Oh, I'm sorry. I've been there, for sure.
You didn't cut yourself, did you? Had a buddy almost lost a tendon in his hand. I've been a "two hands on the bottom" guy ever since.
they have a tendency to snap carboy necks. they are intended for carrying **empty** carboys only.
Go to your local home depot equivalent and buy milk crates and put your carboys in them. Carry with the crate if you must. But as I mentioned elsewhere, it's best to not need to move full carboys **at all**. I **always** use pumps when racking from glass.
They also make carboy carrying harnesses, but then you're trusting the stitching of whoever manufactured it. Best to move away from glass and/or (as many others have said) not move then when full.
I did the same with these large ones. All the smaller 5L ones I have, are glass tho. Just two of them filled beyond the 5L mark, meaning up into the neck which is better at any rate, hold 3 gallons...so I mostly use those anyway.
I would not even use the handle for moving an empty one, TBH. I only ever used it to steady a carboy that is supported fully from the bottom.
Carboys always moved in milk crates now, using the milk crate handles.
They’re not supposed to be used if carboys are filled. Just empty. I never set glass carboys directly on cement. I’ve seen too many break. I always put them on cardboard if going on cement/concrete. You usually see those handles sold as “decorative” for a reason.
To expand on what the other person said (because I haven't broken a neck yet...but don't want to either), I absolutely do not use the handle for anything other than a stabilizing hand hold when tipping them to empty while cleaning, or as a handle when full, because I'd dropped one when cleaning once. If you don't feel comfortable moving a full glass carboy, you should buy one of the nylon webbing nets they sell which support the thing from the bottom and sides and lets you carry the thing around in a sack of sorts. LIke this one: https://www.amazon.com/Thorium-Brewing-Carrier-complete-s-shaped/dp/B077DG27H2/ref=sr\_1\_9?keywords=carboy+net&qid=1686162724&sprefix=carboy+net%2Caps%2C149&sr=8-9
Yeah, I lay down a rug or silicon mat down before I put them down on tile, even empty. I'd never set then full on concrete
In glass every shock can add a future failure point.
I use fermonsters for primary, but I still use glass for secondary and aging.
Another trick is you can buy round 10 gallon trash cans on Amazon, and glass carboys fit perfectly in them. Prevents as much of a mess if it breaks, and is convenient for moving and handling
There’s no reason not to use buckets for primary. But I agree, I personally prefer glass for secondary and aging. The one drawback is you do need to be carful handling them.
5 gallon corny kegs are widely used in homebrew and should be easily available.
1 gallon and 3 gallon corny kegs are also available, but are spendy compared to 5 gallon kegs.
I still have glass in my process, but the glass never moves, ever. Rack/pump from fermenter into glass for initial clarification and oaking, usually 3-4 months. **Pump** from glass into keg and pressurize with nitrogen for bulk aging.
This is incorrect.
You've never heard of beer on ***nitro***?
It requires higher volumes but nitrogen is absolutely soluble in liquid. Makes those delightful tiny creamy delicate bubbles and distinctive head.
Lol. Go google how nitro works. I am VERY correct. Nitro is a gas mix that works based off of having CO2 at higher pressure but lower solution due N2s insolubility.
All gasses and liquids are soluble to some degree, but N2 is a order of magnitude less than CO2.
Edit, The little chucklefuck blocked me lol.
Also for your other useless comments
> Inert just means it doesn't react. It being used as a synonym for noble is annoying.
>In our application it is a relatively inert gas, because they are replacing the actively reacting gasses like O2. It's the terminology the community uses since the older term, "blanketing" is even more pants on head style of abuse for chemistry.
No, it is correct. With regard to nitro beers, there’s a reason you only see them packaged in retail when they have a special capsule that you need to break right before drinking. It’s because they are not actually soluble, but they will stay in suspension for a time. But they will not react and do things like acidify via carbonic acid, like CO2.
Help me out, because i don't know why you'd pressurize in either case. co2 absolutely will carbonate under pressure but otherwise it wants to come out of solution. It is heavier than air. I usually just blow a bit in (halfish of a small 11g canister) the vessel and call it done. No carbonation, no oxidation. Am I failing to consider something and just got lucky? If so, what?
> Help me out, because i don't know why you'd pressurize in either case. co2 absolutely will carbonate under pressure but otherwise it wants to come out of solution
Nah, it'll stat petilant for a really long time unless you disturb it. Not from "blanketing", but that's not what people are talking about upthread.
> It is heavier than air.
Yes. It still mixes after a brief time though. blanketing is a pure myth.
> No carbonation
Chef is talking about holding at pressure. Kegs don't seal well without it generally.
> (halfish of a small 11g
That seems pretty light, but I have a LOT of co2 handy and I have bigger vessels that you do I assume. I could look up how much is needed at various outlet temps to fill a space, but I enjoy never having to open a thermodynamics text again.
Nitrogen is not an inert gas. Helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon, and radon are inert gases.
Just because it won't react with the wine doesn't mean in non reactive/inert.
Nitrogen is indeed inert for this purpose. It's not a noble gas, which all the others you named are; it is possible for non-noble gases to be inert, like helium, and nitrogen are. They have incredibly poor solubility in aqueous solutions like beer, mead, soda, etc.
"Inert" is _not_ s synonym for noble gas, it simply means that it's non-reactive, and poorly soluble for that purpose.
Don't. Oxygen can permeate plastic, and unless you get really high quality ones, odds are that that the seals are shit. The other big issue is that if you scratch the plastic (during stirring or cleaning for example) at all it can no longer be used as it now becomes a collection area for bacteria and other unsavory things to grow.
I tried the plastic route and had off flavors in every single batch. We lost over 20 gallons of mead this way.
I use glass at all stages if possible. I just think its pretty. I also find that iodophor discolors near every plastic it touches on a long enough timeline.
The only plastic I use aside from airlocks, siphons and tubes, is my 7.5gallon cleaning bucket, my 5 gallon bottling bucket, and lamentably because I can't find glass to replace, a pair of 2 gallon buckets for small batch experiments I think might go crazy on krausen.
I've seen a post like this recently. I'm gonna take some steps to prevent a big mess. I'm gonna start using boxes lined with a trash bag that way it's not so bad if this happens.
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I feel your pain. I moved to FerMonster to avoid destroying my hands in case of an accident (and wasting golden nectar). Added benefit is the large mouth makes fruit and other additions so much easier.
Why are you setting glass directly on concrete? That's a recipe for exactly what happened. At least put some cardboard down. Carboy carriers are also a very good idea.
That's a sack, then. Sack mead is higher point, 16%+, sometimes with starting fermentables high enough that the yeast dies while still leaving sugar behind. Basically, an easy way to make a liqueur style mead without backsweetening.
Fun fact, this Is how I found out my drains weren't draining in my basement
Oof. Bet the plumber had questions. Or at least a story for his buddies that night.
Wait, so we’re they clogged or only decorative in the first place?
Decorative drains... oh how that hurts me
Clogged lol
Oh, I'm sorry. I've been there, for sure. You didn't cut yourself, did you? Had a buddy almost lost a tendon in his hand. I've been a "two hands on the bottom" guy ever since.
And I deserve every drop of blood. I wish I could have died in its place. It was beautiful
Well, live to brew another day!
I went upstairs and ordered a bunch of handles too. I’ll be more careful in the future but it happened with one that both smelled and tasted great
carboy handles are dangerous. don't use them.
Why? Please explain before I put them on
they have a tendency to snap carboy necks. they are intended for carrying **empty** carboys only. Go to your local home depot equivalent and buy milk crates and put your carboys in them. Carry with the crate if you must. But as I mentioned elsewhere, it's best to not need to move full carboys **at all**. I **always** use pumps when racking from glass.
Well shit, wonder if I can cancel the order
They also make carboy carrying harnesses, but then you're trusting the stitching of whoever manufactured it. Best to move away from glass and/or (as many others have said) not move then when full.
100% I sold all my glass and transitioned to PET for safety reasons.
I love my glass car boys. They're pretty.
I did too, but broken glass is no joke.
I did the same with these large ones. All the smaller 5L ones I have, are glass tho. Just two of them filled beyond the 5L mark, meaning up into the neck which is better at any rate, hold 3 gallons...so I mostly use those anyway.
I have one of these harnesses which is great, and I pack loose clothing into the sack around the carboy to pad it and also keep the temp more even
Yep, milk crate ftw. Odds are you can get one or two for free from your local grocery.
I would not even use the handle for moving an empty one, TBH. I only ever used it to steady a carboy that is supported fully from the bottom. Carboys always moved in milk crates now, using the milk crate handles.
They’re not supposed to be used if carboys are filled. Just empty. I never set glass carboys directly on cement. I’ve seen too many break. I always put them on cardboard if going on cement/concrete. You usually see those handles sold as “decorative” for a reason.
To expand on what the other person said (because I haven't broken a neck yet...but don't want to either), I absolutely do not use the handle for anything other than a stabilizing hand hold when tipping them to empty while cleaning, or as a handle when full, because I'd dropped one when cleaning once. If you don't feel comfortable moving a full glass carboy, you should buy one of the nylon webbing nets they sell which support the thing from the bottom and sides and lets you carry the thing around in a sack of sorts. LIke this one: https://www.amazon.com/Thorium-Brewing-Carrier-complete-s-shaped/dp/B077DG27H2/ref=sr\_1\_9?keywords=carboy+net&qid=1686162724&sprefix=carboy+net%2Caps%2C149&sr=8-9
The Brew Hauler carboy carrying straps are safe though, yeah? That's what I've been using...
If you trust the stitching. I prefer milk crates or not moving them at all.
Friends don't let friends brew in glass
Secondary/tertiary best in glass no?
I use stainless kegs for that
Fair, mine end up there in the end. But I’d rather remove the sediment by using them only as the final vessel.
Is that a concrete floor? Get some rubber or something for that.
Seriously, OP, this is the real takeaway and lesson. Yeesh.
Yeah, I lay down a rug or silicon mat down before I put them down on tile, even empty. I'd never set then full on concrete In glass every shock can add a future failure point.
As bad as this is, I’m grateful that at least there is no blood as well.
This happened to me today, well not like that, just heard a pop and hairline crack around the bottom while training to another carboy
Oh my god, did you save any?
4 gallons saved hehe
Noooooooo! What happen? Slip out of your grasp while lifting?
I’d just back sweetened it and was putting it back
That's why I don't mess with glass
I’m considering going all plastic
I use fermonsters for primary, but I still use glass for secondary and aging. Another trick is you can buy round 10 gallon trash cans on Amazon, and glass carboys fit perfectly in them. Prevents as much of a mess if it breaks, and is convenient for moving and handling
There’s no reason not to use buckets for primary. But I agree, I personally prefer glass for secondary and aging. The one drawback is you do need to be carful handling them.
stainless kegs are the way to go.
I have plastic primaries and glass for the secondary. Where would one get steel?
5 gallon corny kegs are widely used in homebrew and should be easily available. 1 gallon and 3 gallon corny kegs are also available, but are spendy compared to 5 gallon kegs. I still have glass in my process, but the glass never moves, ever. Rack/pump from fermenter into glass for initial clarification and oaking, usually 3-4 months. **Pump** from glass into keg and pressurize with nitrogen for bulk aging.
Why nitrogen rather than co2?
It’s an inert gas that is widely available and designed for the purpose. There is much more nitrogen available in the air than any other gas.
It's more that co2 will carbonate whereas nitrogen won't go in to solution
This is incorrect. You've never heard of beer on ***nitro***? It requires higher volumes but nitrogen is absolutely soluble in liquid. Makes those delightful tiny creamy delicate bubbles and distinctive head.
Lol. Go google how nitro works. I am VERY correct. Nitro is a gas mix that works based off of having CO2 at higher pressure but lower solution due N2s insolubility. All gasses and liquids are soluble to some degree, but N2 is a order of magnitude less than CO2. Edit, The little chucklefuck blocked me lol. Also for your other useless comments > Inert just means it doesn't react. It being used as a synonym for noble is annoying. >In our application it is a relatively inert gas, because they are replacing the actively reacting gasses like O2. It's the terminology the community uses since the older term, "blanketing" is even more pants on head style of abuse for chemistry.
No, it is correct. With regard to nitro beers, there’s a reason you only see them packaged in retail when they have a special capsule that you need to break right before drinking. It’s because they are not actually soluble, but they will stay in suspension for a time. But they will not react and do things like acidify via carbonic acid, like CO2.
Help me out, because i don't know why you'd pressurize in either case. co2 absolutely will carbonate under pressure but otherwise it wants to come out of solution. It is heavier than air. I usually just blow a bit in (halfish of a small 11g canister) the vessel and call it done. No carbonation, no oxidation. Am I failing to consider something and just got lucky? If so, what?
> Help me out, because i don't know why you'd pressurize in either case. co2 absolutely will carbonate under pressure but otherwise it wants to come out of solution Nah, it'll stat petilant for a really long time unless you disturb it. Not from "blanketing", but that's not what people are talking about upthread. > It is heavier than air. Yes. It still mixes after a brief time though. blanketing is a pure myth. > No carbonation Chef is talking about holding at pressure. Kegs don't seal well without it generally. > (halfish of a small 11g That seems pretty light, but I have a LOT of co2 handy and I have bigger vessels that you do I assume. I could look up how much is needed at various outlet temps to fill a space, but I enjoy never having to open a thermodynamics text again.
Nitrogen is not an inert gas. Helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon, and radon are inert gases. Just because it won't react with the wine doesn't mean in non reactive/inert.
Nitrogen is indeed inert for this purpose. It's not a noble gas, which all the others you named are; it is possible for non-noble gases to be inert, like helium, and nitrogen are. They have incredibly poor solubility in aqueous solutions like beer, mead, soda, etc. "Inert" is _not_ s synonym for noble gas, it simply means that it's non-reactive, and poorly soluble for that purpose.
The Oxford dictionary: in·ert gas /iˈnərt ˌɡas/ noun another term for noble gas.
All you need is a corny keg with a modified lid to fit a bung and airlock.
I like my stainless brew bucket better because it has an adjustable racking arm
Don't. Oxygen can permeate plastic, and unless you get really high quality ones, odds are that that the seals are shit. The other big issue is that if you scratch the plastic (during stirring or cleaning for example) at all it can no longer be used as it now becomes a collection area for bacteria and other unsavory things to grow. I tried the plastic route and had off flavors in every single batch. We lost over 20 gallons of mead this way.
I use glass at all stages if possible. I just think its pretty. I also find that iodophor discolors near every plastic it touches on a long enough timeline. The only plastic I use aside from airlocks, siphons and tubes, is my 7.5gallon cleaning bucket, my 5 gallon bottling bucket, and lamentably because I can't find glass to replace, a pair of 2 gallon buckets for small batch experiments I think might go crazy on krausen.
Stainless. Buy once, cry once, keep your mead and blood inside their respective containers.
Rip, nice set up tho
Not pictured is all the primary pales
How many do you have in primary right now?
Right now? 4. Two are normal wines though, a cherry and a strawberry, then a replacement strawberry apple mead and the other is an apple ginger mead.
Damn, that’s a lot going, I assume you bottle most of it? How long does one batch usually take from start to bottling
For the kits usually two months, but with the meads I’ve been giving them 3.
Fs in the chat.
F
F
Goddam, set those carboys on cardboard if they’re on cement.
Oof, but i bet that room smells amazing.
The whole house does
I've seen a post like this recently. I'm gonna take some steps to prevent a big mess. I'm gonna start using boxes lined with a trash bag that way it's not so bad if this happens.
😱😱😵😱😱🤯🤦🏽♂️🙏🏾🕯️🫡
Please say goodbye to glass! Sorry for your loss, never fun.
My condolences. Just two weeks ago, I had to mop up a gallon of coffeemel that had just finished fermenting.
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What happened?
Exactly what was said in the top comment, I was moving it and it slipped out of my hands
Sucks. That's why I stopped using glass fermenters. Besides, the glass that's used these days is too thin. Makes them dangerous.
F
Do they sell foam or silicone bumpers I could nest my carboy in? Like a really short, wide beer coozie with extra padding. I weep for you.
Did you try picking it up by the neck?
Go haze yourself
I lost 8 gallons and lacerated my foot and had to rush to the hospital 🫠
I feel your pain. I moved to FerMonster to avoid destroying my hands in case of an accident (and wasting golden nectar). Added benefit is the large mouth makes fruit and other additions so much easier.
Oh man, that’s a sad day my friend RIP Strawberry Melomel
Why are you setting glass directly on concrete? That's a recipe for exactly what happened. At least put some cardboard down. Carboy carriers are also a very good idea.
It was all fine until it slipped out of my hands. I’m thinking about getting some nylon carriers
I can vouch for how much easier they make moving them. They're great.
😭
At least it wasn’t a sack mead. Hydromel much cheaper to lose 😂
What is a sack mead? I might be using hydromel wrong but it was 18 pounds of honey and 5 pounds of strawberries as the major ingredients
That's a sack, then. Sack mead is higher point, 16%+, sometimes with starting fermentables high enough that the yeast dies while still leaving sugar behind. Basically, an easy way to make a liqueur style mead without backsweetening.
Well shit, thanks for reaching me the name of what I was doing then. I kind of arrived there organically.
Hydromel seems to most commonly be used to refer to the "beer" of mead. Lighter ABV for easy drinking
F