Plastic bottle carboys

[arcticsid]

Seems like a regular old milk crate, the hard plastic kind, the kind that holds 4(1 gallon) jugs may work as well, at least you have some sort of handles to hang on to.

I've seen these handles that attach to a carboy for lifting, but have never used them. I kinda like the idea of some sort of crate myself.
Troy

 

[Runningwolf]

Troy, those milk crates do work perfect for handling carboys. I only had a few so now I have the red handles on all of mine to assist in lifting. They really work well. I also used the milk crates for bottling but recently I found some new plastic crates that are used in nuseries for their plants and they hold nearly 30 bottles.

 

[winesecrets]

I am excited to know about Allie's apple wine.

 

[Daisy317]

(I realize that this is an old post... but maybe I like zombies)

I am going to purchase a few better bottles tomorrow while I'm out and about. I only have about 3 days until I start my next batch of wine. Then another week or so til the NEXT batch...

I can get 2 BBs for the price of a glass one. My glass ones were getting too heavy anyhow... and I only have one carboy now. I had 2 other glass carboys and I don't really want to talk about what happened to them... Let's just say my feelings were "shattered" by their demise... I don't want to repeat that...

Allie: I will be very interested to see your results also. I have access to "Culligan" bottles for free... but have stayed away from them for wine making for fear of ruining my wine.

 

[arcticsid]

Daisy, I wouldn't be to concerned about using them for you primary ferment, but IMO, it just isn't woth the risk for anything long term.

Besides I am sold on using an open container(bucket) for the primary and just cover it with a cloth.

Others may disagree but it that argument will never be solved.

I am glad you are going with the better bottles they seem to be a real good product. But, I am curious, what are you paying for them? I got a deal but I bought 2 brand new ones for $15 each, the going rate is like $24. These were the 3 gallon ones, at the time all I have was a 5 gallon bucket for a primary, but even the 5 gallon BB are not much more, and like you said, at least you can move them.


Troy

 

[Runningwolf]

$15.00 a piece at Walkers for a five gallon.

 

[St Allie]

Gosh..

I had completely forgotten about this thread.. thanks for the reminder..

The apple wine was bottled a bit earlier.. some in december and some in february.. after I got back from holidays.

My teens had a few bottles a week or so back ( I'm a terrible mum giving them alc.. but they are not allowed to leave the property.. so no one will know!) It was a hit with them.. probably because it was free .. however they said it tasted good ..(it was sweetened..).. and their friends are trying to buy bottles off me now.. (not going to happen!)

There was no plastic taste at all.. so I am inclined to continue using the water bottles.. and any oxygenation in such a short time.. will most probably have given the wine a more aged taste..

Allie

 

[Daisy317]

I use a bucket for primary fermentation. I cover with cheese cloth that has been folded several times and simply sit the lid on the bucket without sealing it. My method hasn't done me wrong so far.

Regular price is $25 for a 6 gal BB locally. When they're on sale you can sometimes get them for 20. A glass one goes for $40+ for the same size. I would rather buy local than online and don't mind paying a little more to keep the little guys open because they're always there when I need something in a pinch!

To keep my hobby from getting out of control I only have one primary bucket (I don't like to bottle a gazillion gallons at once). I like to have an extra empty carboy around to rerack if needed. Plus, I have some major wine making plans in the near future and hate going out a gazillion times for supplies. AND, sometimes they'll throw regulars a discount if you drop a decent amount of coin in the shop at once.

 

[St Allie]

I have two glass 23 litre carboys now.. ( I sold one).. and far prefer my 1 gallon carboys.. I can do small or larger batches.. in a primary and just divide amongst the 1 gallon ones.. they finish quicker and I can put them all in a larger carboy for aging if I choose to.

Am really happy using the water jugs.. both 11 litre and 15 litre carboys for storage up to 5-6 months..particularly for whites as they are drunk earlier.

this is just my preference of course..


do what works for you..

Allie

 

[Daisy317]

Allie: I haven't used the smaller carboys yet, but probably should since I have people who much rather prefer really dry wines. I never really thought of them clearing quicker. Good point!

I'm glad to hear that the water jugs work out for you. I may have to try a batch in one to see how it works out for me.

I haven't bulk aged anything and usually use clearing agents so that I can turn around my wines quicker... Patience is not one of my virtues!

 

[St Allie]

Daisy,

I do love my small carboys..they are the same work as a larger one.. however you don't always have enough fruit for 23 litres at once.

Allie

 

[myakkagldwngr]

I have 1 6 gal. glass, 1 6 gal. plastic better bottle and several 5 gal. water bottles. I would love to go all glass, but at $45 each here locally they are way down on my list. I don't mind the plastic better bottles and $25 from ECK with free shipping is a good deal. When I can swing it, I will buy a glass one from my Mom & Pop just to keep a local business going and some BB's too.
Something else I've considered, but that's still now where in the budget, is a big SS stock pot for a primary. It seems sooner or later all the plastic ones get a cracked lid, or else scratches in the bucket. For about $100 you can buy a 10 gal. stock pot with a lid.

 

[robie]

I have read some good things about Better Bottles (BB) on another forum.

When you have a temperature increase, a BB's walls can expand without blowing the stopper out or leaking out whatever (argon?) is in the gap between the wine and the stopper. It won't typically suck air back in when the temperature goes back down.

A BB can be girdled with a tie-down ratcheted strap. If the wine level in the bottle needs only a couple of cups to fill the air gap, the strap can be tightened a little to raise the level of wine in the bottle, so topping off with marbles or a like wine is not always necessary.

The BB WILL NOT break even if dropped 10 feet while filled with liquid. (Yep, you will have a mess to clean up, but not a shattered carboy.)

The BB DOES NOT affect the taste of the wine.

The BB DOES NOT let in even microscopic amounts of air through the plastic, as many people think.

A BB is much liter than a glass carboy.

To move a BB, you MUST remove the air lock first. Lifting the BB by the neck will suck the solution out of the air lock and into the wine. When you set it back down, any solution left in the air lock will blow out the top of the air lock. Its best to replace the bung/air lock with a solid stopper when moving the BB.

BB is cheaper that a glass carboy.

That BB will virtually last you forever.

You can't put a vacuum on a BB to degas.

 

[Runningwolf]

Robie, keep talking you're convincing me except for the fact I use a vacuum pump and I have a small fortune in the glass already .

 

[TheTooth]

Good summary, Robie. I haven't thought of putting a tie-down strap on my carboy to take up head-space. I might have to try that.

On a side note, the gas in the head space is CO2, which is a byproduct of fermentation.

 

[Wade E]

Yeah, I never thought about the squeezing of the Better Bottle to reduce airspace. I use vacuum procedures for almost all my work so it doesnt fit into my wine itinerary.

 

[NSwiner]

I have 1 6 gal. glass, 1 6 gal. plastic better bottle and several 5 gal. water bottles. I would love to go all glass, but at $45 each here locally they are way down on my list. I don't mind the plastic better bottles and $25 from ECK with free shipping is a good deal. When I can swing it, I will buy a glass one from my Mom & Pop just to keep a local business going and some BB's too.
Something else I've considered, but that's still now where in the budget, is a big SS stock pot for a primary. It seems sooner or later all the plastic ones get a cracked lid, or else scratches in the bucket. For about $100 you can buy a 10 gal. stock pot with a lid.

Wow I can't believe you pay that much for carboys . I pay $20.00 for a 23 liter and $17.00 for a 11.5 liter . That's right here in town but I dod know they pay more then that in the city . Personally I think if you use the water bottles made in the past year the plastic is probably safer then older bottles . I only reuse the plastic bottles that the Ocean Spray juices come in to ferment small batches . I figure if they can store the juices in them for months it can handle some wine for a couple months .

 

[robie]

Dan,
I would never replace my glass. I just don't buy anymore. Yep, you need glass to vacuum. It was so funny the first time I tried to use the vacu vin on my better bottle. The level of wine just kept getting higher and higher, until it dawned on me what was happening.

Tooth,
During bulk aging, some folks put argon in the head space instead of topping off. The problem is that as the temperature goes up, some of the argon gets pushed out. Then, when the temp goes back down, air gets sucked back in. This repeated argon out and air in action eventually will replace much of the argon with air, so you have to lay a new layer of argon to replenish it.

One would still need to replenish the argon in a BB, but just not as often. Of course the best approach is to have a stable temperature in your bulk aging area... which I don't.

 

[TheTooth]

Tooth,
During bulk aging, some folks put argon in the head space instead of topping off. The problem is that as the temperature goes up, some of the argon gets pushed out. Then, when the temp goes back down, air gets sucked back in. This repeated argon out and air in action eventually will replace much of the argon with air, so you have to lay a new layer of argon to replenish it.

One would still need to replenish the argon in a BB, but just not as often. Of course the best approach is to have a stable temperature in your bulk aging area... which I don't.

Interesting. I didn't know people added argon to their carboys. I guess it makes sense. I know they make argon cans to displace air in bottles you want to reclose and save for later. I've never bothered with it, though.

Sorry for the confusion. I thought you couldn't remember what gas was created by fermentation when I saw the question mark next to "Argon" in your original comment. Oops.

 

[bradp]

I had 7 better bottles and 5 of them cracked on the bottom. Now I only use glass.