Glass V plastic fermenter

[Beerbuddha]

What are your taughts ?

I had 4 glass fermenters but down to two due to helpers with torque deficiency syndrome.

It's nice to see everything with glass but...dangerous(when dropped)...hard to clean....expensive
And I'm thinking with ales stouts I have to use blow off tube due to space in carboys which  looses allot yeast...which I'm not sure is good or bad thing.

My two cent. Yours ?

[Qs]

I like carboys but I find glass a bit more hassle than I can be bothered with. So I've one glass carboy and a couple of PET ones and some buckets. PET carboys are my preference. I dislike bucket lids and I really like being able to see whats going on in my beer. PET is just a bit easier and safer than glass.

[Beerbuddha]

Best of both worlds!

Why can't buckets be clear plastic.

Glass last longer but no idea payback v plastic.

[Qs]

Thats another reason I like the PET carboys, might not last as long as glass but I'm terrible for scratching my buckets.

[Beerbuddha]

I got carboy handles but can't help fear the neck cracks ......carboy smashes.. making mince of one's ankle.

I think carboys are just an accident waiting to happen.

[Beerbuddha]

If certain cleaning compounds are left in carboys for extended periods it's harder to clean the solidified cleaner solution on the glass than the original yeast cake.

[Qs]

I'm gonna build a carboy washer once the weather gets decent and I'm cleaning outside again. Looks easy and very handy once it's done.

[Sorcerers Apprentice]

Standard industrial practice is to leave 25% headspace in the fermenters ie only fill to 75% however the krausen floating on top isn't doing much work converting sugars so whether it's sitting in a blow off vessel or floating I can't see any difference. The burton union system actually works on this principle and the yeast collected in the blow off is used to pitch the next brew
Regarding cleaning I picked up one of those Lidl submersible pumps to make a keg/carboy cleaner myself, when I can get around to it

[Rossa]

You can't bait a bit of ss. Easy to clean, hard to scratch. They can be heavy though...but won't break.

[Hop Bomb]

I love the plastic PET carboys that the vintage shop make. The only draw back I see is they scratch easy but if you dont use anything to clean internally that issue is greatly reduced (soak & rinse to clean). Ive 6 of em & 2 glass ones & the glass ones never get used anymore. I can fit 4 plastic carboys in my ferm fridge. They're easy enough lift when full. Cleaning is handy with warm water & brewers caustic (oxy would do the same) The crud just falls off. They're cheap too & for aging beers they're supposed to give the closest amount of oxygen permeation (correct term?) as a cask if they're pretty full & have a carboy cap on with both ports sealed. You can see fermentation take place in em too which is class (cant see a thing with stainless). 

[molc]

How many litres can you get into a 19/20L carboy for fermenting, leaving enough head-space for Kreustan?I got one of the 19L carboys from the homebrew company(https://www.thehomebrewcompany.ie/19-litre-carboy-with-tap-p-1772.html) for doing secondary on my big beers.

By my calculations, I'd only get about 16L into it if I was reserving enough space. That doesn't even fill a keg, yet alone a few bottles on the side, which makes it a bit useless for fermenting a batch.

[Pheeel]

I have a glass Big Mouth Bubbler. Best carboy I own. They have glass and plastic versions. Not sure if you can get them here though....
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/brewing/brewing-equipment/fermenting-equipment/big-mouth-bubbler

[Hop Bomb]

How many litres can you get into a 19/20L carboy for fermenting, leaving enough head-space for Kreustan?I got one of the 19L carboys from the homebrew company(https://www.thehomebrewcompany.ie/19-litre-carboy-with-tap-p-1772.html) for doing secondary on my big beers.

By my calculations, I'd only get about 16L into it if I was reserving enough space. That doesn't even fill a keg, yet alone a few bottles on the side, which makes it a bit useless for fermenting a batch.

They're 6 US gallon / 23 litre carboys!! I get one full corny out of every PET carboy without even touching the beer on the yeast cake. Il useless you! Close the door behind you 
http://www.homebrewwest.ie/brouwland-quality-pet-carboy-23-litres-with-bung-and-airlock-3278-p.asp

[molc]

Il useless you! Close the door behind you 

Haha, I meant MY carboy was useless Those look the business though - thanks for the link. Will pick one up the next time I put in a HBW order, so I can oggle my beer as it ferments.

Just to check, you fill them with about 20L of beer?

[Qs]

Thats the one I use too. I think I'll buy more soon, I want to get a lot of stuff on this summer and I'd rather avoid buckets altogether.