Handles and plastic vs glass

Northern Brewer General
1

So, I go to fargo for Bison football play off games, I gots to get to country cannery before the game. Look around see whats going on, the guy seems to konw what he is doing, but today he was busy, usually he visits, so I get this carboy handle. Thinking that would make a slick way of moving carboys, I dont have steps, just got to move 50 feet to another room. So since he is busy, I take it up to pay for it, and another guy there says, make sure your not moving full carboys with that. I look at him with the deer in the headlight look, and say huh, He say it will break the top right off. So I think well if you cant use it for that, whats the use in having one, so I get home and see northern brewer also suggests the same. Does anyone use these for full carboys, to carry by the handle, less the hand on bottom of carboy? Does it work?

Well I am cheap, so I buy plastic carboys, heard lots of stories both ways, and there (country cannery) they suggest only glass. Well when I was shaking them by hand before, I had my areation stone, no way on glass, now, I got stone, no more shaking, plus this week I was told, that I may be able to get someones wine set up for $50. or a $100. and I asked glass or plastic, reply all glass. I have used the gfs, glass carboy once. and well its lots of extra weight to carry, and well its hers so I really have to be careful. I have seven 6.5 gallon plastic carboys, four 6.5 gallon pails, one 5 gallon plastic carboy, and access to a 6.5 gallon glass carboy.

What is the general life of plastic carboys? What is the life of glass? I am sure they all vary, glass from what I understand will last til you drop them, and plastic, well how long has anyone had plastic ones in use? I have heard, primary plastic, and secondary has to be glass no matter what. etc…

I actually would like to get a 20 gallon conical plastic fermentor, and just use pumps to get it in there, but I use 5 gallon soda kegs and only have 4 of them and really like my option of having 4 different kinds of beer on tap at a time.

I actually would like to get set up to having 8 taps at a time. Going tomorrow to check out on a chest freezer that I convert over. Then I could have my 8 taps, plus.

Any suggestions are appreciated. Good, bad, or indifferent.

Kevin

2

Buy the brew haulers. If you have access to a sewing machine you can make them very easily.

3

Get the brew hauler or make one something like it.

I would also look for a good pair of non slip gloves for handeling wet glass carboys if you decide to go that way. Bought mine at a tractor supply store.

4

A milk crate works well as a carboy hauler too. Especially for the plastic/better bottles.

5

Definitely great to have the handle so you can get a hold on the carboy while tipping it up and cleaning her out… helps while carrying too, but one hand on the bottom always

6

Best use of the handle I’ve seen: When you fold the handle over the opening, it offers a stable platform for setting a recently washed carboy up in the corner of the room so it can drain/air dry on its own. But yes, always carry by the bottom while stabilizing with the handle.

7

I have made some where around 60 batches with my Better bottles divide that by 3 because I have 3 of them and after 20+ batches in each one they still look just about brand new. I do clean them with a brush even though they say you should’nt and I have never had a problem (knock on wood). Plastic will pretty much last forever as long as you dont use abrasive stuff on it.
The next things I buy will be buckets though just because they are much easier to clean.

Yes if you are planning on doing a long secondary then you would not want to age it in plastic. Just use a Corny keg.