Using Willow 'jerrys' As Fermenters

[Wolfy]

That blue one is what i am thinking of, 2 of them would be perfect. Is it a willow or something else? Should i head to kmart, bunnings?

I'm cheap, so I got them from here: http://www.crownconcepts.com.au/ but that does not help if you're in Sydney.

 

[pk.sax]

You'll be surprised at how untroublesome it is. Might leak a touch if it's super full but compared to a normal drum fermenter, I seem to have less crazy krausen trying to break free.

@wimmig - I get mine from Kmart.

Its a wheat beer... Well, We'll see!! haha. Didn't drill the lid, just rubberbanded a piece of clingwrap and poked a blow tube into that then tried to wrap it in clingwrap.

 

[Wimmig]

Went with the willows from kmart. Waiting for reply from G&G for bung sizing to use for blow off tubes.

Do people NC into these 20L willow carry/jerry cans, are they ok with 90c - 100c? Read about the expanding gas problem with napisan etc. Thanks for that.

 

[Spork]

Love the jerrys. Better than the cubes IMO, as I can only fit one cube in each of my fermenting fridges, but I can squeeze 3 jerrys into the fridge and 2 fit easily into the unmodified freezer.
I put about 21 litres of wort into them and have only had the krausen escape once.

 

[Dazza88]

Went with the willows from kmart. Waiting for reply from G&G for bung sizing to use for blow off tubes.

Do people NC into these 20L willow carry/jerry cans, are they ok with 90c - 100c? Read about the expanding gas problem with napisan etc. Thanks for that.

I no chill into 'em.

There are HDPE so yes can no chill. You don't need to no chill at 100C, 90C is ok. Just make sure your container is well cleaned, sanitised and tighten the lids and taps to the best of your ability (without breaking anything) and remove as much air as possible (though squeezing in the container too much isn't recommended, i.e. 16L in 22L container, any tiny leak will suck in air later = infection).

 

[Wimmig]

I no chill into 'em.

There are HDPE so yes can no chill. You don't need to no chill at 100C, 90C is ok. Just make sure your container is well cleaned, sanitised and tighten the lids and taps to the best of your ability (without breaking anything) and remove as much air as possible (though squeezing in the container too much isn't recommended, i.e. 16L in 22L container, any tiny leak will suck in air later = infection).

Thanks,

I'll let the BM drop to 90C after the boil before i run it off. I run starsan for everything, never had a problem and the jerrys don't have any drilled tap bungs (going to use siphon). Whenever i did NC cubes i always overfilled them to the lid and then let a bit go (100ml or so). So 0 room for infection, plus the starsan snake effect always makes me happy.

Will NC right from BM this Friday. Thanks for all the help.

 

[Wimmig]

Anybody have any idea which rubber stopper is the best bet? I sent G&G an email, still waiting for them to get back and i had hope of placing an order tonight. I took the following measurments;

The initial width of the opening is 48.8mm - 49.33mm. Though slightly into the opening (about 5mm) it seems to taper in to about the 46mm - 48mm.

 

[domfergo]

i have just started no chilling in jerrys, never occured to me to ferment in them as well.

I have always just rinced the hell out of them with hot water and put star san in them to keep them clean.

how do you go about cleaning a jerry after fermentation if you cant get into it to give it a wipe down?

i am liking the idea though, more beer fermenting at one time makes me happy!

Cheers

Mass

 

[manticle]

http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...showarticle=197

 

[QldKev]

I'm also a ferment in a jerry can convert. When I'm doing lagers I tie up my fridge longer, with jerry cans I can get an extra batch in there. If they were a bit thinner, then I could have gotten 3 in the bottom shelf. They are also to tall for the top shelf.




The ice bricks are in there from when I initially threw the cubes in to help get down to temp faster. Even this time of year the room temp is still mid 20's during the day.


QldKev

 

[stux]

Grolsch

What's the PVC pipe/fan contraption at the back?

 

[Wolfy]

I'm also a ferment in a jerry can convert. When I'm doing lagers I tie up my fridge longer, with jerry cans I can get an extra batch in there. If they were a bit thinner, then I could have gotten 3 in the bottom shelf. They are also to tall for the top shelf.

The blue-jerrys (pictures on 1st page) that I use stack ontop of each other, you could fit 4 or even 5 in the fridge at the same time.

 

[QldKev]

Grolsch

What's the PVC pipe/fan contraption at the back?

Funny thing about the spelling of Grolsch, my 19 year old son who doesn't drink beer, looked at it and said it was spelt wrong. :angry:


The pipe is just a vent tube with a pc fan on it. A couple of years back I measured the temps in the fridge and found a couple of degrees difference between the top and bottom fermenters. So I added the pc fan to help circulate air top to bottom. When I made the HERMS-IT I had some of the pipe left over and though ducting the air would ensure it moved from very bottom to the very top. You can't see it in the pic, but the top fermenter is forward on the shelf, and the air stream coming out of the tube gets all the way to the top of the fridge.

Also I did have a problem when I set the temp to chill the beer after fermenting the cooling panel would freeze up solid and the fridge would take forever to drop in temp. With the fan blowing across it, I never have the issue anymore.

The blue-jerrys (pictures on 1st page) that I use stack ontop of each other, you could fit 4 or even 5 in the fridge at the same time.

I may have to measure them up, they could fit better. Even if they are just a bit shorter I could squeeze 2 on the top shelf for anytime I need to brew lots for catch ups.

QldKev

 

[Wimmig]

Finished the design for the B/O assembly for the willows. Pics below. Water tight, no leaks overnight test. External o-ring is additional to the large heavy duty inner ring. Used a dremmel to punch through initial material, then a sanding cylinder to match it up. From there, i used a thin flexi scalpel (#15) and trimmed the internal material from the outside in. Following the walls of the inner lip, got it smooth. 316 barbs, the perfect solution. 2001 rocking on now, at 10c Click on the thumbs for a big version.

 

[DKS]

Finished the design for the B/O assembly for the willows. Pics below. Water tight, no leaks overnight test. External o-ring is additional to the large heavy duty inner ring. Used a dremmel to punch through initial material, then a sanding cylinder to match it up. From there, i used a thin flexi scalpel (#15) and trimmed the internal material from the outside in. Following the walls of the inner lip, got it smooth. 316 barbs, the perfect solution. 2001 rocking on now, at 10c Click on the thumbs for a big version.

Nice work wimmig. Ill have a go at one of those.
I have the bunnings round and square jobbies but might go to jerries or cubes with this little gadget to catch top crop. Excellent.
Daz

 

[Wimmig]

Nice work wimmig. Ill have a go at one of those.
I have the bunnings round and square jobbies but might go to jerries or cubes with this little gadget to catch top crop. Excellent.
Daz

It's perfect. I was wanting to use a bung and blowoff, but lack of needed information and the variation in internal neck size stopped me. This works a treat. Get an extra cap / sacrifice, you will destroy one the first time.

 

[seemax]

how do you go about cleaning a jerry after fermentation if you cant get into it to give it a wipe down?

Hot water and PBW/sodium perc = clean jerry!

Bit of rice too if you want some friction... rinse well... then starsan or equiv

 

[tiprya]

That barb out solution looks great - can someone post what the parts look like?

So it's two pieces, one on the inside and one on the outside, with an o-ring on the outside?

 

[Wolfy]

That barb out solution looks great - can someone post what the parts look like?

So it's two pieces, one on the inside and one on the outside, with an o-ring on the outside?

In stainless:
Hose Barb: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/290677130916?ss...984.m1423.l2649
Nut: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/LOCKNUT-1-2-NPT...=item43af16a7f8
O-ring: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/140767947262?ss...984.m1497.l2649
With that nut, I'd put the o-ring on the inside of the cap, so that it does not deform and squish out like in the photo above.

 

[tiprya]

Cheers Wolfy - makes perfect sense now.

Going to get two jerries rigged up in my wine fridge with a blowoff.