Is Better Bottle no more?

[NoahBeach]

Their website still exists, but they've all been "out of stock" or "not currently for sale" in all the major retailers for a long time (I've been checking for several months).

They all sell their own PET bottles that should work just the same, but I am specifically looking for the 3G better bottle because I like the shape (squared instead of rounded).

Only website I can find them is on ebay. Anyone know if they are still being produced?

 

[phyllobeddo]

I ordered a new 3 gallon BB from Morebeer a few weeks ago. It shows they are out of stock now. I might have gotten the last one.....

I love the three gallon BBs. I can fit two of them side by side in my wine fridge which I use for a fermentation chamber. I own four, but one is infected and I don't ferment in it anymore.

From what I understand, their manufacturing equipment was ruined in a flood. I don't think they have been producing anything for a while. Try calling them for a better update maybe. 1-800-435-4585

 

[augiedoggy]

I ordered a new 3 gallon BB from Morebeer a few weeks ago. It shows they are out of stock now. I might have gotten the last one.....

I love the three gallon BBs. I can fit two of them side by side in my wine fridge which I use for a fermentation chamber. I own four, but one is infected and I don't ferment in it anymore.

From what I understand, their manufacturing equipment was ruined in a flood. I don't think they have been producing anything for a while. Try calling them for a better update maybe. 1-800-435-4585

Ive been told if you set the infected fermenter out in the sun the uv radiation will kill the infection...

 

[phyllobeddo]

Ive been told if you set the infected fermenter out in the sun the uv radiation will kill the infection...

I'll definitely look into that! I tried bleaching it and that did not work. This is the first I've heard such. Thanks!

 

[augiedoggy]

I'll definitely look into that! I tried bleaching it and that did not work. This is the first I've heard such. Thanks!

I was told this during a taSTING event at my local home brew store, by a long time lambic brewer who told me he does this when he wants to brew a lager with his lambic jugs and feremters.

and uv steriling lamps are now used in many aquiarium filters to kill 99.9 percent of microbs that pass through them so...

 

[SeraW]

Man, that would suck! I love my 3g Better Bottle, but the LHBS that I bought mine from now carries a different brand for their 3g PET option, and it's round. I wanted a 2nd so I could start brewing more often. The other one they carry looks cheap and flimsy...

 

[ArcLight]

Ive been told if you set the infected fermenter out in the sun the uv radiation will kill the infection...

How long do you have to leave the bottle outside, exposed to direct sunlight?

 

[augiedoggy]

How long do you have to leave the bottle outside, exposed to direct sunlight?

that I dont know... I would imagine it wouldnt take very long ... maybe google it? the guy that told me about it had been brewing lambics for over 20 year and I had no reason to doubt him... he did say he cleaned and used starsan or bleach on the stuff prior to leaving out in the sun though... sunlight alone doesnt kill everything but it appears to work on the bacteria used in lambics.

 

[Oginme]

Regarding UV disinfection: you need UV-C light of wavelengths around 250 nm to 260 nm, very little of these wavelengths are inherent in the natural sunlight which gets through our atmosphere. Most of this is absorbed by the Ozone layer. Additionally, you will need a minimum of 2000 uW*s/cm^2 of intensity to be effective in killing about 90% of bacteria.

 

[ArcLight]

Regarding UV disinfection: you need UV-C light of wavelengths around 250 nm to 260 nm, very little of these wavelengths are inherent in the natural sunlight which gets through our atmosphere. Most of this is absorbed by the Ozone layer. Additionally, you will need a minimum of 2000 uW*s/cm^2 of intensity to be effective in killing about 90% of bacteria.

If you were to take a guess - very roughly how many hours of direct sunlight in the summer (40.7 degrees latitude) would that be?

 

[augiedoggy]

interesting... I did google it and found a lot of counterdicting info on the subject... strange though that the guy who does it swears by it... he seemed to be well regarded in the local homebrewing community so I had no reason to doubt him.

http://www.thenakedscientists.com/forum/?topic=42169.0

 

[wardens355]

If you were to take a guess - very roughly how many hours of direct sunlight in the summer (40.7 degrees latitude) would that be?

For wastewater reuse (inactivation of virtually all pathogenic bacteria), a rule of thumb UV dose is 100 mJ/cm2, or 100,000 uW-s/cm2 (for filtered treated wastewater). So to be conservative, I'll use that. Sunlight that hits the earth's surface is somewhere around 3% UV-C. Sunlight intensity ranges from roughly 800-1,000 uW/cm2 at that latitude, so let's go with 800 uW/cm2. UV-C may be around 24 uW/cm2 (3% of 800). You would need approximately 70 minutes to reach that UV dose. Now whether it will actually inactivate everything... not sure.

Disclaimer: this may be a bunch of phooey. Also, plastics are damaged through long-term exposure to UV light.

 

[Oginme]

The total UV-C content in sunlight is around 3%. Pretty much all of this is absorbed by the Ozone layer. The total of UV in sunlight that hits the earth's surface is around 0.5%. This is made up of approximately 95% UV-A, and 5% UV-B. The amount of UV-C is of negligible content.

What does potentially get through the Ozone would easily be absorbed by most plastics which have a pretty high absorption rate up to around 300 nm.

The references from the naked scientists (great podcasts, BTW), do not factor in the heat effect on the bacteria from being exposed for periods of time in the sunlight. This heat effect is most likely what limits the method of sunlight exposure treatment of water to small quantities at a time.