Questions tagged [carboy]
A jug like container characterized by a narrow opening at its top. Often made from glass however plastic is becoming more popular. Used for primary and/or secondary fermentation and storage of beer, wine and/or meads.
56
questions
2
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Where to buy 2 Gallon or 4 Gallon carboy?
I am looking specifically for 2 gallon or 4 gallon carboys. I have looked on eBay, Amazon, Homebrewing, and many more, but I cannot find a 2 gallon or a 4 gallon glass carboy. There might be some ...
- 135
1
vote
1
answer
42
views
Didn’t completely add a stopper CraftABrew
I want to know if this is a blunder. I put some water but I didn’t have the lid that I’m holding on my hand. It’s been 2 weeks like this and I noticed it when I was adding cascade hops at the end of 2 ...
- 115
0
votes
1
answer
137
views
Why are we missing a 5.5 gallon carboy?
Most winemaker's arsenals have or have available to them carboys from sizes 7.5 gallons all the way down to tiny tincture bottles, however one size that seems to be missing from the list is 5.5 ...
- 975
4
votes
1
answer
98
views
Batch Management - How do you manage your batches for container volume?
So what do you feel is the best way to manage batch sizes?
Personally make oversize batches and try to fit it in the largest carboy I have. For subsequent rackings, I will size the carboy down a size ...
- 975
4
votes
2
answers
163
views
Has your airlock ever shot out of your carboy?
I made a kettle sour and added guava in secondary. Everything was going well for a week. I went out of town for the weekend and noticed my carboy stopper and airlock about three feet away on the floor....
- 41
2
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Carbonation process - Using the carboy
I've been homebrewing for a few months now (it's now my 15th liter!) and i was thinking about making my beer clearer/better.
The best thing i could come up with, in my homebrew gear, was trying to ...
- 131
4
votes
4
answers
175
views
Carboy keep overflowing
I have a 19 liter carboy, and put a 18 liter wort. 10 hours later I woke up and noticed carboy overflow krausen all over it.
I am concerned whether air lock will clogged down and explode. I will not ...
- 229
4
votes
2
answers
759
views
Will dry hopping without a hop bag give me "hop floaties"?
I've read numerous posts and articles on dry hopping in primary, secondary, and kegs. My current brew calls (AIPA) calls for dry hopping. I've think, after reading these articles, that I'd like to ...
- 473
1
vote
1
answer
80
views
[CIDER]: Can I rack in day 4 if there are 20mm of sediments and fermentation is over?
Can I rack in day 4 if there are 20mm of sediments and fermentation is over? Just to get the cider in a second clean fermentation vessel.
- 69
2
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Can I rack to and clear my wine in a lidded plastic bucket without a stopper?
I'm making a Chardonnay wine kit for the first time ever, so bear with me here.
The instructions say to rack the wine from the primary fermenter (which they suggested be a food safe HDPE plastic ...
3
votes
2
answers
416
views
Carboy size 3 or 5 gallon? please
I've got a 15 litre, 3.9 gallon batch of hard cider (I juiced the apples myself and lost the will to live after 20kg). Should I get a 3 gallon or 5 gallon carboy?
I read that when moving the cider ...
- 59
2
votes
1
answer
250
views
Special considerations for primary fermentation in a carboy?
I brewed my first batch this weekend (Scottish Ale) and have been keeping an eye on it during primary, largely out of curiosity but also first-timer's paranoia.
We added too much water before ...
- 1,900
1
vote
3
answers
642
views
Should I worry about this smell?
I have stout fermenting and it has been in my carboy for a little over a week. Yesterday I opened the carboy to make a small intial addition of coffee beans and cacao nibs. Well when I opened it and ...
- 285
5
votes
4
answers
142
views
Contamination concerns when removing stopper?
This might seem dumb to most, but it's only my third batch and I just need some reassurance. So, I occasionally pop out the rubber stopper on my carboy to smell the brew and see if anything funky ...
- 285
2
votes
2
answers
303
views
Better Bottle carboy vs. generic PET carboy
From what I've seen, the 'Better Bottle' carboy is just a PET bottle with a brand name on it. I read that there are some PET carboys that have a special layer of oxygen impermeable material between ...
- 31
2
votes
4
answers
346
views
Carboy versus 2nd Bucket
What are the benefits in using a carboy for a secondary, rather than just using another 5 gallon bucket? I'm just curious because carboys are a pain in the behind to clean properly, and other than ...
- 145
8
votes
5
answers
8k
views
Can I leave my hydrometer in the carboy to tell when fermentation is complete?
I was wondering if anyone leaves a glass hydrometer in their carboy during primary fermentation so that you don't have to take samples. I figured it would be an easy way to tell that the SG has ...
- 193
1
vote
2
answers
785
views
Return samples from a fermtech wine/beer thief to a carboy
I just purchased this wine/beer thief so that I can take more regular samples over the course of fermentation. I plan to float my hydrometer directly in the tube of the thief, which requires me to ...
- 123
6
votes
1
answer
765
views
Best temperature to store carboy after fermentation is complete?
I've got a porter and a stout, both sitting in carboys and both have reached their desired FG reading. However, I'm not able to keg them for another 2-3 weeks because I'm still waiting on a CO2 ...
- 61
6
votes
11
answers
7k
views
Rubber bung keeps getting out
I'm using rubber bungs (with airlock) for my 5l glass carboys, I just got the carboys so it's my first time fermenting in them. I have a problem that rubber bung keep getting out because of the CO2 ...
- 195
11
votes
8
answers
14k
views
I just had my Big Mouth Bubbler carboy shatter, now I'm terrified
I've been using these big mouth bubbler's as my secondary fermentation now for a few months:
I was originally using them as primary as well, but being one that makes pretty high gravity beers, I was ...
- 285
0
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Should I pitch a second round of yeast?
I brewed a Dogfish Punkn clone that was rather heavy on the sediment. I pitched a pretty healthy yeast starter that was working for 30 hours before being pitched probably around 80 degrees, perhaps ...
- 11
4
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Does Dry Hopping create a white film with bubbles?
Might be a weird question!
I have brewed, with a friend, 6 batches of beer so far. An IPA, then a Stout, a Saison, a Doppelbock, an Baltic Porter and finally, the same IPA. All grain, always.
Of all ...
- 509
2
votes
3
answers
212
views
How do I get a turkey baster out of a carboy?
When I was pulling wort out of a carboy to take a hydrometer reading, the bottom part of the baster separated from the head and fell into the carboy. What's the best way to get it out with the fewest ...
- 302
6
votes
5
answers
2k
views
carboy exploded while cleaning
I just tried to clean out a 6.5 gallon carboy that I had used for primary fermentation. First, I hit it with hot water and dumped it out. Then, I put about a half-gallon of hot water with some dish ...
- 302
2
votes
5
answers
5k
views
Glass Carboy with bottom spigot - Can/should it be done?
My friends and I are just getting into homebrewing, and we've been throwing around some ideas to try to simplify things. One of those ideas is to use glass carboys with a bottom spigot in order to ...
- 23
2
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Can I use a 5 gallon carboy for a 3 gallon batch of wine?
I have a 3 gallon wine kit about ready to go from primary in a plastic bucket to secondary in a carboy. This is a port style, so I think I should be getting more fermentation action once I'm in the ...
- 21
4
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Why Don't we Shake the Carboy
From chemistry I recall that we were supposed to shake almost everything in order to get the elements to react.
With wort, however, we simply dump yeast in and wait 4 weeks before bottling.
I would ...
- 3,857
2
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Advice for filling a carboy
I'm fairly new to brewing, I've done 3 kits so far. Last time I brewed in a 23 litre, glass carboy but I found getting the malt extract into it really difficult. The only way I managed to do it was to ...
- 123
2
votes
1
answer
149
views
Using a much larger than necessary carboy
This is a very simple question. I have a batch of German wine that will yield 2.5 gallons. Is there any issue with using a 6 gallon glass carboy to let it ferment in?
- 695
2
votes
2
answers
155
views
Makeshift carboy
Can I use a large jug, such as a Carlo Rosse bottle, with an added airlock as a carboy for fermentation? Are there any issues with this or things I should make sure to do?
- 695
1
vote
1
answer
1k
views
using a 6 gallon carboy as a secondary when brewing 5 gallons of beer
I have a 5 gallon glass carboy that I use for a secondary when making 5 gallon batches. I would love to get two batches of beer going at a time and I have a 6 gallon carboy that I've used for wine. ...
- 135
1
vote
4
answers
5k
views
How far to insert stopper in carboy?
For my last 1 gallon batch, I decided to avoid my common problem of overflowing my airlock, by using a proper blow-off. So I bought myself a stopper, hose, and double-sided barb from my LHBS. I ...
- 675
1
vote
2
answers
295
views
Carbonating cider
I'm carbonating my cider in 1 gallon glass carboys and my solid rubber bungs popped off a few times so I tied them down with cable ties. Can anyone tell me if this is ok and the carboy can take the ...
- 11
1
vote
3
answers
169
views
105 Day Fermentation?
I am half dozen or so batches into my homebrewing "career" (Saison du Buff, Jasmine IPA and Midas Touch among my highlights) I found a recipe for a darker saison. I made some modifications (chocolate ...
- 91
2
votes
3
answers
275
views
Building Custom Sized Carboys
I have a chest freezer that I want to use to control fermentation temperature, that I'm hoping to use to with two five gallon beer batches. Unfortunately, the bottom of the freezer has two levels, ...
- 21
0
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Can't get my glass carboys completely clean
I've been relatively active on homebrewtalk.com, have read the cleaning chapter of How to Brew half a dozen times, and watched the instructional video that came with my kit on how to clean carboys. I ...
- 195
6
votes
3
answers
4k
views
How long can I let my fermentation go in the original bucket?
I'm brewing a Belgian Tripel. I don't typically use a secondary fermentation. The Tripel however, is my biggest beer so far, and requires much more time. Should I transfer to a secondary?
All I have ...
- 383
10
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Holding a glass carboy by its neck
Is it safe to carry a filled glass carboy by its neck, using one of these carboy handles?
The weight of the glass + beer, combined with the brittleness of glass, makes me nervous (compared to a PET ...
- 1,323
5
votes
2
answers
977
views
Lagering in plastic carboy vs glass
I use plastic PET carboys ("Better Bottle" brand) for fermentation, mainly because they're cheaper, lighter, and safer. I use only chemicals to clean them (no brushes), so I'm not too worried about ...
- 1,323
12
votes
6
answers
18k
views
Why is a carboy used for secondary fermentation?
It seems like you could a second bucket for the secondary fermentation. Is there any drawback to not using a carboy for this purpose?
- 223
7
votes
3
answers
18k
views
Secondary Fermenter Temperature -- Colder?
My American Pale Ale has been fermenting away nicely for the past few days and I'm certain I'll be racking to secondary within a few days (after SG gets stable).
I'm curious: I've been keeping my ...
- 331
4
votes
3
answers
5k
views
checking gravity during and after fermentation?
How could I pull out a little from my carboy to take gravity readings during fermentation?
I tried to use a auto-siphon but it was a mess.
- 1,797
7
votes
10
answers
4k
views
How can I permanently mark my carboys?
I have several glass carboys which I would like to permanently mark with gradations to measure liters and gallons. I've tried using permanent marker as well as heavy-duty tape, but inevitably both ...
- 1,522
12
votes
5
answers
12k
views
How Do You Sanitize Your Carboys?
When sanitizing your carboys, do you fill them all the way up (6+ gallons) with sanitizer or do you put in less and swirl it around?
This may depend on what type of sanitizer is being used. I'm using ...
- 382
6
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Glass Carboy Drying Tips
Does anyone know of any tips to help a 5 gallon glass carboy dry faster? I have it in a bay window in the sun, upside down in a carboy drying rack. It is mostly dry in 24 hours but there is still ...
- 649
8
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Cold Conditioning in carboy vs keg
I have a wheat and a golden ale, both in 5 gal carboys, that have been in secondary fermentation for 2 weeks. I was planning on letting them settle for another week and then transferring them to kegs ...
- 649
3
votes
4
answers
4k
views
Adding oak chips to a carboy
I use bourbon-soaked oak chips in my scotch ale. My last batch got infected, but that's another story.
I want to add the chips to a carboy, as I'll be aging it for over a month. It's easier to add ...
- 5,170
5
votes
4
answers
11k
views
Confused about using a carboy
I am BRAND NEW to home-brewing having just got a kit yesterday. The nice gent at the supply store gave us so much information that my head was swimming when we left. After reading web sites and "How ...
- 113
13
votes
2
answers
5k
views
5 or 6 Gallon Glass Carboy
I'm looking to pick up a glass carboy, but I'm not sure which size. I brew in 5 gallon batches (just starting out) and I'm wondering if I should go with the 5 gallon or 6 gallon carboy.
Thoughts? ...
- 305