I’ve decided to change fermentor methods and use my carboy as a huge paperweight.
What are you using outside of this? Looking into various plastic alternatives (buckets, Speidel, etc) and would like a spigot and BPA free. Thanks!
I use buckets. I know there are people who love the better bottles, but other than being unbreakable, they have all the other drawbacks that the carboy design has.
And they have a built in handle!
I do love my better bottles, but they are way too expensive if you want a spigot and racking arm.
+1.
Which buckets?
Maybe take a look at the SS Brew Bucket.
I like my better bottles, but also like buckets.
Maybe if I was starting over I’d do buckets, but the spigots kind of creep me out. Too many places for crud to hide.
I like my Better Bottles. Just like a carboy, only better.
Buckets don’t need to have spigots. I never trusted them either but for bottling. Over the years I have had a dozen or so spigot free buckets.
Mine don’t have spigots, or I wouldn’t like them either. I just use plain 8 gallon wine fermenter buckets. Plenty o’ headspace :
Most of the items ive had with stock plastic spigots have leaking issues. I no longer use spigots, just a racking cane and some tubing and knowing not to splash:)
I have 1 glass carboy and 5 better bottle plastic carboys. I choose the plastic. Never used buckets so I can’t say anything about them. I just like to see my beer without having to take the lid off. I use a ported carboy cap when kegging so only CO2 touches the beer. I don’t bottle. That pretty much sums me up I guess.
Right. I get that. I only mentioned it because the op is looking for something with a spigot.
You can also get Better Bottles with spigots. Mine do not have any.
Ahh… I stand corrected. I know plenty of people that love their better bottle spigots, but I am too scared.
Irrational? maybe.
I did write my initial response as though all buckets have spigots…
I’m not sure if. Have any without. Maybe one. But I really only use buckets for sanitizing.
I use the 6.5 gallon ale pales and some from True brew, they’re great, I have one with a spigot for the occasional bottled batch, the rest none.
I also have a 5 and 6 gallon better bottle but rarely use them, buckets have handles and are much easier to clean!
any food grade plastic bucket should work. If you look around at deli’s and the like they will often have a surfeit of plastic food buckets in varying sizes they would be glad to let you have for free. some of them might smell of pickles which would be a problem but with a good soak in PBW/oxyclean or Bleach you should be able to get them clean.
I am lazy and buy ‘brew buckets’ or ‘ale pails’ with predrilled lids.
I prefer buckets because they are the easiest to clean. I go with no spigot due to concerns with sanitation (not that I actually even had an infection that I could trace to bucket spigots, just because I have seen gunk in there I could not get out) and because it’s easier to stack them empty without.
Not being able to see the beer actually is a plus for me because it encourages me to just forget about the beer once it’s in the fermenter. I don’t need to be messing around with it while it’s working and the fact that I would have to pull the lid to peek encourages me to leave well enough alone.
one minor point, if you have the choice I would get the lids that are drilled for a big stopper rather than the little gromet. I find the gromet seizes to the airlock and it is difficult to get them apart. also with the larger airlock hole you can just pop the stopper and stick a thief or siphon tube right in there without removing the lid.
If you can get one. They look sweet. I ferment in stainless now, 4 gallon batches in 5 gallon ball lock kegs. I don’t like plastic and glass is dangerous. I handle my carboys suuuuuper carefully and never really had any close calls, but I’d just rather ferment in something that is going to last me a life time without worry.
[quote=“morticaixavier”]Not being able to see the beer actually is a plus for me because it encourages me to just forget about the beer once it’s in the fermenter. I don’t need to be messing around with it while it’s working and the fact that I would have to pull the lid to peek encourages me to leave well enough alone.
[/quote]
This is true for me, as well.
[quote=“morticaixavier”]one minor point, if you have the choice I would get the lids that are drilled for a big stopper rather than the little gromet. I find the gromet seizes to the airlock and it is difficult to get them apart. also with the larger airlock hole you can just pop the stopper and stick a thief or siphon tube right in there without removing the lid.
[/quote]
That’s a good point. You could even modify the stopper so you could start the siphon with co2 like the orange caps for carboys.
i use buckets. various sizes. some spigots some not. i have added spigots because i am not scared of my sanitation process. as mentioned, check delis. we have an olive oil/basalmic vinegar store that gets products in 3 gallon buckets that he ends up throwing. i have a half dozen of them.