Aussie Made Durable Hydrometers And Carboys

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Lokkness

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Hi all,

I've been watching in the shadows for a while now... so yes this is my first post... But been on the site for a while now...

Recently within my local brewing crowd, durable or plastic hydrometers and carboys have been a big topic..

Especially the hydrometers, which Coopers make, but are ONLY available for seperate purchase in the US... They do come in the starter kits from coopers, but are not available for purchase by themselves...

I recently emailed Coopers in Australia and the US, asking about purchasing the product and got these replies:

Hello Lokki,

Are you a U.S customer? If so, we do have those available on our site at Makebeer.net .

If you are an Australian customer please contact Coopers in Australia to find out how to source one.

Cheers,

Barbara White





Hello Lokki,

Theyre not sold separately at the moment, sorry mate.

Cheers, Frank.




Frank Akers Customer Service and Tour Coordinator

Coopers Brewery Ltd

PO Box 46

Regency Park 5942

Adelaide, SA

So i started making a few enquiries into the BetterBottle carboys also... CraftBrewer have em for $49... but they don't come with the bung/tap that is available, which i know won't matter to people.... The other problem with them, is they flex... that seems to be the biggest fault that people have with them... the guys that use glass carboys that I know, really use them because they are very particular about their process, and contamination matters, so they shy away from the BetterBottles....

So my question to the brewing community is, if a plastic/durable hydrometer and an even better BetterBottle that may even be cheaper was available, would people buy it?

I know some people in manufacturing and have looked into the possibility of making these.. it just depends if there is a market for em...

Any feedback would be great!

Happy brewing ^^
-Lokki
 
cheaper better better bottle yep. i would buy one.
 
I forgot to ask, especially with the better bottle, what improvements would people make? other than a no flex & cheaper version... any other physical design changes etc, such as handles, removable top for cleaning etc...

Cheers ^^
-Lokki
 
Would like an affordable/easily cleanable tap system.
 
after venting frustration to coopers about the US having the plastic hydrometers availabe and not us Aussies... I got this reply:

Sorry Lokki,



That was mistake on the part of the distributor in the US (or rather one of his employees). He has now taken them down off his website. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We will be selling them at some stage in the future but I dont have timeline for you.



Cheers, Frank.





Frank Akers

Brewing Advisor

Coopers Brewery

Adelaide, SA



Seems there aren't ANY available anymore... lol
 
That's the spirit - if we can't get it, nobody else should either!
 
Break a hydrometers? ... buy a refractometer, simple. :)

I also don't see the point in a plastic carboy type fermenting vessel, glass for sure, because it has many benefits due to it being glass. However I don't see why it matters what shape a plastic container is, and I doubt you'll be able to produce them cheaper than the more standard shaped plastic fermenting containers. I presume the Betterbottle type fermentor is 'big' in the USA, where they are more used to using glass containers that shape, where there is not really much like that in Australia. Carboy shaped containers are hard to move, use and clean, they are also hard to attach a tap to, so they are much less flexible than other more regular plastic fermenting containers. How would you attach the 'snap tap' linked above to a carboy, there is no thread on it, and the only inlet/outlet is the neck of the bottle?
 
Would like an affordable/easily cleanable tap system.

Piece of 10mm dowel that fits inside, tap over it, thumb on the spout and grip the rest of the body with the turnsable component unrestricted. Sharp tap/bang on concrete, out comes tap. Takes 2 seconds.

I don't see a major advantage behind the better bottle for my brewing. I age some beers in glass and ferment most straight in my no chill cube.

Durable hydrometer, if it remains accurate - yes.
 
We need (IMO) a hydrometer with etchings of the SG scale on one side & Plato on the other. Why they use paper with a poofteenth of glue to stick it on the inside is beyond me.
 
Why can't someone make an aluminium hydrometer?
 
Break a hydrometers? ... buy a refractometer, simple. :)

I also don't see the point in a plastic carboy type fermenting vessel, glass for sure, because it has many benefits due to it being glass. However I don't see why it matters what shape a plastic container is, and I doubt you'll be able to produce them cheaper than the more standard shaped plastic fermenting containers. I presume the Betterbottle type fermentor is 'big' in the USA, where they are more used to using glass containers that shape, where there is not really much like that in Australia. Carboy shaped containers are hard to move, use and clean, they are also hard to attach a tap to, so they are much less flexible than other more regular plastic fermenting containers. How would you attach the 'snap tap' linked above to a carboy, there is no thread on it, and the only inlet/outlet is the neck of the bottle?

They're made from PET not HDPE, so they're supposed to give you the benefits of a glass carboy without the potential danger of using a massive piece of glass. You can also purchase them with a predilled hole for a tap. Unfortunately the tap setup and the other accessories are extremely expensive.

Their PET is supposed to have negligible oxygen permeability and not as easy to scratch, not as good as glass but better than HDPE.

</end sales brochure>
 
Why can't someone make an aluminium hydrometer?
The originals were made of copper or brass, not sure, but you slid weights on the shaft till you got a balanced reading, Near on unbreakable, now we have cheap breakable throw away shit.
I haven't found a refractometer I would trust yet.
Nev
 
They're made from PET not HDPE, so they're supposed to give you the benefits of a glass carboy without the potential danger of using a massive piece of glass. You can also purchase them with a predilled hole for a tap. Unfortunately the tap setup and the other accessories are extremely expensive.

Their PET is supposed to have negligible oxygen permeability and not as easy to scratch, not as good as glass but better than HDPE.

</end sales brochure>
You talking Better Bottle ?
Nev
 
Their PET is supposed to have negligible oxygen permeability and not as easy to scratch, not as good as glass but better than HDPE.
... it just cant manage hot water or some chemical cleaners.

But fair point on the PET stuff, but it's still not a big enough selling point to change my mind about what I said. ;)
 
Actually Nick I know why, so does the missus in the past few years I think I've been through like $100 worth of hydrometers, usually when cleaning up they've been bumped or dropped. If I had an ss one I wouldnt have had to buy another and another, having said that I'm sure alot of brewers would be prepared to pay good money for the right product to make these measurements acurately without the fragility of glass. Maybe something for one of our site sonsors to look into. ;)
 
Actually Nick I know why, so does the missus in the past few years I think I've been through like $100 worth of hydrometers, usually when cleaning up they've been bumped or dropped. If I had an ss one I wouldnt have had to buy another and another, having said that I'm sure alot of brewers would be prepared to pay good money for the right product to make these measurements acurately without the fragility of glass. Maybe something for one of our site sonsors to look into. ;)
Yep if you can find one I am sure there is a market, more suited to upmarket brewers with heaps of dollars. Let me know if you do .
Nev
 
the vessel I would be looking at would want to incorporate all the advantages in different fermenting vessels... a carboy seems the most popular amongst brewers but it still has it's drawbacks... I would like to design a durable and safe container, that was an ideal shape both for storage, transport and safety, while keeping all the wanted brewer specs such as being clear to observe fermentation, easy to clean, easy to access etc etc...

BetterBottle carboys seem to have a more major drawback in the transport and cleaning side, where they are harder to get into as normal carboys, but can scratch with abrasives, and flex when you pick up a full one which can draw in contaminants... so really trying to give us brewers somethign where we can have our cake and eat it!!

The SS hydrometer sounds great, but may be on the pricey side... a plastic one may be cheap, durable and easily manufactured... it depends on how much people would be willing to pay i suppose... love the etched scale instead of a painted one... seems like that is something to definitely look into alone...
 
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