My thoughts on my switch from glass to better bottles

[ekjohns]

I have been brewing for about 4 years now and jumped in with a 6.5 gallon glass carboy. It was good quality and in great condition. I used that for several brews up till about 4 months ago. After having some mishaps I starting to look at areas where I could increase safety. One of the biggest concerns was my carboy. I live in an apartment and I have to clean everything it a little bathroom that requires lots of lifting, holding awkwardly and moving stuff around. So I bought a better bottle and held on to the glass carboy to see how things went. For a quick sum up, I sold the glass and bought another BB. Here is my personal list of Pros and Cons after the switch

6.5 gallon Glass
Pros:
Extra big to prevent blow offs
scratch resistant
Cons:
Heavy
Breakable

6 gallon BB
Pros:
light
hard to break
Cons:
can scratch
have to be careful with cleaning products

Overall, I love the switch. I read that oxyclean can cause cracking with a better bottle over time so I wash with soap and warm water. I stick a rag in the carboy and spin it around a bit and it cleans up nicely. It is so much easier to move around, lift and generally clean with. I do not want this to be a OMG SELL ALL GLASS, cause some people love them and the Pros out weigh to Cons. For me I now prefer BB. To each there own

 

[kh54s10]

I have to agree. I opted for Better Bottles from day one. I have never regretted it for an instant. I have been using oxyclean for 10 months and see nothing bad so far.

I like the Better Bottles more than my bucket. It is not much easier to clean and the lid is a PITA!

I also clean it by putting a washcloth inside and swirling it around.

I will go so far to say that I think the risk of serious injury far outweighs any pros that glass carboys enjoy.

 

[Spartan1979]

I just wish they'd make a 6.5 or 7 gallon BB.

 

[Stoner]

My question about a BB is, is a BB the same as the 5 gallon water jugs used by Culligan, Polar, etc?

 

[jetmac]

I read that oxyclean can cause cracking with a better bottle over time

One more reason to use PBW

 

[TwoGunz]

I broke my first carboy and am waiting for my 4 plastic ones to arrive so I don't kill myself. I love glass but decided it was too much of an unnecessary risk for me, particularly going up and down my basement stairs.

 

[TimpanogosSlim]

My question about a BB is, is a BB the same as the 5 gallon water jugs used by Culligan, Polar, etc?

Sort of.

It may be better quality PET, say with a more abrasion-resistant surface. There may be fewer casting defects that could provide hiding places for infection to lurk.

The BetterBottles people loudly proclaim that their products won't leech plasticizers into your beer because they use no plasticizers in their mix. They are mistaken - PET is vulnerable to electrochemical attack by yeast enzymes. It's also subject to UV degradation. They will leech some pthalates into your beer - guaranteed. But I, for one, am not particularly a'feared of a few ppm of pthalates.

One more reason to use PBW

Why would PBW be better?

Oxyclean is a mixture of sodium percarbonate and sodium carbonate.

When sodium percarbonate is dissolved into water, it breaks down into hydrogen peroxide and sodium carbonate.

Sodium carbonate is also known as "washing soda" or "soda ash" and is a strong water softener. This means that it makes the water more effective as a solvent.

Hydrogen peroxide is, well, it's a peroxide. It brings flaming death to micro-organisms. It's also a bleaching agent, where organic material is concerned.

PBW is a mixture of sodium carbonate, sodium percarbonate, and sodium metasilicate. The metasilicate is a caustic, which means it will break down organic material. Also means that using PBW on anything made of aluminum is a bad idea.

I don't see how oxyclean could be blamed for cracking PET, and i hardly see how PBW would be less likely to be blamed for cracking PET than oxyclean.

fwiw i had tentatively planned on using 6 gallon betterbottles and then amazon decided to offer 6 gallon glass carboys for $30/shipped. I have the luxury of a utility sink that i can hook up a garden hose to.

 

[Logger1]

I recently made the swith too but last night I hade a hell of a time keeping the #10 stopper in,it would go in tight,stay for a little bit then slowly work its way out,i ended up duct taping it down,now it seems fine,what a pita,any other solutions?

 

[OneHoppyGuy]

Food grade buckets come in 7 gallon. Can be had with a spigot for harvesting and leaving the cake behind. Have a handle. And by far the least expensive and easiest clean. I've used glass, better bottle, stainless conical and will stick with buckets.

 

[Johnnyhitch1]

I just wish they'd make a 6.5 or 7 gallon BB.

I own 3 6.5 gallon BB's

 

[phoenixs4r]

I'm over carboys in general. Our next fermentation vessel will be a bucket, with a blow off coming out the side near the tip so I can stack them and fit 4 into my chamber.

 

[Spartan1979]

I own 3 6.5 gallon BB's

Are you sure they're not 6 gallons? That's the biggest they make according to their website.

http://www.better-bottle.com/products_master.html

Even in their FAQ is states: "We are frequently asked, "Why not make larger PET carboys; they would sell like hotcakes?" The simple answer is that we would love to make them, if they really would sell like hotcakes. Making BetterBottle carboys involves highly sophisticated technology and production machinery and keeping the price competitive requires large production volumes and extremely efficient shipping."

 

[rjwhite41]

I own 3 6.5 gallon BB's

You must have made them yourself because they don't exist. 6 gallon is the biggest size and I believe that's to the tip top. A 6.5 gallon carboy actually has 7+ gallons of space in it. I use all glass but if I need a new fermenter my next one will be a bucket and I always tell new brewers to get buckets. Here's your proof with the better bottle sizes by the way.

Edit: Too slow. Sorry to double up on you.

 

[jetmac]

Why would PBW be better?

Oxyclean is a mixture of sodium percarbonate and sodium carbonate.

When sodium percarbonate is dissolved into water, it breaks down into hydrogen peroxide and sodium carbonate.

Sodium carbonate is also known as "washing soda" or "soda ash" and is a strong water softener. This means that it makes the water more effective as a solvent.

Hydrogen peroxide is, well, it's a peroxide. It brings flaming death to micro-organisms. It's also a bleaching agent, where organic material is concerned.

PBW is a mixture of sodium carbonate, sodium percarbonate, and sodium metasilicate. The metasilicate is a caustic, which means it will break down organic material. Also means that using PBW on anything made of aluminum is a bad idea.

I don't see how oxyclean could be blamed for cracking PET, and i hardly see how PBW would be less likely to be blamed for cracking PET than oxyclean.

Have you ever read of PBW causing cracking in Better Bottles?

ekjohns has "read that oxyclean can cause cracking with a better bottle over time".

 

[TimpanogosSlim]

Have you ever read of PBW causing cracking in Better Bottles?

ekjohns has "read that oxyclean can cause cracking with a better bottle over time".

No.

But PBW contains oxyclean.

 

[EllisTX]

The only con to my Better Bottle is the suck back when cold crashing.

 

[jetmac]

no.

But pbw contains oxyclean.

lol.!!

 

[TimpanogosSlim]

lol.!!

It does. Same ingredients as oxyclean, plus a caustic agent.

If anything the caustic would make it harder on the plastic.

 

[DeafSmith]

For the best info on cleaning Better Bottles, go to their website:

http://www.better-bottle.com/technical.html
click on wash/sanitize

Note that they list PBW and OxiClean as "similar" Percarbonate detergents. It seems that the main precautions to take when using either PBW or OxiClean are to not use too high a concentration, don't let it stay in the BB for long periods of time, and don't expose the BB to extremely high concentrations by pouring the powder into an empty BB before adding water.

 

[passedpawn]

I read that oxyclean can cause cracking with a better bottle over time so I wash with soap and warm water.

Not for me. I have 5 of them and I've used them for almost every batch I've ever made (and that's a lot). They've been cleaned with oxyclean EVERY TIME over the last 3+ years. They oxyclean always stays in them for about 3 days, sometimes a full week (which I don't recommend because it can precipitate something minerally in the bottom of the carboy).

Mine still look like new, except for the bottom which is stained on the outside. Oh, and I often use a carboy brush too. I also ran with scissors last week

 

[passedpawn]

For the best info on cleaning Better Bottles, go to their website:

http://www.better-bottle.com/technical.html
click on wash/sanitize

Note that they list PBW and OxiClean as "similar" Percarbonate detergents. It seems that the main precautions to take when using either PBW or OxiClean are to not use too high a concentration, don't let it stay in the BB for long periods of time, and don't expose the BB to extremely high concentrations by pouring the powder into an empty BB before adding water.

I use about half a scoop into the empty carboy, then hit it with the hose sprayer.

 

[phoenixs4r]

The cracking of better bottles is from the powder not dissolving, and sitting at the bottom of the plastic, which eats away at it. Also caused by tilting it without an aid to support the fermenter. That's why the recommend putting a tennis ball underneath it when cleaning / swirling I believe.

It can happen with PBW and oxiclean.

 

[eastoak]

Not for me. I have 5 of them and I've used them for almost every batch I've ever made (and that's a lot). They've been cleaned with oxyclean EVERY TIME over the last 3+ years. They oxyclean always stays in them for about 3 days, sometimes a full week (which I don't recommend because it can precipitate something minerally in the bottom of the carboy).

Mine still look like new, except for the bottom which is stained on the outside. Oh, and I often use a carboy brush too. I also ran with scissors last week

i do exactly the same thing (except running with scissors, you shouldn't do that you'll put an eye out.)