Glass carboys

[quantum24]

ive been using plastic for primary for a while now, and have decided to switch to glass carboys. my question is what are the pros and cons of 6 and 6.5 gallon carboys? i assume that the extra space will not have a negative effect because the co2 pushes out any o2, and also that the extra space will be good for doing big beers. am i wrong here? (btw the 6.5 is only 1 dollar more). and last question how many of these things do you guys own? ive got 2 5's now and am thinking about getting another ( as well as two big ones) this hobby is REALLY addictive:)

[Tweek]

You were right about the extra headspace, it comes in handy when you dont want to use a blowoff tube. For a buck more go ahead and go with the extra space, where this will also come in handy is when you have a lot of trub in the bottom and you need to leave behind a lot of beer, you could have filled it more and end up with full volume in the end, instead of getting shorted. I think this is all about style, I use the 6.5s for my primary than rack to 5s I know a lot of people who just own 5s and they use blowoffs. I have 4 6.5s and about 8 5s.

[S.F.B.]

I am still using 2 6.5 gal. plastic buckets. They are in good shape after 2.5 years. I will be switching to glass when I need to replace these. I will go with the 6.5's or larger for the reasons you stated. As for secondaries, I have 5 5 gal. carboys.

[BenP78]

Now i've been told that a blow-off tube will allow the fermentation to push out excess hops and other junk, resulting in clearer, better beer. I figure you lose some yeast, too, but that's not a big deal.

So if blowing off excess hop particles is one of the advantages of using a blow-off system, why wouldn't you use it?

Or am I wrong here?

[Tweek]

I have used both methods many times. I cannot tell the diference between batches that I used a blowoff and batches that I did not.

The reason that I dont use blowoffs with a 5 gallon carboy anymore is that I dont like to loose the extra volume of beer that you loose when you do. Another thing I dont like about blowoffs is that there is more surfaces in contact with the wort leaving more potential for problems. That last part is just my paranoia, I have never actually had a problem due to a blowoff tube not being clean or the other end coming out of solution, but there is always that potential. I also am "pretty" good about racking when it is time to rack so it is rare that I get a batch that has off flavors from laying on the trub too long. That has happened to me 2 times and each time I was being real lazy- REAL LAZY. I usually have several batches fermenting at any given time so I can afford to wait quite a while before I bottle/keg so clear beer is never an issue for me. The main reason why I dont use a blowoff setup is because it requires two containers one for beer and one for some sort of sterile solution to blow off into. I like to keep floor/counterspace that is occupied by fermenting vessels to a minimum so I just go with a slightly bigger carboy and an airlock.

However I do still use a blowoff on my 6.5 when brewing big beers with the potential to overflow.

[paul84043]

It's really not that much of a benefit, I think losing active yeast and a ton of beer is the biggest downside of using a blowoff and a 5 gallon glass carboy. I wouldn't recommend it for your primary.
I did a porter and lost almost 3/4 gallon of beer through blowoff, not to mention the potential mess if the tube falls out or something goes wrong, which it did with mine....
6.5's are perfect, and 5's are perfect for secondary.

When you transfer, you leave all that "stuff" behind, so don't sweat that part at all.

I currently have 2 - 6.5's, 4 - 5's, and 2 plastic conical fermenters. All my primaries are going constantly and I typically have one 5 sitting Idle. I intend to busy it with a lager for a while.

Glass is perfect for brewing, but...GET THE HANDLES!!!!! Don't even think about it without them! Dropping a glass carboy is everyones biggest bitch, avoid it from step one, put a handle on them and don't ever take it off!

This will probably crack up some of the long time brewers, but..I spent more than a couple hundred dollars on my conical fermenters. They are really cool and they do thier job to perfection, but if I were to start again with what I know now, I would have just bought the glass carboys and spent the 200$ on my 12 gal. stainless conical fermenter that I'm building.

[Redbird Fan]

Nothing wrong with either - pro's and con's you ask - Here's my thinking -

Pro's to 6.5 glass -

Allows you more brewing flexibility (as mentioned in the other posts)
More cost effective (probably not going to have to replace as often)
Reduces the chance for contamination (from the vessel itself) - The plastic bucket lends itself to scratches and requires more thorough cleaning (and more time), plus, you never really get rid of the hops funk from the plastic bucket (you won't experience that with the glass)
Always a conversation piece when people find it fermenting in some conspicuous area of your house (my bathtub for example)

Con's to 6.5 glass -

Harder to clean, even with the elbow brush the kraeusen can be pesky around the curvature of the carboy (toward the neck).
Much heavier when full - harder to move.
You have to be more protective from UV - keep it out of the light!
Transferring and bringing to volume is slightly harder, you have to create your own markings (per gallon) or come up with a different system to bring to volume when you transfer.

All that said, get the 6.5 carboy - you'll be glad you did!

[shughes600]

Originally posted by Tweek
You were right about the extra headspace, ... ... ... ... I have 4 6.5s and about 8 5s.

Tweek, do you need a special permit to brew all those at the same time. How about an exhaust fan for all that CO2. I hope you have a CO2 monitor somewhere in your house. Seriously.

[paul84043]

Ha!! I thought that same thing! I can smell beer when I walk through my front door!

Luckily, most of your common detectors are CO, or carbon monoxide detectors!! Just put a bunch of plants in the "brewin' Room" and watch them grow!

[quantum24]

thanks for the replies... but now i have another question. i went with the 6.5 but also bought another 5 (at least that is what i thought). when i got home i racked a wheat beer into the 5, which, i found out after doing so, was really a 6. so now ive got 5 gallons in a 6 gallon carboy. will this head space be really bad for the beer if i only plan on keeping it their for 2 weeks?

[paul84043]

No, don't sweat it, it should have enough C02 to keep it covered.
It's just not a good idea to use them as secondaries on a regular basis.
I did a Porter that blew off almost a gallon, when I racked to the secondary it was probably as low as yours is now. It tastes just fine.