Worth the investment..?

[blueseamonkey]

Wow.. thanks a lot for the lead. Looks if they do custom fabrication too.. so who knows.

Its REALLY damn close to my idea.. Just needs an increase in volume. and a hole in the top.

BTW it "says" 5 gallons.. but is it 5 gall on to the top or to the "fill line". Also often I find these things listed as 5 gallon and then tend to be 20L. Which is a quarter gallon more, give head space for the cap, and it should be just enough for a 5 gallon batch. That said, it is best for the fermenter to be 30L or so to allow for a batch that goes large, or a big beer with a lot of krausen.

Not a problem on the lead. They probably hold 5 US gallons with a little bit of head space - if they are the same as the rectangular opaque HDPE ones shown at the front of the first pic (I use one of those as a bottling bucket) I recently had quite a bit of overflow racking a 22-23 L batch over from the primary so my guess would be 20L to the very top. There is a bit of headspace in the cap but not a lot.

Having given these a close examination last time I went fermenter shopping I would suggest that to sell them as mid-range fermenters at the USD $35-40 price point you would probably want to get them made with the extra 2 gallons of volume; a better gasket on the cap; a hole for the airlock and a better spigot. Possibly slightly thicker plastic too. If you're seriously interested I can check the inside surfaces as well next time to see how smooth and easy to clean they are - as you can see from the pics they are ridged for extra strength - using thicker plastic might allow you to request a smooth sided vessel. To sell them as a budget fermenter/bottling bucket ($5-10) you'd probably find the extra volume and the hole in the top would be enough.

They do fit quite well in a standard mid-sized fridge, they are very similar shape to a carboy but slightly shorter.

If you need a contact person here in Manila, or want some close up pics, further comments etc, let me know fairly soon as I'm moving out of the city in a couple of months time.

 

[sikkingj]

This is my fermentor:

Made of polycarbonite plastic.. tough as nails and light as a feather. Completely see thru for all your yeast voyeuristic needs.

They also clean REAL easy.. no brushes needed, just a cotton rag and some iodine.

I have been considering reproducing something similar that would fit perfectly in a kitchen sink. It would have handles built in amoungst other additional changes and features.

Does anyone think there would be a market against carboys, better bottles, buckets and the like..? A a retail of say $59.99 (Would include the spout, vent, top and bottle)

Getting some investors together, and contemplating a kickstart program.

All I can say is that I started my brewing hobby with one, and have looked for a second for a while. They haven't been easy to find and those that I have talked to that have had one wouldn't give it up, just as I wouldn't give up mine.

So.. Whats everyone think.. worth the pursuit..? If not at $59.99 what do you think a good price point would be to have them flying off the shelves ?

I like the idea, but I'm always stressed for space, is there any way you could get these primaries to stack? It a question as I'm not sure how the blow- tubes would work.

-John

 

[donkeybigbird]

I really like your concept. I consider myself to be in the target demo for something like this. I am 7 brews into my new hobby, and have enough disposable income to where the price point doesn't worry me. I started with a Midwest kit, have added two more buckets, bought all the toys from amazon, HBF.com, my LHBS; less than $1000 invested so far. I am heading towards AG. I have not yet bought any BB or glass carboys, and not willing to invest in the caverns (I have to acquire kegging equip first). I have been able to brew what I want so far with what I have, but am on the cusp of upgrading (just) my fermenters.

I would pull out my wallet and order right now based on a single selling point: the capability to lager in my existing refrigerator. I could buy a second fridge but don't want to yet. The drain valve isn't very compelling to me: I have auto siphon, racking cane and tubing already, and I am going to have to sanitize SOMETHING regardless of whether I rack or drain. I wouldn't need the option and would prefer not to pay for it.

From a product usability standpoint I see your concept as sound. From the target consumer point of view (versus the know-it-all schmucks, holding on to their pee-pees and saying "look what I can do") it sounds like you are onto something viable. The best marketing in the world is worthless without good design (in most cases).

I suspect that the bulk of the responses you have received are not representative of the body of (silent) opinion.

 

[KVANTAN]

I think the worst case scenario is that you cover your costs, learn a whole lot and can repeat the process for another idea with an existing customer base, and tweak on this one in the future. You will also learn a lot about the merciless world of business that they dont teach you in school and probably have some fun. So go for it.

 

[CDGoin]

I like the idea, but I'm always stressed for space, is there any way you could get these primaries to stack? It a question as I'm not sure how the blow- tubes would work.

-John

The vents are the problems in getting anything like this to stack.
Vent would have to come out the side. Something I don't think any standard vent could do easily. Although I do have a idea on how..

Also stacking with these wouldn't be good due to weight ( 5 gal x 8 lbs = 40lbs of liquid and add 5 lbs for trub).

I was trying to stack two into my lager fridge.. and the metal rack in the fridge couldn't take the weight on its own.

A full fermenter is heavier that you think.

That said buckets are stackable and built for it.. (Since they are truly just repurposed paint buckets after all). I think if you drilled a hole in the side and installed this:

with a 1/2"x2" nipple and an O-ring around a vent you could stack buckets. and keep the vent out of the way.

 

[blueseamonkey]

Stackable while empty - easy. Stackable while full of fermenting beer - much more tricky and probably beyond the capabilities of a transparent PET container.

 

[jCOSbrew]

I would compare your features and price point to the Speidel plastic fermenters.
Your typical beginner brewer or winemaker is not going to use this premium product, they will use a bucket or regular carboy. All the major online homebrew shops offer basic equipment kit (bucket) w/ a beer recipe for about $100.