/ lids) ran me around $11 each delivered when I bought 3. I suspect that a bucket in PETE that was thick enough to be self-supporting in that configuration and carried around by a handle (i.e., set up like the regular buckets so many of us use) would be way more.

 

[william_shakes_beer]

Of course clear fermeters inevitably lead to a flurry of " does this look right" threads. Remember, fermentation is not pretty.

 

[BOBrob]

Of course clear fermeters inevitably lead to a flurry of " does this look right" threads. Remember, fermentation is not pretty.

Peekaboo.....I like spigots, easy to take samples, squirt clean after sample and cover for the next time. A 5 gallon water jug work if you care to watch. You can do 4-4.5 gal. batch with a blow off tube and listen to it BLOOP while you watch.

 

[edmanster]

Only problem with those would be Bisphenol-A (BPA) leaching. That's why most bottles are switching to HDPE and the like.

i believe you only need to worry when the acidity of whatever inside gets too high... i know that alot of restaurants do brine, marinating and pickling in them so you would think if they can withstand vinegar they can handle beer and fermentation..

 

[LTownLiquorPig]

The drug store where I buy my LME/kits/etc... has clear"ish" plastic buckets. Don't think the lid seals tight and there is no handle. The thing isn't very rigid either. I got one to use as a bottling bucket.

 

[squirrelly]

I am another who lives spigots. My conicals are a godsend with the easy ability to bottom crop yeast, remove trub, pressurize to eliminate any O2, use the vessel as a brite tank without disrupting the finished product, and being able to closed transfer to kegs using C02. This seems like a no brained to me.

 

[JJL]

Look at polycarbonate buckets! They get pricy especially restaurant quality ones!!

^^^This. You aren't going to find HDPE buckets that are clear. At best, you might find ones that are milky and transluscent.

 

[Jbird]

I found only the transparent milky color ones. I did find a company that can make one but only in bulk.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

Scrape through US Plastics for any appropriate vessel made with the proper plastic compound.

A lid can be as simple as a plexiglass sheet of plastic laid over the top and bungee strapped on.

Vittles Vaults come to mind. Safe for food storage, available in clear (enough), and fitted with an airlockable lid.