SS Brewtech Brew Bucket--First Use

[devils4ever]

I got my new SS Brewtech Brew Bucket on Friday and immediately put it to use on Saturday with a Saison. I thought I'd share my impressions so far.

I ordered this directly from SS Brewtech on Sunday and it arrived in 5 days.

First off, the quality of this fermenter is very high. The inside and outside are polished with no rough areas nor scratches. Good QC. The lid and gasket seem to create a tight seal. I cleaned it with TSP/90 followed by Star San made with a ratio of 1 oz/gal per instructions to passivate the SS.

Next, I used my 1L graduated cylinder to check the volume markings. I found they were off by about 1 quart (1/4 gal). No big deal since I'll just mentally correct for it.

The valve seem to have a tiny leak at first, but it was quickly corrected by tightening the inside nut by hand a little more. I read it can be overtightened easily, so I was afraid to go too tight at first.

So, I transferred my cooled wort to the fermenter at the end of the boil. I did have a slight snag at first doing the transfer. I usually use a plastic funnel with a fine screen mesh to aerate the wort and to prevent the hops from getting into the fermenter. Obviously, I couldn't use the funnel in the normal way by just placing it on top of the narrow neck of a carboy like in the past. So, I had to use some twine to support one end of it in middle of the opening. I think I'll need a better method on the next batch. How does everyone else do this?

I attached the 90 degree SS elbow from SS Brewtech for use as a blow off. I attached a hose into a pot of Star San. Easy to do. I'll switch to the airlock after a few days. The handles are awesome and made moving this a lot easier than bear hugging a carboy! The opening for the airlock has a nice rounded opening so to not cut into a stopper.

I used an infrared thermometer to check the temperature of the Brew Bucket. I put a small piece of masking tape on the Brew Bucket as recommended by the maker of the thermometer. It seemed dead on.

Overall, I've very pleased with this purchase and plan on adding another in the near future. The only downside is not being able to see the wort through the side as with a plastic or glass carboy. But, the ease in cleaning and sanitizing this will more than make up for it.

 

[brew703]

I got my new SS Brewtech Brew Bucket on Friday and immediately put it to use on Saturday with a Saison. I thought I'd share my impressions so far.

I ordered this directly from SS Brewtech on Sunday and it arrived in 5 days.

First off, the quality of this fermenter is very high. The inside and outside are polished with no rough areas nor scratches. Good QC. The lid and gasket seem to create a tight seal. I cleaned it with TSP/90 followed by Star San made with a ratio of 1 oz/gal per instructions to passivate the SS.

Next, I used my 1L graduated cylinder to check the volume markings. I found they were off by about 1 quart (1/4 gal). No big deal since I'll just mentally correct for it.

The valve seem to have a tiny leak at first, but it was quickly corrected by tightening the inside nut by hand a little more. I read it can be overtightened easily, so I was afraid to go too tight at first.

So, I transferred my cooled wort to the fermenter at the end of the boil. I did have a slight snag at first doing the transfer. I usually use a plastic funnel with a fine screen mesh to aerate the wort and to prevent the hops from getting into the fermenter. Obviously, I couldn't use the funnel in the normal way by just placing it on top of the narrow neck of a carboy like in the past. So, I had to use some twine to support one end of it in middle of the opening. I think I'll need a better method on the next batch. How does everyone else do this?

I attached the 90 degree SS elbow from SS Brewtech for use as a blow off. I attached a hose into a pot of Star San. Easy to do. I'll switch to the airlock after a few days. The handles are awesome and made moving this a lot easier than bear hugging a carboy! The opening for the airlock has a nice rounded opening so to not cut into a stopper.

I used an infrared thermometer to check the temperature of the Brew Bucket. I put a small piece of masking tape on the Brew Bucket as recommended by the maker of the thermometer. It seemed dead on.

Overall, I've very pleased with this purchase and plan on adding another in the near future. The only downside is not being able to see the wort through the side as with a plastic or glass carboy. But, the ease in cleaning and sanitizing this will more than make up for it.

Good writeup. My Brew Bucket will arrive tomorrow. Hoping to get a brew in Friday or Saturday so I can put the bucket to use.
You had no issues with using TSP/90? I have some but was thinking about using Oxy instead. I'm also going to use citric acid in place of Star San to passivate.

How was transferring the wort to keg or bottling bucket? I'm going to use 1-2 PSI to transfer to keg and see how that works.

 

[sillbeer]

I definitely would use TSP. I could not get the machine lube off of mine with just Oxyclean. I've had two for a couple years and love them. I have several O rings and lid seals as back ups. The rubber feet wear out quickly.

 

[devils4ever]

I used TSP/90 which is a substitute for regular TSP which is acceptable according to SS Brewtech. The fermenter didn't seem to need a lot of cleaning. I didn't see any visible lube or anything. I have homemade PBW which is 70% Oxyclean and 30% TSP/90, but I didn't use it.

Star San you have to mix at 5X the normal ratio. SS Brewtech recommends 1 oz/1 gal. So, I added 7 oz and filled the fermenter to the top. I'm not sure if citric acid will do the same thing. I'm not a chemist, but maybe it would. Why not just use Star San? You don't have any?

I haven't tried transferring to the keg yet since this is my first batch and it is still very actively bubbling away. I'll know in a few weeks, but it looks a lot better than using a racking cane and starting a siphon. Also, I can take a few drop from the bottom valve for my refractometer to measure gravity without opening it up. I may try hooking up a CO2 tank to pressure transfer to my keg. I have the 90 degree elbow and hose for blow off and I'm thinking I can use that.

 

[devils4ever]

Here's a pic of my setup. The tape is for using my infrared thermometer.

 

[brew703]

I just don't want to use 7 oz of starsan. Stuff is too expensive in my book and I really don't have a place to store it. Just to use one time for passivization and discard is a waste.
I emailed SSBT about using Citric acid so waiting on a reply. I don't see why it can't be used.

 

[ProblemChild]

I use a BAIB bag for my brew bucket. hang it inside the fermenter with a few binder clips, pour in the chilled wort, remove bag. works great.

 

[brew703]

Received my Brew Bucket today. Gotta say the quality is much better than the Anvil, which you would expect due to the difference in price.

No scratches or scuffs on the inside or outside, all parts received, came in a heavy duty box. Pretty impressed so far. Going to clean the parts tonight and tomorrow will soak the bucket in TSP/90 then passivate with Citric Acid. May try to get a brew in on Friday or Saturday and use the bucket for the first time.

When the time comes for a new kettle I'll definitely look at the SSBT kettles. Eventually would like to go electric but that's probably a year or two down the road.

 

[devils4ever]

I use a BAIB bag for my brew bucket. hang it inside the fermenter with a few binder clips, pour in the chilled wort, remove bag. works great.

Interesting idea. I never thought of that. Is the mesh in the bag fine enough to filter out pellet hops and aerate the wort? Which bag are you using?

 

[ProblemChild]

Interesting idea. I never thought of that. Is the mesh in the bag fine enough to filter out pellet hops and aerate the wort? Which bag are you using?

Brand is "The Brew Bag" size is appropriate for 50-60 qt kettles (slightly larger than what is needed) mesh is very fine. I would like it if the mesh was a little coarser in fact. Wort can come out slow if you used a lot of hops.

 

[Murphys_Law]

What are you guys doing for temp control on these? I’d like to move on one but not sure if it will fit in my Magic Chef 4.4cf fridge.

 

[devils4ever]

What are you guys doing for temp control on these? I’d like to move on one but not sure if it will fit in my Magic Chef 4.4cf fridge.

As can be seen in post #5, I'm using an upright refrigerator for temp control. The paint can in the back is used to add heat with a 60W bulb if needed.

 

[petemoss]

What are you guys doing for temp control on these? I’d like to move on one but not sure if it will fit in my Magic Chef 4.4cf fridge.

I already had a BrewJacket before I purchased the Brew Bucket. I cut a hole in the lid for the BrewJacket rod. The bucket itself fits into the jacket with some effort. The problem isn't really the size just that the feet get all hung up in the fabric when you insert it and it takes some pulling this way and that to get it seated fully into the jacket. Anyway, once inserted it works really well, at least for ale temps.

I certainly wouldn't recommend buying a BrewJacket for this if you don't already have one, but since I did already have one it works pretty well.

 

[sillbeer]

Wine coolers.

 

[WHISTON]

Nice. I used the same wine cooler for fermentation chamber for a while, but converted it to a kegerator and ferment in a full size upright now .The temp display is nice, it's a pretty accurate reading, and will read well below the fridges set point if you use an external controller.

 

[devils4ever]

So, I was able to finish my evaluation of the SS Brewtech Brew Bucket since I kegged my Saison today.

I must say having the valve is really convenient. I was able to start and stop the flow so I could fill my hydrometer and then restart it to fill my CO2 gas purged keg. Also, no more dealing with racking canes and starting a syphon. It is worth it just for this reason alone. There was a very small amount of beer left that the pickup tube couldn't reach, but it was insignificant probably 1/2 - 3/4 cup.

I left the pickup tube down during the entire fermenting process including the transfer to the keg. I see no reason to move it.

Cleanup was a breeze since access is wide open. No more dealing with brushes reaching through narrow necks. I added hot PBW and easily removed all beer dregs. I didn't remove the valve for cleaning this time, but will probably do so every 3-4 batches.

Handles on the sides also made moving the fermenter less stressful than glass or plastic carboys.

The only negative to the Brew Bucket is the cost and the fact the beer is not visible. I do miss seeing the yeast doing its job.

 

[sillbeer]

I remove my ball valve every time. May not be necessary but I would rather not ruin a batch of beer. I really wish there was a threaded opening for the valve to screw into. I'm not a big fan of the O ring and nut plus the pick-up tube with O rings.

 

[brew703]

I just finished my first fermentation in the Brew Bucket. No complaints and so far satisfied. Tomorrow will be batch 2. I didn't take out the valve but I may do it this time to see if there is any gunk behind the nut. I did give it a good 2 hour soak in Oxy so I am confident there is no nasties around the nut but just for piece of mind I may remove it.

Clean up was easy as mentioned and no issues with clogs during transfer. My dip tube was not quite vertical- I did rotate it down a bit to finish. Gravity transfer took maybe 10 minutes. Didn't time it but it was about as long as when I used a carboy.

Cost is a bit high but the quality exceeds the Anvil, which I had and returned. My plan is to eventually get the cooling coils so I can eliminate using my freezer to ferment.

 

[devils4ever]

I guess I could remove the valve for cleaning, but I did run a faucet brush through the valve to clean anything out. It was a tight fit, but it worked.

Maybe, I'll remove the valve before the next batch just to be safe. I'm was thinking there can't be anything to clean there that can't be reached with the valve in place.

 

[brew703]

I removed my valve and there was no gunk or buildup behind the nut. That's the only thing I was concerned about.

 

[tofuguy]

"I left the pickup tube down during the entire fermenting process including the transfer to the keg. I see no reason to move it."

I find it depends on the brew and amount of trub or yeast. My last brew, a dunkelweizen, had little trub but the yeast reached the downward facing dip tube. So I had to rotate to avoid pulling yeast into the keg. This was after a three day cold crash.

 

[NewJersey]

I'm likely gonna grab one of these with the thermowell. I wish they used and 1/2" ball valve and that everything was welded and TC. Then it would be literally the PERFECT fermentor.

 

[duffy5018]

I left the pickup tube down during the entire fermenting process including the transfer to the keg. I see no reason to move it.
.
.
.
The only negative to the Brew Bucket is the cost and the fact the beer is not visible. I do miss seeing the yeast doing its job.

After your first dry hopped beer, you'll understand why you start with the dip tube down, and rotate it up to begin transferring to the keg.

For forced transfer, you can do it. The brew bucket takes about 5psi before it leaks around the gasket in the lid. So, if you have a good regulator, you can force transfer easily. I do now with all of my brews. Below is my (ghetto) set up.

 

[Antonio Martinez]

I got my new SS Brewtech Brew Bucket on Friday and immediately put it to use on Saturday with a Saison. I thought I'd share my impressions so far.

I ordered this directly from SS Brewtech on Sunday and it arrived in 5 days.

First off, the quality of this fermenter is very high. The inside and outside are polished with no rough areas nor scratches. Good QC. The lid and gasket seem to create a tight seal. I cleaned it with TSP/90 followed by Star San made with a ratio of 1 oz/gal per instructions to passivate the SS.

Next, I used my 1L graduated cylinder to check the volume markings. I found they were off by about 1 quart (1/4 gal). No big deal since I'll just mentally correct for it.

The valve seem to have a tiny leak at first, but it was quickly corrected by tightening the inside nut by hand a little more. I read it can be overtightened easily, so I was afraid to go too tight at first.

So, I transferred my cooled wort to the fermenter at the end of the boil. I did have a slight snag at first doing the transfer. I usually use a plastic funnel with a fine screen mesh to aerate the wort and to prevent the hops from getting into the fermenter. Obviously, I couldn't use the funnel in the normal way by just placing it on top of the narrow neck of a carboy like in the past. So, I had to use some twine to support one end of it in middle of the opening. I think I'll need a better method on the next batch. How does everyone else do this?

I attached the 90 degree SS elbow from SS Brewtech for use as a blow off. I attached a hose into a pot of Star San. Easy to do. I'll switch to the airlock after a few days. The handles are awesome and made moving this a lot easier than bear hugging a carboy! The opening for the airlock has a nice rounded opening so to not cut into a stopper.

I used an infrared thermometer to check the temperature of the Brew Bucket. I put a small piece of masking tape on the Brew Bucket as recommended by the maker of the thermometer. It seemed dead on.

Overall, I've very pleased with this purchase and plan on adding another in the near future. The only downside is not being able to see the wort through the side as with a plastic or glass carboy. But, the ease in cleaning and sanitizing this will more than make up for it.

I know this post is a bit old but I'm thinking of trading up to one of these. Also while reading your post I thought maybe a hop spider would be able to hold the funnel in place if you haven't already come up with a solution.

 

[devils4ever]

I made a plywood funnel holder. It's just a simple round piece of plywood with a hole in the center to hold the funnel. I added small blocks of wood on the bottom to keep the thing centered over the fermenter. It works fine, but thanks for your idea.

 

[hornet303]

So, I transferred my cooled wort to the fermenter at the end of the boil. I did have a slight snag at first doing the transfer. I usually use a plastic funnel with a fine screen mesh to aerate the wort and to prevent the hops from getting into the fermenter. Obviously, I couldn't use the funnel in the normal way by just placing it on top of the narrow neck of a carboy like in the past. So, I had to use some twine to support one end of it in middle of the opening. I think I'll need a better method on the next batch. How does everyone else do this?

If I may make a suggestion, take a look at the 3" TC domed lid that you can buy for your fermenter. Its top notch quality (just like the rest of your kit), and provides a pathway to a ton of TC accessories. I have a TC blowoff, a TC Gas in w/ PRV, TC CIP etc... It will easily solve your funnel + strainer issue (I use the same process will pumping from BK to FV). It does adds some cost, but you can do it over time.

 

[dnye]

Quick question for those of you that have the bucket. I just got mine and was unsure about o-ring for the valve. Do you put it on the inside or outside of the bucket. So valve | O Ring | Bucketwall | Nut or Valve | Bucket wall | O Ring | Nut? Or does anyone do 2 orings inside and out?

 

[brewbama]

Quick question for those of you that have the bucket. I just got mine and was unsure about o-ring for the valve. Do you put it on the inside or outside of the bucket. So valve | O Ring | Bucketwall | Nut or Valve | Bucket wall | O Ring | Nut? Or does anyone do 2 orings inside and out?

https://ssbrewtech.zendesk.com/hc/e...-O-ring-is-not-sealing-what-am-I-doing-wrong-

... we actually recommend that Brew Bucket users only use ONE O-ring between the valve body and the exterior sidewall of the vessel. So there is no need to use an O-ring on the interior between the lock nut and the inner sidewall.

The key thing to remember it so ONLY rotate your racking valve clockwise.

 

[dnye]

Wow. That is very helpful. Thanks a lot!

 

[ba-brewer]

I do use one on the inside and outside and it takes a bit of patients to get the pressure just right to not have a leak. I will try just one on the outside next time. Thanks for the link @brewbama

Might be a personal problem but I used to break the little O-rings on the racking arm all of the time, I found if I use only one they don't seem to break.