Who here is happy with glass carboys?

[talkingmonkey]

This wasn't started as an anti-glass thread...

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/glass-carboys-rock-until-you-drop-one-118540/

But, after my experience and reading the horror stories of all the ER trips, I'm out!

I loved glass and would use nothing else, until this. I've got a 2 year old that loves to play exactly where I dropped my carboy. I am SO scared I missed something when cleaning up.
To each his(her) own, but for me glass isn't worth it.

 

[Tim27]

I know I will keep with glass for now.I will continue to be careful with the bottles and examine the bottles after and before use just to make sure things look alright.Now to find some used milk crates. Thanks again for everyones input.

 

[EvilTOJ]

I lurve me my glass carboys. I don't see why all the hate about then though. I figure they're just like anything else that's potentially harmful, like power tools and such. I don't hear of anyone saying "I accidentally drilled into my thigh, man F this woodworking **** I'm never using power drills again!" No, just chalk it up as a learning experience and be more careful. Or like my old boss at the cabinet factory that lost a finger to a table saw, he still used the saws all the time.

I mean, your carboys are ruined, PM'ing you for my address so I can dispose of them....

 

[Grinder12000]

there's probably *at least* twenty or thirty "regulars" around here that have reported breaking a carboy

so you are talking way less then 1%.

 

[MikeG]

I have a glass carboy and do believe that through no fault of my own it could drop and break so I'm very careful with it. I do have to hike it full down a flight of stairs to my basement and I move it again to either bottle or keg.

Because of the nature of accidents I need to prepare by at least buying a BrewHauler. I bought mine a while back and my understanding it's the last ones from Mexico and was 'affordable' to me. The LHBS said from now on they would most likely be coming from Italy and the price would go up. I also have a better bottle and if the glass was more expensive I'd go with BB.

 

[Trubadour]

Glass carboys aren't going to just explode on you for no reason. I've broken one, and it was b/c I kicked it over with my knee (luckily empty).

I have 3 remaining glass carboys and still use them, and they're great. Sure, they're heavy and will break if dropped, but just don't drop them. I'm not going to toss them out. I do have a BB also, and it's good too. Personal preference. But I'd say to go with whatever you can get the best deal on.

 

[Edcculus]

I love my glass too. I have glass and plastic. I have been buying more buckets recently just because I am turning my beer around quickly (~3-4 weeks in the fermenter), and they are cheaper than glass.

 

[bentonre]

Well, I have about 3 years of homebrewing under my belt (beer and wine) and I have just upped my glass carboy collection from 4 to 9 (assorted 3, 5 and 6.5 gal sizes and thick and thin [acid] carboys). I have never had a problem, but do try to treat them with respect and as I see more anes on the forum, adapt my practices accordingly. I now only move them in milk crates and try to avoid workign with them in bare feet and watch sudden temperature changes when washing. I use ale pails for primarys sometimes and don't have any better bottles.

I would recommend that if you are extremely afraid of glass, get better bottles. If you have no fear of glass..... get better bottles. If you have a healthy respect for glass, use the glass carboys.....

my $0.02
Bob

 

[the_bird]

so you are talking way less then 1%.

"Regulars." I've read probably three times that of total incidents, "regulars" and people I don't know as well. I still use glass, but only for secondaries where the beer's not really going to be moved around at all.

 

[conpewter]

I have 3 glass primarys, 2 glass secondaries. I've never had a broken one or any close calls. I used to have them in milk crates but I use brewhaulers now (or my homemade design that is similar).

I love that they come clean so easily. I am very careful with them and I realize there is a risk, but I try to only ferment in glass and stainless. Those are the pieces of equipment I'll be able to give to my kids someday, a 20 year old bucket or better bottle won't be in workable shape.

 

[Schlenkerla]

I believe I am the original poster that recommended milk crates to the board.

I place an empty carboy in a crate before filling, etc. When I want/need to empty it I place it on the counter and use my autosyphon until it's light enough to lift and pour sideways...but it never leaves the crate until it's empty.

I have two 5gal glass, one 5 gal BB plus four 3gal PETS. I have two 7.9gal buckets that work as primaries. The carboys are for AW or a 2ndary.

I use HB_99's idea of milkcrates for the glass. I rarely handle a glass carboy without the crate. Its usually when cleaning. Whenever I handle the carboy I make sure to dry them and my hands. I also try to avoid using one-step with any glass. It leaves them too slippery. I'm also sober when I handle the glass as well.

I stopped getting really buzzed during brewing. Its too easy for screw-ups or accidents.

 

[Bobby_M]

When you're getting into the hobby for the first time, you have the opportunity to make first purchase choices. It really comes down to cost vs. utility. Given that Mexico stopped production, glass is the most expensive option aside from stainless. It can last forever if you don't drop it. You probably won't scratch it when cleaning. Buckets are on the other side of the spectrum being extremely cheap and most prone to scratching when cleaning if you're not careful. At that price though, you could replace it 3 times for the same cost of a glass carboy. Better bottles are right in the middle in both cost and likelihood of scratching. Unlike buckets, you can see through them and they are a lot lighter than glass.

Don't take the danger of dropping a full carboy onto your basement floor lightly. Frankly, if you carry one with your hands on the glass itself, you're a fool. A brewhauler or crate is mandatory. The argument that we do dangerous things all the time is still invalid. If you're a woodworker, a power saw is a calculated risk due to the less productive alternative. You have to ask yourself if the benefit of glass is worth the risk given the only slight advantage in utility.

I have a few glass carboys that I got for next to nothing and I only use them for ciders and meads since I can do so without moving them or carrying up and down the stairs. I have seen so many close calls that scare the hell out of me. I was walking behind someone carrying a full 6 gallon up concrete stairs when he tripped and slammed the glass into the step about 4" away from his face. The glass chipped but it didn't fail explosively like they sometimes do.

 

[Cape Brewing]

I use 3 sankes and 6 glass carboys for fermenting and I carry 'em all full all of the time.

If I end up with stitches some day, I'll end up with stitches.

 

[rsmith179]

Just wanted to add in my experience with both glass and PET bottles. I have both and actually prefer my glass carboys. Why? I just think that they're easier to move around and seem more sturdy than the PET bottles. When I move my Better Bottle, I have trouble with the bottle being pushed in slightly causing a suction in the airlock. With glass bottles, I've never found that to be an issue.

Yes, you do need to be more careful with the glass carboys, but that's just common sense. Although I have not experienced this, I have also heard that the PET bottles are somewhat weak on the bottom. I occasionally try to rouse up my yeast by swirling the batch in the carboy. This can create a crack on the PET bottle's bottom in you rock it from side to side with a full batch in there. Don't really need to worry about that with the glass carboys.

 

[Boondoggie]

I've got a new 6.5gallon glass primary with it's first batch in it right now...

But my two 5gallon glass secondaries are over 25 years old, Got them from my father's old winemaking stash.

 

[yeasty]

But my two 5gallon glass secondaries are over 25 years old, Got them from my father's old winemaking stash.

the old ones are a lot thicker.

 

[HellenicHomeBrewer]

4 glass carboys and counting. I can't see the advantage of BB until I'm 80 and can't lift them. Even then I'll get my grandson to do it!

 

[Cape Brewing]

I think the bottom line (which I've seen on a bunch of other plastic vs glass threads) is that if you're using glass, you have to be careful since... shockingly... glass CAN break and it CAN cut you. Glass is more expensive but some people don't mind the extra money because it is "more sturdy", it is less prone to infection over long periods of time due to scratching and there is zero oxidation possibility while plastic MAY contribute some over long periods of time.

It is a simply matter of personal preference.

I don't buy all of the doom and gloom about glass exploding and impaling you with massive shards that will slice you in two. YES, I've personally seen glass carboy cuts... a guy in my club ended up with something like 15 stitches when he dropped one... but the way I look at it... How many chefs have sliced a finger pretty good on a nice sharp cooking knife?? probably a bazillion.... does that mean chefs shouldn't use sharp knives any more??

IF you like plastic.. use plastic... if you like glass... use glass and jsut be carefull with it. Like I posted above... I have three sankes and six glass carboys. I carry 'em full all of the time, using nothing more than the orange carboy handles and I carry them up and down stairs. Am I an idiot?? Probably. But i've been doing it for a few years now and I've never had a problem and I'm not going to stop because one might explode severing my head clean from my body.

 

[conpewter]

Back when I brewed outside on the back porch I changed how I was doing things to avoid carrying a carboy down the stairs. I would have done the same for buckets or better bottles though, less carrying is better for the back (I only got one, gotta live with it forever). I would gravity drain down into the basement, this helped the CFC performance as well. Now that I brew in the basement I put it on a rolling cart to move the full carboy to the fermentation freezer. I do have to lift it in to the freezer still, but I have brewhaulers on them for that.

 

[Munsoned]

I have:

1 glass carboy (6.5 gal)
3 better bottles (6 gal)
1 plastic bucket (7 gal)

I use all of them but for different applications. The glass carboy is used for longer term fermenting/secondarying or with high gravity brews. The better bottles are my "normal use" fermenters. The bucket gets used for ciders only (very little clean up required which reduces the risk of scratching, keeps the apple smell/taste to one fermenter).

In sum, I've "hedged" my bets, cost/benefits, what have you...

 

[Arkador]

<- still using my first glass carboy 30something batches later.

 

[BADS197]

I have 3 and all have served me well.

I'm gentle with them as with all glass products and no chips/cracks etc..

Glass I'd imagine would clean up better than plastic in the long term as plastic tends to stain/haze over. I could be wrong but glass works for me.

 

[springer]

I have one that came with my first kit. I still use it but very rarely do I move it except to clean it

 

[MNBugeater]

I use both Better Bottles and Glass Carboys, although i will not buy another glass carboy. If I buy a small fermentor again it will be better bottles, but my next purchase will be stainless steel 10+ gallon fermentors.

The one argument I hear alot of that I just don't get is that "Glass are easier to clean". That one escapes me. If by easier they mean they can scrub them, then to me that is Harder!

Here is my cleaning technique for Better Bottles
1. Fill Partly with water, slosh, dump out yeast/trub
2. Put in 3 scoops of Oxyclean
3. Fill to overflow with water
4. Walk Away, Drink Beer
5. Return in 24 hours, Empty, Rinse, put away

Oh..and its the same for glass, stainless, etc.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

I use all glass or buckets. Don't even own a better bottle.

 

[osagedr]

I've got around ten glass carboys and so far no problems *knock on wood*. I use a Mityvac to degas my wine; apparently I could not do this if I used better bottles. To be honest, if I was just starting out and only making beer, I probably would go with better bottles--to me having something lighter, cheaper and safer makes a lot of sense. Having said that, I won't be getting rid of my glass carboys anytime soon.

 

[ifishsum]

A friend of mine gave me two older glass carboys when she found out I started brewing (she used to brew). I love using them for secondaries, but I don't ever have to move them far or up/down stairs. They are always in a milk crate when full, I would never try moving them otherwise (except when they're empty). As someone who used to be accident prone (2+ trips a year to the ER for stitches) I've slowed down a lot and pay a lot more attention to potentially risky situations - not because I'm afraid of stitches, but ERs have turned into community health clinics and I don't like waiting 5 hours to be seen. :cross:

 

[Roman Brewer]

So you have some extra work to do to clean a carboy, . You go thru all the trouble of brewing the beer, the hours of mashing, sparging, boiling, sanitizing, bottling, waiting....

Does the extra work really make it that intolerable? I think not. The benefits of sturdy, durable glass outweigh the extra attention they need to keep them clean, IMO . Scrub 'em during the mash!! No added time to your brew day if you can multi-task a bit.

I've not dropped a carboy yet, but I don't handle them with wet hands either. Dry hands, and some muscle should be enough to keep you from dropping a carboy.

Over the long haul, when properly used and maintained, glass will pay you back in kind.

Cheers.

Roman

 

[Bobby_M]

but the way I look at it... How many chefs have sliced a finger pretty good on a nice sharp cooking knife?? probably a bazillion.... does that mean chefs shouldn't use sharp knives any more??

Again, chefs use dangerous sharp knives because there is no viable safer alternative. I agree completely with the personal preference thing.

 

[brrman]

I have 3 glass primarys, 2 glass secondaries...

I love that they come clean so easily. I am very careful with them and I realize there is a risk, but I try to only ferment in glass and stainless.

Ditto on all this. Love my glass - just gotta be careful is all.