FastFerment conical fermenter??????

[ElmCityWobblyPops]

Been reading up on the FF, thinking about asking Santa one for Xmas, but have a few questions.

1) Dry hopping. Normally rack the beer from the primary carboy, to a secondary and add the hops. How do you do that with the FF where it is primary and secondary all in one? If you unscrew the top, letting out the CO2 to add the dry hops, kinda defeats the purpose, or is that not really an issue?

2) Bottling. I am not set up for kegs, and currently don't have the room for it, so I bottle everything. Short of adding priming sugar to each bottle (PITA), or buying the carb tablets (expensive) how do you batch prime? Opening the top of the FF to add your priming sugar, it isn't going to get mixed all that well, and you surely don't want to stir it in, adding in more air.

Rack off to a bottling bucket? Same as I would do with a glass carboy?

Would be nice to be able to batch prime in it, and bottle off of the FF, rather than have to transfer it.

 

[Bellybuster]

First off, you gotta try pretty hard to oxidize beer.
A drill powered paint mixer will mix in priming sugar no problem. As for dry hopping, I'd use a hop bag so you can remove it prior to priming.
How do you presently mix in priming sugar if you don't stir? You have to stir

 

[Jwin]

First off, you gotta try pretty hard to oxidize beer.

MmmuuuhhhHHH WwwaaaaaHHhH?

 

[gotbags-10]

Has anyone done a successful closed transfer in one yet? I know it has been talked about.

 

[ElmCityWobblyPops]

First off, you gotta try pretty hard to oxidize beer.
A drill powered paint mixer will mix in priming sugar no problem. As for dry hopping, I'd use a hop bag so you can remove it prior to priming.
How do you presently mix in priming sugar if you don't stir? You have to stir

I put the priming sugar/water in the bottling bucket first, then rack the beer on top of it, the swirling action of the beer from the secondary is enough to mix it. Haven't had an issue yet.

Yeah, I would put the dry hops in a muslin bag and drop it in, alot less clean up that way, or use the dry hopping tube I have, but it only holds so much.

 

[Wawster]

Well, as Co2 is heavier than air, there's no real problem with oxidation. The CO2 layer on top of the beer stays there when you open the top. As long as you are gentle with your stirring, all is good there. In this case, BellyBuster is absolutely right...it's kinda hard to oxidize the beer in the conical under these conditions. You'd have to be a pretty aggressive stirrer to displace the CO2 layer.
The bigger problem, really is sediment. I've bottled a few batches directly off of my FF now, and here's what I've seen:
There's a certain amount of sediment that clings to the sides of the FF. With a little prior planning, I've had good success in rapping the sides of the FF during the later stages of primary, causing a landslide inside, of sorts, of sediment into the ball. Doesn't always work, but it does more often than not.
When ready to bottle, I do a preliminary stir and let it sit for another couple of days to get the last bit of sediment out that I can.
Then, when bottling from the FF, resist the urge to let the bottles fill fast, as the 1/2" hose will allow for very rapid bottle filling. I usually also drain off a little prior to the first bottle, as there will be sediment in the union valve. After that, it's cake.
I've found that you're going to get a bit of cloudiness in the beer that will settle out in the bottle. For me, it's been unavoidable. But the resultant beer is clear, and has never been stale, or oxidized. I think it's really a trade-off between the convenience of the conical, versus the superior (to me, anyway) initial clarity of beer in the carboys.

 

[jbb3]

Has anyone done a successful closed transfer in one yet? I know it has been talked about.

Take look at post #625. He used it for filtering but along the lines that you're asking about.

 

[jbb3]

Been reading up on the FF, thinking about asking Santa one for Xmas, but have a few questions.

1) Dry hopping. Normally rack the beer from the primary carboy, to a secondary and add the hops. How do you do that with the FF where it is primary and secondary all in one? If you unscrew the top, letting out the CO2 to add the dry hops, kinda defeats the purpose, or is that not really an issue?

2) Bottling. I am not set up for kegs, and currently don't have the room for it, so I bottle everything. Short of adding priming sugar to each bottle (PITA), or buying the carb tablets (expensive) how do you batch prime? Opening the top of the FF to add your priming sugar, it isn't going to get mixed all that well, and you surely don't want to stir it in, adding in more air.

Rack off to a bottling bucket? Same as I would do with a glass carboy?

Would be nice to be able to batch prime in it, and bottle off of the FF, rather than have to transfer it.

To dry hop; Fill a hop sack with your favorite hop and drop it in. Now I also tie a length of flavorless floss to the hop sack and tie the other end off to one of the support tabs so I don't have to fish out the sack prior to draining. There is some mixing of air into the co2 in the head space but still less exposure than siphon racking from primary to secondary.

I've seen some folks bottle directing from the FF with success but I preferred to drain into a bottling bucket on top of my priming sugar solution. I can be sure that I get a good even mixing of the priming sugar and it eliminates sediment in the bottles.

Different strokes...

 

[kaffeenjunkie]

Put a sampling port on this morning while mashing.
Used a unibit on slow speed. Half way between 1L and 1G
Won't be using it to rack with.
No leaks and ready for my chocawonka stout

 

[CTS]

Is that the spout from fastbrewing? Just bought the fermenter yesterday. Can't wait to get it and set it up.

 

[lstewartff]

is that the same type spout that you put tin a bucket, or is there a difference. I have a spout for a bucket just wondering if it would work.

 

[CA_Mouse]

I think it is, it looks like all of the ones I've got on my bottling buckets.

 

[kaffeenjunkie]

Is that the spout from fastbrewing? Just bought the fermenter yesterday. Can't wait to get it and set it up.

Just a spout from my LHBS I think it was 3.00 and change. Already had a unibit to drill the hole.

 

[lstewartff]

Just a spout from my LHBS I think it was 3.00 and change. Already had a unibit to drill the hole.

After seeing it done I was thinking of doing it myself the only thing is I put my FF in a 7 gal bucket to fill it and then use the bucket to help me carry it to my brackets. Just wonder if the spout would be in the way when fitting the FF into the bucket.

 

[PeteNMA]

Well you are going to be the one drilling the hole. Drill it where you know it won't be a problem. Fwiw it should be pretty tricky to put it somewhere which will cause a problem

 

[kaffeenjunkie]

After seeing it done I was thinking of doing it myself the only thing is I put my FF in a 7 gal bucket to fill it and then use the bucket to help me carry it to my brackets. Just wonder if the spout would be in the way when fitting the FF into the bucket.

I dropped mine into a 5gal bucket today. The location I put mine in, was no factor.

 

[kaffeenjunkie]

If anyone hasn't taken apart cleaned the ball valve on these things. I would recommend it. I just kegged my first batch and was curious. Nice chunk of trub/yeast left behind that didn't get washed with normal cleaning.

 

[PeteNMA]

What is your normal procedure for cleaning ball valves?

 

[Goblism]

What is your normal procedure for cleaning ball valves?

They are really actually easy to take apart. I was initially hesitate but my initial ball valve had the gasket in crooked. I took it apart and back together in a matter of 15 seconds. I have only done 2 batches in my fast fermentors but I have found them to be a good investment so far due to the ease of collecting yeast, not having to siphon, and the increased speed of transferring.

I am hoping to get a dry hopped beer going in one of these soon. I do think that oak chips might plug the ball valve so I will avoid doing those in these for now.

 

[lstewartff]

I dropped mine into a 5gal bucket today. The location I put mine in, was no factor.

Thanks for the info. I will have to add one now.

 

[liljohn]

I used just a simple bucket spigot and placed it just right of the 2 gallon mark. Seems to work just fine.

Does anyone have issue with the conical leaking? Mine seems to not seal very well above the valve. Any thought on addressing this is appreciated. Yes I rewrapped the threads.

 

[ElmCityWobblyPops]

They are really actually easy to take apart. I was initially hesitate but my initial ball valve had the gasket in crooked. I took it apart and back together in a matter of 15 seconds. I have only done 2 batches in my fast fermentors but I have found them to be a good investment so far due to the ease of collecting yeast, not having to siphon, and the increased speed of transferring.

I am hoping to get a dry hopped beer going in one of these soon. I do think that oak chips might plug the ball valve so I will avoid doing those in these for now.

I would think you could put your oak chips and dry hops in a muslin bag or similar...would keep trub and chips out of the valve.

When dry hopping, after you take the ball off with the yeast and empty it, when you go to put it back on, could you not put your dry hops in the ball when you put it back on? That way it would all stay in the ball, and not block the valve. Just don't know if it would interact with the beer enough from down there or not.

 

[idtapit]

So is everyone happy with their FF? I've read some of the post, but still on the fence about getting one after hearing about the seal problem with the lid and then the whole o2 problem when changing out the bottoms to the moving it to a bottle bucket to bottle. Please tell me what you guys think before this newb goes and spend 200 on everything. Thanks

 

[lstewartff]

So is everyone happy with their FF? I've read some of the post, but still on the fence about getting one after hearing about the seal problem with the lid and then the whole o2 problem when changing out the bottoms to the moving it to a bottle bucket to bottle. Please tell me what you guys think before this newb goes and spend 200 on everything. Thanks

I don't know about everyone else but I like mine. The top doesn't seal well but that's ok with me. I am going to add a spigot on the side so I can draw from it mainly to fill the ball before I put it back on for secondary.

 

[NateBrew]

I haven't posted back here in a long while, but I have been reading the email updates so I thought I would chime in.

I used my FF for about 10 batches and then stopped using it and went back to carboys. I had several issues with the yeast not fully cleaning up after themselves (diacetyl, etc) and I think it was due to the collection ball isolating the yeast from the beer at the end of the fermentation when they started floc'ing out and going dormant. I did find that if I left the valve closed, things seemed to be OK if I left it for a while (maybe 1-1.5 weeks longer than normal).

The main reason I got the thing was for yeast harvesting and trub dumping, and I found that the yeast didn't slide out of the conical smoothly when there was a large amount in the bottom of the cone. This might not be as much of a problem if I added a racking port like some people have.

That combine with the problems moving it around (it is just big and you need the stand to hold it up, so you can't just put it down) is why I went back to carboys.

I think it is a fine piece of equipment, but I just ended up preferring carboys. That said, I kept it around in case I want to make some bigger batches or if I decide to add a racking port and go that way with it.

Anyway, just my 2cents.

 

[PeteNMA]

They are really actually easy to take apart. I was initially hesitate but my initial ball valve had the gasket in crooked. I took it apart and back together in a matter of 15 seconds. I have only done 2 batches in my fast fermentors but I have found them to be a good investment so far due to the ease of collecting yeast, not having to siphon, and the increased speed of transferring.

I am hoping to get a dry hopped beer going in one of these soon. I do think that oak chips might plug the ball valve so I will avoid doing those in these for now.

Yeah I've seen the videos showing the disassembly. Ive always found that flushing with running water whilst opening and closing ball valves does the trick to get the insides clean. I only disassemble every few months just to get in and scrub things out.

 

[CTS]

Well I hope people still like there fast fermenters. I just got one in the mail yesterday. Got a stand made today and it's all together. Need to make more beer. Why does it have to be December!!

View attachment 1449712631860.jpg

 

[NateBrew]

Looks nice. If you brew something small up this weekend you could have it ready for Christmas. I'm doing an Ordinary Bitter tomorrow for christmas, ferments out in a week and that would even give time for bottle conditioning if needed (though I see you have kegs, so that wouldn't be an issue).

One thing I noticed, it looks like you have pipe tape on the union fitting threads. That joint doesn't need any tape, as the seal is made between the mating surfaces with the o-ring set into one side. I don't know if the tape might make it harder to screw/unscrew.

 

[CTS]

Looks nice. If you brew something small up this weekend you could have it ready for Christmas. I'm doing an Ordinary Bitter tomorrow for christmas, ferments out in a week and that would even give time for bottle conditioning if needed (though I see you have kegs, so that wouldn't be an issue).

One thing I noticed, it looks like you have pipe tape on the union fitting threads. That joint doesn't need any tape, as the seal is made between the mating surfaces with the o-ring set into one side. I don't know if the tape might make it harder to screw/unscrew.

Thanks! Ya i realized afterwards that tape on the union fitting threads was wrong, It's off now. Only problem I have is the thermowell leaks ever so little. Not enough to actually drip but still has a little water around the fitting.

Problem I have with brewing in December is the cold weather and use of a chiller. Even though we had record breaking weather the past week, that seems to be coming to an end. Have to find an alternative way to chill the wort.

 

[Wawster]

So is everyone happy with their FF? I've read some of the post, but still on the fence about getting one after hearing about the seal problem with the lid and then the whole o2 problem when changing out the bottoms to the moving it to a bottle bucket to bottle. Please tell me what you guys think before this newb goes and spend 200 on everything. Thanks

I also haven't posted much, but I've been keeping up wit this thread. I like the FF - but go back and forth from it to carboys. I haven't had any real trouble with it, but bottling from it seems to be a bit more of a pain than doing it from a bottling bucket. I do like the ease of transfer without a siphon, and I haven't had any diacetyl issues myself, but I've heard others speak of it. One of the detractors for me, actually, is one feature that is good for the beer itself - the opaque-ness of the material. It makes it hard for me to see inside to see hat's going on, and I like doing that. It's good, ein that it keeps the light out, and tests of the beer prove all, but I just like seing the fermentation process at work.
All in all, I feel that it's a good piece of equipment, and I use it in the rotation with my carboys....but I still use the carboys.

 

[barneyfife]

Thanks! Ya i realized afterwards that tape on the union fitting threads was wrong, It's off now. Only problem I have is the thermowell leaks ever so little. Not enough to actually drip but still has a little water around the fitting.

Problem I have with brewing in December is the cold weather and use of a chiller. Even though we had record breaking weather the past week, that seems to be coming to an end. Have to find an alternative way to chill the wort.

What i did with my thermowell, which did leak ever so slightly, is to stretch a keg post o-ring over it. Seems to work, as it has not leaked for about 10 brews so far.

Barney

 

[CTS]

What i did with my thermowell, which did leak ever so slightly, is to stretch a keg post o-ring over it. Seems to work, as it has not leaked for about 10 brews so far.

Barney

Great idea! Will have to give it a try. Do you clean the thermowell after every brew? The fact that it leaks just a little bit tells me it's probably a good place for contamination to happen.

 

[barneyfife]

Great idea! Will have to give it a try. Do you clean the thermowell after every brew? The fact that it leaks just a little bit tells me it's probably a good place for contamination to happen.

By clean, if you mean pull the thermowell out every time, no i do not. It is too scary tightening it up every time into the plastic threads. Too scared I might strip em. But i do thoroughly wash after every batch with oxy clean in my home made carboy washer. Havent had an infection yet (knock on wood)

Barney

 

[g-star]

How are you guys controlling ferm temps with this thing? Don't think it will fit in my chest freezer.

Thanks.

 

[CTS]

By clean, if you mean pull the thermowell out every time, no i do not. It is too scary tightening it up every time into the plastic threads. Too scared I might strip em. But i do thoroughly wash after every batch with oxy clean in my home made carboy washer. Havent had an infection yet (knock on wood)

Barney

I was going to try your o-ring trick but figured I will try more Teflon tape and that seemed to work. So far no leaks.

As for temp control I built this yesterday and have a winter ale In it as we speak. Going to rotate frozen 2l every day or so and see how it works.

View attachment 1450492907340.jpg

View attachment 1450492918513.jpg

 

[jbb3]

Here's my temp control solution. It'll hold 2 FF. The chamber build link is in my signature below if interested.

 

[jbb3]

I was going to try your o-ring trick but figured I will try more Teflon tape and that seemed to work. So far no leaks.

As for temp control I built this yesterday and have a winter ale In it as we speak. Going to rotate frozen 2l every day or so and see how it works.

You have the right idea. Just need enough nylon tape and make sure to wrap the tape in a clockwise direction to make a seal.

I like your mini chamber build. You might want to paint your fiber board bottom to seal it from liquids as there will be spills. Did you leave enough headroom for an airlock?

 

[CTS]

You have the right idea. Just need enough nylon tape and make sure to wrap the tape in a clockwise direction to make a seal.

I like your mini chamber build. You might want to paint your fiber board bottom to seal it from liquids as there will be spills. Did you leave enough headroom for an airlock?

Ya probably will do that, it already had some liquid spilled on it. The plan is to be able to take it apart once the main fermentation is done so the yeast can clean up any off flavours.

I cut a small hole in the top cardboard for the airlock. I know this isn't the best for keeping the heat out but I like to see bubbles!

So far so good on the temp as its at 16.1 C or just under 61 F. Visual fermentation hasn't started yet though.

 

[jbb3]

Ya probably will do that, it already had some liquid spilled on it. The plan is to be able to take it apart once the main fermentation is done so the yeast can clean up any off flavours.

I cut a small hole in the top cardboard for the airlock. I know this isn't the best for keeping the heat out but I like to see bubbles!

So far so good on the temp as its at 16.1 C or just under 61 F. Visual fermentation hasn't started yet though.

You could always put an upside down glass over the airlock...

 

[CTS]

You could always put an upside down glass over the airlock...

Haha, yup totally could but seeing as the temp is at 15.1c (59f) when i got home from work i don't think the air getting in is making a difference. Still hasn't started to ferment, might take the ball and dump it back in the top tomorrow night if still nothing showing.