Yob
Hop to it
But... But.... It ain't shiny...
Best option for a new fermenter
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jackgym
Well-Known Member
Correct in every respect.Feldon said:If your Coopers fermentor is an old one you might want to consider upgrading to their new model which was released a few years ago. Its probably the best designed plastic fermentor going. In tribute to the gladwrappers there is no airlock, just a snug fitting lid. Also a flat panel on the side and slightly more transparent plastic which gives a good view of the yeast activity within (to be able to see what's going on inside is a nice attribute for both new and old brewers - afterall empirical observation is at the heart of all crafts). The best feature is the new designed tap. No threads to harbour bugs - its a push-fit with a silicone seal. And the tap itself breaks apart so you can open it up and easily sanitise every nook and cranny. There is also a removeable 'krausen collar' which helps you cope with more volcanic fermentations (eg. stouts).
coopers fermentor.jpg
http://store.coopers.com.au/coopers-diy-beer-fermenting-vessel-34ltr.html
Air locks give you a false negative and can drive you mad waiting for the "bloop bloop".
Do yourself a favor and get the newer Coopers FV. :chug:
MastersBrewery
Journeyman, the learning never stops
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If we ask nice do you think they could make one the same but shiny SS? The plastic lid would be fine.jackgym said:
For this year's competition season I've trimmed off some dip tubes to use 19L cornies as lagering tanks, expecting to get 15 to 16 L out of each.
When the current lot of cornies are free and bottled off for the comps, I'm thinking of just keeping them on as fermenters for lagers.
The OP didn't indicate whether he bottles or kegs but this could be an option if he's a kegger. What I'll be doing is just brewing over gravity and "liquoring back" as I transfer to the serving keg. Works for the commercials.
Stainless all the way, oxygen free environment.
Plus you can get two brand spanking new Cornie style kegs as dedicated lager fermenters for the same price as a brew bucket.
When the current lot of cornies are free and bottled off for the comps, I'm thinking of just keeping them on as fermenters for lagers.
The OP didn't indicate whether he bottles or kegs but this could be an option if he's a kegger. What I'll be doing is just brewing over gravity and "liquoring back" as I transfer to the serving keg. Works for the commercials.
Stainless all the way, oxygen free environment.
Plus you can get two brand spanking new Cornie style kegs as dedicated lager fermenters for the same price as a brew bucket.
sixfignig
Well-Known Member
On the topic of fermenters I've only ever brewed in buckets and siphoned out into kegs/bottles.
With the taps, how do you ensure the yeast layer doesn't exceed the tap height? Are the taps simply placed high enough not to be a worry, and therefore require a slight tipping of the fermenter to get the last few litres? On a couple recent brews the yeast and trub layer has been quite high (even after cold crashing and gelatin fining).
With the taps, how do you ensure the yeast layer doesn't exceed the tap height? Are the taps simply placed high enough not to be a worry, and therefore require a slight tipping of the fermenter to get the last few litres? On a couple recent brews the yeast and trub layer has been quite high (even after cold crashing and gelatin fining).
Currently I have (edit 6 kegs all up) 3 kegs and sawed about an inch and a half in the old money, off the end of dip tubes to use the 3 kegs as lagering tanks. So when I bottle for the forthcoming comps the yeast should be right down in the well and hopefully bright beer coming out.Camo1234 said:
To extract the beer I'll just make up an "extractor" out of one of my spare beer-out quick disconnects and maybe even snip the end off a bronco hose and tap assembly so I'll get a QD and hose straight up, I've ended up with two broncos somewhere along the line, one of them actually belongs to Chappo I think
come back Chappo all is forgiven.Back on track, I'm intending to underlet into a bottling bucket and bulk prime, might even use the ss brewbucket.
That's for lagering.
When comps are out of the way, then for use as a FV I'll just use the 3 kegs with shortened dip tubes as-is for primary, and lager on the yeast, but the styles I'm thinking of would be along the lines of : ferment 10 days, lager 10 days so I wouldn't be worried about autolysis.
For me the advantage will be that currently I can only fit one fermentor in my kegmate at a time, but you can get three cornies in. I have two Kegmates for fermenting and a kegmate with fonts for serving so I would be able to have 6 kegs either primary or lagering, and three on tap in the serving kegmate so just have a brewOrgy every couple of months. Any kegs in lagering that are getting a bit old can be chilled down to zero as kegmates will go to -1.
Apart from comps I don't bottle so assuming the over-gravity brewing works ok, it should be just as good for ales as well.
BTW a trick I've found with cornies is that if you take out the Pressure relief valve, a UK real ale cask soft spile sticks in there perfectly.. would be my "airlock" for primary and put the prv back in for lagering.
peekaboo_jones
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I've got 4 plastic fermenters, all different but work pretty well.
$200+ for a SS olive oil drum with tap or $50 for new Coopers
http://store.coopers.com.au/coopers-diy-beer-fermenting-vessel-34ltr.html
$200+ for a SS olive oil drum with tap or $50 for new Coopers
http://store.coopers.com.au/coopers-diy-beer-fermenting-vessel-34ltr.html
Weizguy
Barley Bomber
I have a few plastic fermentors (screw-top and clip-top, airlock/no airlock, and tap/no tap) as well, but the SS ones are the only ones that see use these days.peekaboo_jones said:
Don't underestimate the hygiene provided by the stainless, nor the lack of flavour addition/ retention and ease of cleaning, and the volume increase at that price point too.
Dammit, Yob! (Yeah, I'm looking at you and your evil, endless bulk buys!) I also bought a number of KegKing stainless growlers in a BB organised by Yob. Dude, you got a lot to answer for, come Judgement Day.
I was happy with my half dozen plastic vessels until you had that Winequip bulk buy. At the same time I had just bought a Brew Bucket (too small for my brewing these days).
Now I have an Aginox 50 litre with awesome tap, 50 litre Sansone and 15 litre Sansone via Gumtree (both with std. stainless tap), as well as my tiny Brew Brucket and the 80 litre cylindroconical fermentor,
Would I hesitate getting another? Not a problem, funds permitting. Thinking of swapping out the Sansone for another Aginox (thinking, always thinking)...
Weizguy
Barley Bomber
Sorry, not on my planet, buddy.jibba02 said:
Sunshine_Brewer
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Blichmann Engineering is about to release an interesting corny fermenter (Cornical). Have a look on the website, a little more info on how it is used would be good though.
