Wide Mouth Glass Fermentor

[Trox]

Second time this week I've heard of the marbles. Guess it makes that much of a difference huh?

The nice thing with marbles is that they are glass and so really smooth, which makes them easy to keep clean and sanitized. Then you just add enough marbles in to raise the beers level up high enough to remove most of the head space.

I've heard of people using stainless steal bolts, nuts, and washers to achieve the same thing, but I would be a bit leery of all the nooks and crannies in those that the nasties could hide in.

 

[ultravista]

I used my 6.5G Big Mouth this past weekend. It is just as heavy as a regular 6.5G carboy but it does feel brittle. Stirring the wort to mix something in, the metal spoon clinked and clanked against the glass in a way that told me to be gentle. The glass is thinner without a doubt.

Roondy888 - your Amazon does not work.

Who makes these?

 

[dobe12]

A suggestion on dealing with head space in secondary, I grab my CO2 tank (I keep a spare for exactly this reason and to precarb kegs warm), sanitize the gas line, and purge the secondary with CO2. Rack and then push some more CO2 to clear the head space. With a big, wide opening like these wide mouth fermentors have, you're sure to still have some oxygen in there, but purging with CO2 should help a lot.

Just a suggestion. I do this all the time with my carboys and better bottles if using a secondary, which is rare.

 

[Roondy888]

I used my 6.5G Big Mouth this past weekend. It is just as heavy as a regular 6.5G carboy but it does feel brittle. Stirring the wort to mix something in, the metal spoon clinked and clanked against the glass in a way that told me to be gentle. The glass is thinner without a doubt.

Roondy888 - your Amazon does not work.

Who makes these?

That's weird they must have taken them down since yesterday, I can't find them anywhere on Amazon now. Yesterday they were being sold on there by two different places.

 

[sladek]

Love it. If it was plastic, I'd switch.

they have plastic ones...

 

[rico567]

The nice thing with marbles is that they are glass and so really smooth, which makes them easy to keep clean and sanitized. Then you just add enough marbles in to raise the beers level up high enough to remove most of the head space.

I've heard of people using stainless steal bolts, nuts, and washers to achieve the same thing, but I would be a bit leery of all the nooks and crannies in those that the nasties could hide in.

I have fermented in the US Plastics 7 gal. buckets for 5 years (I use three of them). I bought all three buckets for $33 delivered, including a great lid that has a real neoprene 'O'-ring for seal. In that time, I have had no trouble of any kind, and that's with over 3 inches of headspace.
Once fermentation starts, a blanket of CO2 forms over the beer, effectively providing a better seal against infection or oxidation than was present when the lid / stopper was put on. Since CO2 is heavier than the surrounding air, it can even remain in place if the fermenter is opened an resealed.

 

[Trox]

I have fermented in the US Plastics 7 gal. buckets for 5 years (I use three of them). I bought all three buckets for $33 delivered, including a great lid that has a real neoprene 'O'-ring for seal. In that time, I have had no trouble of any kind, and that's with over 3 inches of headspace.
Once fermentation starts, a blanket of CO2 forms over the beer, effectively providing a better seal against infection or oxidation than was present when the lid / stopper was put on. Since CO2 is heavier than the surrounding air, it can even remain in place if the fermenter is opened an resealed.

I agree that the CO2 is great and will protect from oxidation. My post you quoted was in response to someone that was thinking of getting a 6.5 gal carboy, and was hoping to be able to use it as a secondary also. Once you transfer to a secondary you lose that CO2 blanket so you will want to reduce your head space as much as possible to reduce the risk of oxidation, hence using the sanatized marbles.

 

[unionrdr]

I've gotten e-mails from NB about the plastic wide mouth bubblers. Still looks like a big pickle jar to me. My "new" Midwest 7.9G shorty bucket is sealing perfectly,so I'll stick with it & my Cooper's Microbrew FV's for now...

 

[jack_a_roe]

is the top big enough to top crop some yeast outta them?

 

[datcv]

I suspect that the Big Mouth Bubbler is a modified version of these chinese made jars

http://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/5-liter-infusion-container-carboy_1518198547.html

They are sold in Korea and Japan as fruit wine jars, or umeshu jars, or infusion jars. Typically they are used to infuse ume (young japanese apricots) with rice wine liquor:

http://mitem.gmarket.co.kr/ItemDetail/Index?goodscode=359897427

If anyone finds some of these in the US, I woud love to buy some. I would definitely like to do my ferments in a visible glass container over a plastic bucket.

 

[ultravista]

datcv - that looks just like my glass Big Mouth Bubbler.

 

[datcv]

I forgot to say-- I'd love to buy the smaller sizes. 5 or 8 liter would be perfect to do a 1 gallon batch primary in a nice clear jar (I mostly do wine). Big mouth bubbler only comes in 5 or 6.5 gallon sizes.

 

[Trox]

I forgot to say-- I'd love to buy the smaller sizes. 5 or 8 liter would be perfect to do a 1 gallon batch primary in a nice clear jar (I mostly do wine). Big mouth bubbler only comes in 5 or 6.5 gallon sizes.

Somewhere on here someone was talking about them being sold in a Korean market in California, unfortunately I can't quite recall which post it was in (possible it was posted on one of the other forums I visit I I had just thought they would make great fermentors).


Edit: Found the post https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/big-mouth-bubbler-review-w-photos-454300/index5.html#post6100276

 

[datcv]

That is awesome! I wish I could find them online, as sadly I am on the east coast. They would be perfect for making kimchi in as well (I sacrificed my 2 gallon plastic primary to kimchi... Never getting garlic smell or red chili color out of that...).

 

[bren2426]

Damn I didn't know they had glass BMB. I thought they were all pet plastic. That changes everything. I have been wanting to get a BMB but don't care to use plastic now I guess I don't.


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[CBelli]

I'm a fan of the glass bubbler, like I mentioned in an earlier post. My only issue is I love to do CO2 transfers from carboy to keg using those orange rubber caps with 2 flexible tubes.... I run 5 psi into the carboy through one tube and a racking cane in the other into my cornie it works wonderfully.

I have finally come up with a way to transfer from my glass BMB into a cornie and I thought I would share...

I took a #4 drilled stopper and drilled an additional tiny hole to fit a football pump needle. I heated a length of bev line and attached it to the threaded end of the needle. The other end I attach to my CO2 hose with a short piece of 1/2in. silicone tube.

The racking cane is in the center hole and attached to a liquid disconnect on my empty cornie with a 3 foot length of bev line.

I designed & 3D printed a threaded cap to hold the stopper to the lid of the BMB.... I attach the stopper and racking cane to the lid and screw on the cap.... attach the gas line using the football needle...
Then the only thing that needs to be done is to start the gas flow.... Voila!! Oxygen free transfers with a glass BMB!!!

 

[Homercidal]

Looks like that will do the trick! I should really start pushing my beers that way.

I have the plastic BMB with a single port, but I am thinking about buying a dual port lid for it. That would make it easy to adapt.

 

[CBelli]

Looks like that will do the trick! I should really start pushing my beers that way.

I have the plastic BMB with a single port, but I am thinking about buying a dual port lid for it. That would make it easy to adapt.

I have been pushing my beers with CO2 for the past 4 years and I will never go back.... the key is only 5-6 PSI and make sure there is a "weak link" somewhere in the gas connection so if there is a pressure buildup, the weak link will fail before the glass carboy does!

 

[eastoak]

I'm a fan of the glass bubbler, like I mentioned in an earlier post. My only issue is I love to do CO2 transfers from carboy to keg using those orange rubber caps with 2 flexible tubes.... I run 5 psi into the carboy through one tube and a racking cane in the other into my cornie it works wonderfully.

I have finally come up with a way to transfer from my glass BMB into a cornie and I thought I would share...

I took a #4 drilled stopper and drilled an additional tiny hole to fit a football pump needle. I heated a length of bev line and attached it to the threaded end of the needle. The other end I attach to my CO2 hose with a short piece of 1/2in. silicone tube.

The racking cane is in the center hole and attached to a liquid disconnect on my empty cornie with a 3 foot length of bev line.

I designed & 3D printed a threaded cap to hold the stopper to the lid of the BMB.... I attach the stopper and racking cane to the lid and screw on the cap.... attach the gas line using the football needle...
Then the only thing that needs to be done is to start the gas flow.... Voila!! Oxygen free transfers with a glass BMB!!!

you win. :rockin:

 

[sgraham602]

I liked my bubbler fermentor, but the glass is very thin! I dropped mine from about 3 inches onto a carpet while moving the other day and it shattered.

 

[Newsman]

I liked my bubbler fermentor, but the glass is very thin! I dropped mine from about 3 inches onto a carpet while moving the other day and it shattered.

They make a plastic version of this now.

 

[progmac]

I liked my bubbler fermentor, but the glass is very thin! I dropped mine from about 3 inches onto a carpet while moving the other day and it shattered.

that sucks! i think that something that is often lost in the glass versus plastic discussions is that quality of glass makes a BIG difference. i would be all over the glass BMB if there weren't so many reports of the quality being so low. i have very little interest the plastic BMB because for my purposes it is the same as a plastic bucket.

 

[hmmmbeer]

I just moved and didn't want to move glass and take the weight so I sold it all in a garage sale with the notion to buy the PET BMB's but I keep seeing reviews on the order sites that people are having issues with seals... anyone on here have this issue? I mean, afterall, the idea is to seal it off and I dont want to risk it if its a known issues... Fixed? never an issue?

 

[LeftyRighty]

yeah, the plastic ones don't seal, airlocks useless. But I don't worry about it - can see the fermentation going on and know it's producing enough CO2 that I don't need to worry about O2. Just brew and don't sweat it.

 

[Newsman]

I just moved and didn't want to move glass and take the weight so I sold it all in a garage sale with the notion to buy the PET BMB's but I keep seeing reviews on the order sites that people are having issues with seals... anyone on here have this issue? I mean, afterall, the idea is to seal it off and I dont want to risk it if its a known issues... Fixed? never an issue?

You can always MAKE a gasket from one of the silicon mats you buy at Walmart. Yeah, it might be nice if it came with one, but you know, it's not a big deal for most folks who are using it as a primary fermenter.