What Fermenter Do You Use?

[BennyBrewster]

Why doesnt anyone ferment i n Jerry cans ?

 

[berazafi]

They are hard to clean

 

[Fingerlickin_B]

FingerlickingB, That looks like an old Olinda fermenter in your top photo!
I've still got one of those left over from when I did my first brew in 1975. I've had to take it out of commission due to a small crack around the tap socket.
J

[post="119623"][/post]​

Yep, sure is

I believe, from memory, the pictured Olinda fermenter first saw action in around 1987/88 (before I inherited it from my mate's dad)...still going strong :chug:

Does yours have the same picture of a brewer with handlebar moustache surrounded by brewing gear on it? :lol:

PZ.

 

[Jim - Perth]

It certainly does &, I think, handlebar moustache man is holding up a foaming stein of beer.
I had two more of these fermenters once (5l & 10l) but my brother used them to mix liquid fertilizer or insecticide during a period when I was not brewing.
Cheers
Jim

 

[berazafi]

Next stage 24 hours after starting, as you can see brew is well underway

 

[Thunderlips]

But yeah just curious to find out what brand fermenters people use.

[post="119346"][/post]​

I started with a Coopers fermenter but two of them were too fat to fit in my fridge so I bought some skinnier ones not long after.
Now I use pails.

 

[Pumpy]

Thunderlips

Like the red taps are they easy to keep clean ?

Pumpy

 

[Thunderlips]

Like the red taps are they easy to keep clean ?

[post="119750"][/post]​

Pumpy, that was the whole point of buying those taps. They are snap taps which screw apart so you can give them a good clean. They cost about $7 or so but they should last a long time.
Here's a pic of the taps, with one taken apart.

 

[AngelTearsOnMyTongue]

Hey Foz and everyone else.

I have a coopers fermenter and also one of the taller thinner ones (Brewmaster I think). ( I will include pics below just for the hell of it......and to show off my brewery)

The no bubbling issue (as everyone has pointed out) is typical of the lid not being sealed properly and just needing another bit of a turn. Certainly I usually have to put a bit of puff into getting the lid off after a brew.

A good way to test your seal is as follows, Once the airlock has been half filled with water, squeeze the sides of the fermenter until the water levels move and then hold the pressure steady. If the levels move back to their original position, the seal is not good. If it stays steady, the seal is good.

Although I am sure the gladwrap works fine. I find the fitted lid are easy and therfore would not bother with the gladwrap. In fact I am pretty sure that if I used the glad wrap, the teams of cockroaches (We have a real plague in Melbourne at the moment) would simply use it as a trampoline before climbing into have a drink. Interestingly, I was curious as to why there were so many cockroaches hanging around my brewery and when I bought some cockroach baits I checked what was in them. The main ingredient.......Malt!

Any way here are some pics.

Coopers fermenter in brewing cupboard.


Brewmaster (?) fermenter on bottling bench.



An just for the hell of it... My brewery......



.....and finally because Im proud of it, my home made capper.......its an absolute beauty!



Any way.....Cheers for now.

 

[peas_and_corn]

OK... I have 6 fermenters

1 Coopers fermenter- I use this mainly as a bottling bucket
2 Brewmasters "skinny" fermenters- I use these in primary
3 Cubes- I use these for secondary. I think I bought too many; I do one batch a week and this means that I only really use one at a time. One is at my friends' place, who is using it to secondary his batch.

 

[Pumpy]

Like the red taps are they easy to keep clean ?

[post="119750"][/post]​

Pumpy, that was the whole point of buying those taps. They are snap taps which screw apart so you can give them a good clean. They cost about $7 or so but they should last a long time.
Here's a pic of the taps, with one taken apart.
View attachment 6697

[post="119808"][/post]​

Thanks THunderlips I am going to get one of those my tap is hopless

Pumpy

 

[AngelTearsOnMyTongue]

Like the red taps are they easy to keep clean ?

[post="119750"][/post]​

Pumpy, that was the whole point of buying those taps. They are snap taps which screw apart so you can give them a good clean. They cost about $7 or so but they should last a long time.
Here's a pic of the taps, with one taken apart.
View attachment 6697

[post="119808"][/post]​

Thanks THunderlips I am going to get one of those my tap is hopless

Pumpy

[post="119818"][/post]​

Yeah. They look great. Where did you get them?

 

[BennyBrewster]

I have those red taps aswell, came with my coopers fermenter. I much prefer it over the normal taps... is way easier to turn off fast when beer is spilling all over the floor.

 

[Ross]

Yeah. They look great. Where did you get them?

[post="119837"][/post]​

Hi atomt - welcome to the forum.

If you fill in your profile details, through the "my controls" tab at the top of this page, then someone local to you is far more likely to respond with a useful answer.

cheers Ross

 

[Fingerlickin_B]

A home made bench capper? Cool! :beer:

PZ.

 

[Thunderlips]

Yeah. They look great. Where did you get them?

[post="119837"][/post]​

I bought online from Brewcraft. I don't really have time to visit the HBS, and it's a bit out of the way, so I often resort to online shops.
Maybe even the likes of Bunnings would sell them.
http://www.liquorcraft.com.au/afawcs011324...nter-Parts.html
Just checked the price again, they are $8.90, but they'll probably last forever.
Item is "Tap snap type with std thread (596)".

Grain and Grape also list them as $5.50 but without a picture I can't tell if they are the same tap. Probably are though.
http://www.grainandgrape.com.au/equipment.htm

 

[Jerry]

I've got 4 fermenters-

3 Coopers for primary and secondary
1 60ltr for the same
and 1 jerry for cold conditiong.

Might have to get some 'skinny' fermenters; they'll fit in the fridge a lot easier than the 'fat' ones.

Cheers

 

[Thunderlips]

1 60ltr for the same

[post="120137"][/post]​

Oh yeah, that reminds me, I've also got a 60L fermenter
I bought it for my 45L keg but have only used it once. If I use that keg I can't fit any others in the fridge, so it limits the variety of beer I can have on tap. It might get more use when I buy a chest freezer.
As for the bubbling airlock, I used to have to turn the lid on my fermenters so hard that I had trouble getting them off, even when using the likes of KY jelly on the o-ring.
Pails are great as the lids snap on and they make a perfect seal. They are real easy to clean too. Only problem is the ones I got do not have capacity markings on them. I had to work it out myself by adding jugs of water.

 

[ausdb]

....and finally because Im proud of it, my home made capper.......its an absolute beauty!

[post="119810"][/post]​

Thats cool!