I picked up my first 6 gallon BetterBottle today to use as a secondary. I’ve always used glass carboys and I’m wondering about the best way to carry it when full or more accurately lower it into the fermentation freezer. Do folks prefer to use the carboy straps or the orange neck handles? I’m not sure I trust the neck handle with the full weight of the beer in a plastic carboy.
I usually just lift it in. But I’ve seen pictures of people using milk crates to tote them around.
I use milk crates to carry mine around. It also prevents that sucking back action when I have an airlock attached.
The one thing that holds me back from getting a Better Bottle is that there isn’t a carboy cap for siphoning. I’ve found I like that method best.
The orange carboy caps fit the better bottles. I use them.
Their is a blue handle made for lifting better bottles, it works but the handle leans against the airlock and that is kinda obnoxious
I usually just pick them up and support the bottom to prevent sucking sani back through the airlock.
I lift them all the time with the orange handle, but I also don’t just carry them around by the neck.
Milk crates are great, because as noted they prevent the bottle from distorting and sucking in the sanitizer (or you can just pull off the airlock).
I imagine you could add straps to a milk crate to assist in lowering the bottle into the freezer.
FWIW, milk crates are also great for glass carboys and help prevent them from knocking into each other.
+1 I use one to transfer under pressure from the better bottle in the chest freezer right into the keg. Once I have the better bottle in the chest freezer I almost never have to lift a full one back out again.
The same ones that fit the 5 gallon carboys? Man, that’s awesome news!
And a 1/2" ID vinyl tube fits over the big port of the orange carboy caps perfectly to make a blow off tube.
I use the BrewHauler (think that’s what they’re called) straps for mine.
Excellent, thank’s for the helpful comments everyone. I’ll plan on breaking out the brewhauler to keep the back happy and prevent StarSan backflow and I’m glad to know the orange siphon caps fit too. I really like being able to move the beer with CO2.
Yes, these comments have all been very helpful. I may be purchasing a Better Bottle in the near future.
If you’re new to BBs, do not clean them with a brush as you would a glass carboy.
You will scratch them up.
I soak mine to clean them and if/when they need to be scrubbed I wrap a rag around a bottle brush and clean them with the rag.
One of the nice things about better bottles, is that they are OK to pick up by the neck when full; unlike glass carboys.
Mine usually come clean with a soak in PBW. If they don’t, then I put a washcloth in there with the last 1/2c of PBW or so, cap it, and swirl the rag all around the inside.
Sparkling clean, and easy.
I use the carboy straps with my better bottles. They work like a champ!
Same here, except that, instead of a washcloth, it’s an old sock