Glass vs. "Better Bottle"(plastic) Carboys???

[AleHole]

That is the reason I switched to BB's. I do not want to die from a carboy explosion.

 

[Nexus555]

"[*]Can be scratched.

[*]Will show signs of wear and tear.

[*]Ultra long term oxygen permeablilty questioned by some.

[*]Tendency to flex if you pick up a full one, possibly allowing airlock water into your wort."


Just those mentioned above will keep me from buying a BB. Scratches could harbor bacteria, and I wouldn't doubt if some airlock water got in, that's an additional risk. Not to mention it's not fully known if it's oxygen permeable.

In my opinion, it seems better bottles are bought for convenience of weight and fear of glass shattering. Also, don't think that these BB won't break. Of course, they will not shatter, but if you were to drop 5+ gallons of wort on, lets say concrete, I'm sure it could bust. They are a bit safer, but I think I will stick to glass.

 

[EdWort]

[*]Can be scratched. Yeah, if you stick something in them. I wash mine out immediatly after use

[*]Will show signs of wear and tear. After how many years? I'll just buy more.
[*]Ultra long term oxygen permeablilty questioned by some. My stuff does not stay in them longer than 3 months and I've had no adverse effect.

[*]Tendency to flex if you pick up a full one, possibly allowing airlock water into your wort." At least I can pick it up without rupturing a disc.

When I got back into brewing, I sold all my glass carboys and picked up Better Bottles. My back is much happier now and they are a breeze to clean, sanitize, and drain.

Storing them when empty is a breeze too, but I prefer to keep mine full.

 

[Nexus555]

Like I said, it seems most people buy them for convenience of weight and no glass shattering. Obviously it's a very debatable subject, and either one will work fine. I'm just saying that I would perfer carboys over plastic, though others may disagree. This is normal

If I had back problems or pulled muscles, I'm sure I'd definitely go with BB. But for right now, I'm with glass. Thanks!!

 

[PenPen]

Here's a related question. BB's are made of PET plastic, which is the plastic that's supposed to keep oxygen out. PET plastic is exclusively labeled a "1" in terms of recyclable plastic.

Say we get 5 g PET bottles delivered to us for use at work at the water cooler. Could these be used as beer carboys? The bottle manufacture, Valco, claims the same oxygen resistance in their marketing materials. Do you think it would work?

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

Just a FYI...I poured very hot water in my 6G BB tonight and it melted down like the f*&^ing witch on Wizard of OZ. Had to go back to the ol'bucket. SUCKED.

 

[FlyGuy]

Just a FYI...I poured very hot water in my 6G BB tonight and it melted down like the f*&^ing witch on Wizard of OZ. Had to go back to the ol'bucket. SUCKED.

Dude -- that's a hell of a lot better than what would have happened it you had poured it into a glass carboy!

 

[EdWort]

Just a FYI...I poured very hot water in my 6G BB tonight and it melted down like the f*&^ing witch on Wizard of OZ. Had to go back to the ol'bucket. SUCKED.

Why would you put water hot enough to melt a BB in it? What temp is your water heater set at? Or did you heat water on the stove and pour it in?

Try that with a glass carboy. The results will be much more exciting.

The Better Bottles have been tested with water at 140 degrees without issue. It only takes 6 seconds of contact with water that temp to cause a f*&^ing serious burn dude.

 

[Wizza]

Here's a related question. BB's are made of PET plastic, which is the plastic that's supposed to keep oxygen out. PET plastic is exclusively labeled a "1" in terms of recyclable plastic.

Say we get 5 g PET bottles delivered to us for use at work at the water cooler. Could these be used as beer carboys? The bottle manufacture, Valco, claims the same oxygen resistance in their marketing materials. Do you think it would work?

I was thinking the same thing Walmart is selling them water bottles for $8 5gal
would make a good secondary?? in my case a 3rd secondary hmmm...

BB's for me just cant risk it with kids in the house

 

[EdWort]

I was thinking the same thing Walmart is selling them water bottles for $8 5gal
would make a good secondary?? in my case a 3rd secondary hmmm...

I would not risk it for saving 10 bucks. Here's what the BB site talks about when comparing BB to Plastic Water Carboys. It makes logical sense when you look at those blue bottles with handles molded into them.

Clarity and Color — Better-Bottle carboys are clear and colorless. It is not possible to view fermentation when carboys are molded from translucent or opaque plastics. Colored carboys contain dyes and their color distorts the color of wine and beer.

Cleaning — The surfaces of Better-Bottle carboys and fittings are so hydrophobic and non-porous that they wash easily and rinse down quickly. Opaque or translucent carboys are likely to be made of plastics that have porous, wetable surfaces, and they are much more difficult to wash and rinse clean.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

FYI - The water I dumped into the BB that I melted was 156F. I thought it would be alright. I knew you couldn't do it with glass, but I thought I was safe with a BB.

Just make sure that the wort or water is cool before putting it in the BB. Don't make the same mistake as I did.

 

[illnastyimpreza]

good thread.....

I wonder if the "plastic" bottle has a possiblity of leaving a plasticy taste in your beer???

 

[Richard]

Does anyone have a preference for the ported BBs? I got mine ported because I liked using the spigots on my Mr Beer containers.

 

[bradsul]

good thread.....

I wonder if the "plastic" bottle has a possiblity of leaving a plasticy taste in your beer???

I just cracked my first better bottle batch (one of my house beers) and it doesn't taste any different.

 

[Denny's Evil Concoctions]

keep in mind that most water cooler water botlles are polycarbonate not pet. I personally use them when I need to and have had NO problems with oxidation.

To each their own.

*silently wondering how many more times the "water bottles as secondaries" question will arise this year*

 

[todd_k]

My vote is for the Better Bottle.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=22483

 

[PenPen]

keep in mind that most water cooler water botlles are polycarbonate not pet. I personally use them when I need to and have had NO problems with oxidation.

To each their own.

*silently wondering how many more times the "water bottles as secondaries" question will arise this year*

Right. And the polys are marked with a the "recyclable" 7 at the bottom. The ones that are PET are marked with 1s. So you've used the poly or the pet water bottles with no oxy issues? I just wonder how much of it is marketing by better bottle or if the formulation is vastly different from what is used for the water bottles.

 

[Denny's Evil Concoctions]

on a side note, poly carbonate can withstand high temperatures. Though, as with any plastic, higher temps may result in plastic chemicals leaching from the plastic.

Ploycarbonate has a melting point of about 310 deg F though..

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polycarbonate

One point of agreement among those studying polycarbonate water and food storage containers may be that using sodium hypochlorite bleach and other alkali cleaners to clean polycarbonate is not recommended, as they catalyze the release of the Bisphenol-A. The tendency of polycarbonate to release bisphenol A was discovered after a lab tech used strong cleaners on polycarbonate lab containers. Endocrine disruption later observed on lab rats was traced to exposure from the cleaned containers.

Though Nalgene bottles are used by many health freaks and are made of the same stuff.